International No Diet Day: Dangers of Eating Disorders

Eating disorders are one of the most dangerous mental disorders one can experience, but at the same time, it is ignored. Body shaming, media and disdain for diverse bodies add fuel to the fire of eating disorders.

To combat the widespread eating disorders, International No Diet Day is observed on 6th May annually. It is dedicated to the importance of body acceptance, diversity, and respect for all body shapes and sizes.

People with eating disorders may eat little or too much to obtain the right body image, the former is more common than the latter as our mainstream society has too much fondness for skinny body structure.

People with eating disorders’ minds are constantly filled with thoughts of food, weight, and body image. They might avoid food, religiously count calories or become obsessed with certain flaws in their bodies. They normally experience guilt or shame after eating even the smallest amount of food.

Naturally, avoiding food comes with widespread consequences like weight loss, fatigue, dizziness, and even long-term health complications. They might even avoid gatherings like weddings and parties just to stay away from food. They might also avoid such gatherings due to guilt or shame from their behaviour.

They might also become addicted to experiencing hunger, as it becomes a sense of accomplishment for them. Eating disorders can affect anyone, it is not catered to certain demographics, from highly affluent people to the underprivileged.

We can’t just say that a person is going through eating disorders just by looking at them. Even people who look conventionally attractive and conform to societal beauty standards can go through body image issues.

Take WWE’s Alexa Bliss for example, she fits into all the standards of society’s standards of beauty, one might look at her and think she might be supremely confident about herself, but she experienced eating disorders during her teens, up to the point where her weight dropped to 80lbs or 36 kgs.

It can also impact people around you, The National Eating Disorder Association’s blog section includes a range of personal anecdotes and accounts about normal, regular folks experiencing eating disorders. The Health Collective has an anonymously written blog about a normal Indian girl’s experience with eating disorders.

The only way to get help when experiencing eating disorders is to seek help from a professional. Some might try to force food down their loved one’s mouth, but it would only lead to long-term psychological harm, breaking of trust, worsening symptoms or developments of resistance like intentional vomiting.

Therapy and support groups are of great help. Doctors may also prescribe medications to control the symptoms.

Spreading Bliss supports people with all kinds of medical conditions, including eating disorders. Feel free to reach out to us for any kind of assistance.