| endorphins | Natural body tranquilizers that
may be involved in the feeding response and
function in pain reduction.
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| disordered eating | Mild and short-term
changes in eating patterns that occur in relation
to a stressful event, an illness, or a desire
to modify one’s diet for a variety of health
and personal appearance reasons.
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| eating disorder | Severe alterations in eating
patterns linked to physiological changes. The
alterations are associated with food restriction,
binge eating, purging, and fluctuations
in weight. They also involve a number of
emotional and cognitive changes that affect
the way a person perceives and experiences
his or her body.
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| anorexia nervosa | An eating disorder
involving a psychological loss or denial of
appetite, followed by self-starvation; related
in part to a distorted body image and to various
social pressures commonly associated
with puberty.
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| bulimia nervosa | An eating disorder in
which large quantities of food are eaten at
one time (binge eating) and then purged from
the body by vomiting, or misuse of laxatives,
diuretics, or enemas. Alternate means to
counteract the caloric excess use are fasting
and excessive exercise.
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| binge-eating disorder | An eating disorder
characterized by recurrent binge eating and
feelings of loss of control over eating that has
lasted at least 6 months. Binge episodes can
be triggered by frustration, anger, depression,
anxiety, permission to eat forbidden foods,
and excessive hunger.
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| lanugo | Downlike hair that appears after a
person has lost much body fat through semistarvation.
The hair stands erect and traps air,
acting as insulation for the body to compensate
for the relative lack of body fat, which
usually functions as insulation.
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| cognitive behavior therapy | Psychological
therapy in which the person’s assumptions
about dieting, body weight, and related issues
are confronted. New ways of thinking are explored
and then practiced by the person. In
this way, an individual can learn new ways to
control disordered eating behaviors and related
life stress.
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| female athlete triad | A condition characterized
by disordered eating, lack of menstrual
periods (amenorrhea), and osteoporosis.
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