Eating disorders can very well change a person's life and affect those around them. People with these eating disorders are mostly seen as victims, due to the horrific and dangerous effects of these illnesses. Eating disorders are very serious; life-threatening illnesses can sometimes occur. There are three common eating disorders: bulimia, anorexia nervosa, and binge eating disorder. There are also two that are not as common as most people recognize today: these are anorexia, pica, and bulimia combined. You must first know how to recognize disorders in order to help yourself or others to struggle. Eating disorders are very common and people need to know what they are, what causes them, how to detect them and, most importantly, how to prevent or stop them. Anorexia nervosa is one of the types of eating disorders in which a person starves themselves in order to achieve and maintain their idea of ​​"perfection." This condition occurs when a person is constantly on an extreme diet due to a mental image they have of their body that is incorrect. It usually strikes women as they begin puberty and is also known to occur in the late teens and early 20s. This state of starvation results in body weight loss that is 150% less than normal. Of the 7 million women aged 15 to 35 who suffer from anorexia, 65 percent will surely die from complications of the disorder (Wellness Web 2). Anorexia often occurs as a result of an emotional problem. Eating control may be one of the only areas they feel they have control over. Part of recovery often involves helping the anorexic gain some independence (Greenberg 114). ...... middle of paper ......d to have it, and experts estimate the disorder also affects up to 4 percent of college-age women. Compulsive eaters consume food to comfort and soothe the hurt feelings they are dealing with. Many magazine models influence a woman's mind into believing that one must look a certain way. The exact definition is an irresistible impulse to act, regardless of the rationality of the motivation. The category has adopted a new name over the years: binge eating. The victim tends to eat even when he is not hungry at all. The person may eat impulsively or even continuously. Although the compulsive eater realizes that his behavior is abnormal, he seems powerless to stop it. A compulsive eater is different from a bulimic person because they do not try to purge themselves by vomiting or using a laxative (Moe 14).