Bulimia is a chronic eating disorder. It is characterized by
periods of eating and then trying to avoid weight gain. Bulimia
has important physical, psychological, and social components.
Effective treatment must address all three of these. Individuals
with bulimia secretly eat large amounts of food in a short
period. This is called binge eating. They then try to avoid
weight gain. They may do this by one of the following methods:
fastinginducing vomitingusing laxatives to have bowel
movementstaking diuretics, or water pills Symptoms of bulimia
may include the following: amenorrhea, which refers to decreased
or absent menstruationdenial of the behaviorexcessive exercise,
even if the person is underweightfear of gaining weight or
becoming fatfeeling of disgust or self-loathingneed for frequent
weighingoverachievement in a variety of areasperiods of not
eating followed by eating bingesproblems with body image purging
(inducing vomiting)unusual eating habits and rituals Bulimia is
thought to be a result of social