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Anorexia is characterised by:
• Extreme concerns about weight
• Intense fear of gaining weight or becoming fat
• Deliberate maintenance of a very low body weight
• Often absent menstrual cycles
People with anorexia have an intense desire for weight loss and to be thin (often unhealthily so). Although people with anorexia are usually underweight, they generally believe that they are "fat."
Food, weight and appearance often become the main focus for someone who has anorexia. Concentrating on food and weight becomes a (conscious or unconscious) way of dealing with or managing intense emotions or emotional difficulties that they are experiencing.
Both males and females, from any social or economic background, can suffer from anorexia. Although the disorder usually begins in the late teenage years it can manifest at any age, and its onset is often associated with a stressful event or a period of dieting.
Some of the common signs of anorexia may be:
• Being afraid of putting on weight
• Calorie counting and/or obsessively avoiding of high fat food
• Marked weight loss
• Not wanting to eat
• Being hungry but not wanting to admit it
• Over exercising
• Obsessive weighing
• Getting cold easily
• Irregular (or absent) menstrual cycles
• Feeling like they are too fat even though they may be very thin
• Nails and hair become brittle
• Dry and yellow skin
• Preference to eating alone or only eating around other people
• Feeling depressed and irritable
• Lanugo, or fine body hair, on the trunk and face
If you are experiencing a number of these things, it may be helpful to talk with someone you trust, like a family member, teacher, psychologist or local doctor.
Check out your local phone book or to find out details of people you can approach for assistance in your local area. Or, you can also ask a doctor to refer you to someone who can help you.
What is Bulimia?
Bulimia Nervosa is a type of eating disorder. Eating disorders is the term used to describe a group of illnesses where someone has a distorted view of body image and extreme disturbances in eating behaviour. Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa and Binge Eating Disorder are all different types of eating disorders. You may want to check out the factsheets on the right hand side of the page for more information on other eating disorders.
People experiencing bulimia go on regular eating "binges", which involves consuming large amounts of food in relatively discrete periods of time whilst accompanied by feelings of being out of control of one's food intake. The binge eating is usually followed by feelings of guilt and anxiety about becoming fat and this results in a need to get rid of the food.
Common ways of getting rid of food may include:
Over exercising to burn the calories
"Throwing up"
Taking laxatives, diuretics or diet pills
Not eating for several days after the binge.
Bingeing may be used as a way of coping with anger, depression, stress and sadness.
Some of the common signs of bulimia may be:
Eating unusually large amounts of food
Being secretive about what is eaten and when
Visiting the bathroom after eating
Over exercising
Being very critical of one's self
Moody
Depression
Regularly tired/lacking energy
Sore throat
Decaying teeth
If you are experiencing a number of these things, it may be helpful to go and talk with someone you trust like a family member, teacher, counsellor or local doctor. Check out the Help Near You section or your local phone book to find a counsellor or doctor in your area.
What is Binge Eating Disorder?
Most people overeat every now and again and it is not uncommon to occasionally feel as though we have eaten more than we should have. However, regularly consuming large amounts of food when you are not feeling hungry, usually to the point of feeling overly full, and at a much faster rate than usual is known as binge eating disorder. Binge eating disorder is similar to bulimia except that the person does not get rid of the food after eating.
Some of the characteristics of binge eating include:
Feeling that eating is out of control
Eating what most people would consider to be a large amount of food
Eating to the point of feeling uncomfortable
Eating large amounts of food, even when you are not really hungry
Being secretive about what is eaten and when
Being embarrassed by the amount of food eaten
Feeling disgusted, depressed or guilty about overeating.
If you think you do one or a number of these things, you may want to speak to someone like a doctor, nutritionist psychologist or counsellor.
Eating Disorders Foundation Inc.
PO Box 532
Willoughby NSW 2068
Ph: (02) 9412 4499
Website: http://www.edf.org.au
email: [email protected]

~NSW Centre for Eating & Dieting Disorders (CEDD)
Website: http://www.cedd.org.au
email: [email protected]

~Eating Disorders Foundation of Victoria
1513 High Street
Glen Iris VIC 3146
Ph: (03) 9885 0318
Fax: (03) 9885 1153
Website: http://www.eatingdisorders.org.au
email: [email protected]
~Centre of Excellence for Eating Disorders
8th Floor CCB
Royal Melbourne Hospital
Grattan Street
Parkville VIC 3052
Ph:(03) 9342 7507
Fax: (03) 9342 8216
Website: http://www.ceed.org.au
email: [email protected]
~The Butterfly Foundation
PO Box 453
Malvern VIC 3144
Ph: (03) 9421 3923
Fax: (03) 9421 2537
Website: http://www.thebutterflyfoundation.org.au
email: mailto:[email protected]

~Eating Disorders Resource Centre
225 Logan Road
Woolloongabba QLD 4102
Ph: (07) 3891 3660
Fax: (07) 3891 3662
Website: http://www.eda.org.au
email: [email protected]
~ISIS - Centre for Women's Action of Eating Issues
625 Fairfield Road
Yeronga ALD 4104
Ph: (07) 3848 3377
Website: http://www.isis.org.au
email: [email protected]
~Eating Disorders Support Group
C/- Women's Community Health Centre
PO Box 1128
Aitkenvale QLD 4814
Ph: (07) 4728 2399
~Anorexia & Bulimia Support Resource Centre Gold Coast Association Inc.
PO Box 391
Pacific Fair
Broadbeach QLD 4218
Ph: 07 5522 8865
email: [email protected]

~Eating Disorders Association of South Australia Inc.
217 Portursh Road
Maylands SA 5069
Ph: (0 8332 3466
website: http://www.edasa.org.au
email: [email protected]

~Community Nutrition Unit
3rd Floor Peacock Building
Repatriation Centre
90 Davey Street
Hobart TAS 7000
Ph: (03) 6222 7222
email:[url][email protected][/url]
website: http://www.tas.eatingdisorders.org.au

~WA Eating Disorders Alliance
Contact through:
Carers WA
255 Walcott Street
North Perth WA 6006
Ph: (0 9444 5922
Website: http://www.carerswa.asn.au

~Women's Centre For Health Matters
Building One
Pearce Centre
Collett Place
Pearce ACT 2607
Ph: (02) 6290 2166
Website: http://www.wchm.org.au