for about 7 months I have been having eating 'problems' and recently I have noticed a difference in my periods. Last month I only had it for two days, and this month, I got it 3 days early and it only lasted a day. My weight isn't low, im 5'3 and around 123. Just wondering if this is what it could be, is it serious, etc. Thanks .
p.s. not preg. so that's out. ednos-- bulimia and anorexia.
don't be rude. ANOREXIA
Individuals with anorexia refuse to maintain a minimal body weight and exhibit marked body image disturbance. Symptoms may include:
Ritualistic eating, eating the same low calorie, low fat foods day after day
Obsessive preoccupation with food yet eating very little
Social Isolation
Compulsive and excessive exercise
Mood Swings
Denial that anything is wrong
Loss of menstruation
Anorexia Nervosa is a dangerous disorder. More people die each year from anorexia than any other psychiatric disorder.
BULIMIA
This disorder is characterized by reoccurring episodes of binge eating (eating large, excessive amounts of food in a relatively short period of time), followed by purging to avoid weight gain. Purging may include self-induced vomiting, compulsive and excessive exercising, fasting or dieting, the use of laxatives, diuretics, diet pills.
Symptoms May Include:
Depression
Suicidal thoughts
Social Isolation
Secretive Behavior
Increasingly eating alone
Mood Swings
Impulsive Behavior that may include drug use
The medical complications of Bulimia are dangerous as are the emotional side effects from this disorder. More bulimics die of suicide than medical complications.
BINGE EATING
Compulsive overeaters feel out of control with food. Once they start eating they feel as if they cannot stop. They repeatedly diet in order to try to regain control. Many compulsive overeaters feel they overeat at each meal and depression is common as their repeated efforts to change have failed. Others eat more normally at meals but binge eat with out active purging on a regular basis. These binges feel out of their control. Many ore overweight and feel extreme shame and isolate themselves which increases feelings of low self-esteem and depression.
Symptoms may include:
Yo Yo dieting
Pre-occupation with food
Fear of not having enough to eat
Fear of not being full
Feeling of guilt
Binge Eating
Medical complications include diabetes, heart disease and hypertension.
Study: Eating disorders upset menstruation
Friday, July 6, 2007
NEW YORK, Reuters Health
Any type of eating disorder can boost a woman's likelihood of having irregular menstrual periods, a new study confirms.
Based on the findings, "when someone's got irregular menstruation, eating disorders should be on the radar screen," Dr. Cynthia M. Bulik of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the study's lead author, told Reuters Health. Missing periods raises a woman's risk of osteoporosis, Bulik noted, and may also impair fertility.
According to current diagnostic criteria, anorexia nervosa is the only eating disorder subtype associated with menstrual irregularities, Bulik said. A woman must have absence of menstrual periods for at least three months to be diagnosed with anorexia nervosa.
But in a survey of 1,705 women participating in a genetic study who met strict diagnostic criteria for eating disorders, Bulik and her team found menstrual irregularities including absence of periods, skipping periods, and very light periods among women with every subtype of eating disorder, including bulimia nervosa.
Nearly 80 percent of women with anorexia reported secondary amenorrhea, meaning they had begun having periods before age 16 but had stopped menstruating for at least three months in a row at least once.
About 36 percent of women with bulimia nervosa had secondary amenorrhea. Among women who fell into the "eating disorder not otherwise classified" group, 30.4 percent reported secondary amenorrhea.
The factors most strongly associated with menstrual dysfunction included a person's body mass index (BMI), her calorie intake, and her level of exercise. Women who menstruated normally had the highest maximum and minimum lifetime BMIs, the researchers note, but even some women of normal weight reported menstrual irregularities.
The findings suggest to Bulik and her colleagues that menstrual status "might not be an informative criterion to distinguish among eating disorder subtypes."
Doctors currently only screen patients for eating disorders if they are underweight, Bulik said. But based on her findings, she added, "menstrual irregularities should be a red flag for all physicians to ask about eating disorders." Yes. I was anorexic/bulimic from 14-18. My periods stopped for several months at one point. I also developed a fine "peach fuzz" all over my body. It was my body trying to stay warm since I'd depleted too much body fat.
Honey, this is your body's way of surviving. It's shutting down "extra" functions to keep you alive. Please get some help. This is a very slippery slope, and a dangerous one. People die. I still have an irregular heartbeat because of what I did over a decade ago. It's so not worth it.
By the way, my weight never got super-low ( below 100), either, but my body began shutting down all the same. I'm 5'3". There's so much life to live. I was fortunate I was able to have my children. Some girls ruin that for themselves if they survive. Talk to someone you trust and get help. well, your weight is perfectly fine. i have an eating disorder also, im 15, 5'4" and weigh 92. and my periods are are not different. go to the doctors? what the f*** are you saying? your aneroxic or what i dont understand the f***** question?? |
