Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Consulting

Eating disorders are complex conditions that arise from a combination of long-standing behavioral, biological, emotional, psychological, interpersonal, and social factors. Scientists and researchers are still learning about the underlying causes of these emotionally and physically damaging conditions. While there may be a difference of opinion among experts and within the literature regarding the causes of eating disorders, there are some generally accepted factors that contribute to their development.

Eating disorders may begin with preoccupations with food and weight, but they are most often about much more than food. People with eating disorders often use food and the control of food in an attempt to compensate for feelings and emotions that may otherwise seem over-whelming. For some, dieting, bingeing, and purging may begin as a way to cope with painful emotions and to feel in control of one’s life, but ultimately, these behaviors will damage a person’s physical and emotional health, self-esteem, and sense of competence and control.

Psychological Factors that can Contribute to Eating Disorders:

• Low self-esteem
• Feelings of inadequacy or lack of control in life
• Depression, anxiety, anger, or loneliness
  

  Interpersonal Factors that can Contribute to Eating Disorders:

• Troubled personal relationships
• Difficulty expressing emotions and feelings
• History of being teased or ridiculed based on size or weight
• History of physical or sexual abuse
  

  Social Factors that can Contribute to Eating Disorders:

• Cultural pressures that glorify “thinness” and place value on obtaining the “perfect body”
• Narrow definitions of beauty that include only women and men of specific body weights and shapes
• Cultural norms that value people on the basis of physical appearance and not inner qualities and strengths
  

  Biological Factors that can Contribute to Eating Disorders:

• Scientists are still researching possible biochemical or biological causes of eating disorders. In some individuals with eating disorders, certain chemicals in the brain that control hunger, appetite, and digestion have been found to be unbalanced. The exact meaning and implications of these imbalances remains under investigation.

• Eating disorders often run in families. Current research is indicates that there are significant genetic contributions to eating disorders.

Eating disorders can originate from a complex interplay of multiple factors.   Once an eating disorder is set in motion, they can create a self-perpetuating cycle of physical and emotional destruction. All eating disorders require professional help.