some women get so skinny, have such bad eating disorders- they don’t ever get a period- or get it once or twice a year-
some women are just as stressed, they miss their period for long periods of time too…what kind of pain or damage occurs from women who don’t get regular period because of weight loss, bulimia/anoxeria, or stress?

They become infertile in time. It’s because a woman needs the right amount of ‘female padding’ to carry a baby, to protect it. So once a woman maintains a weight too low, her body’s menstruation system starts to shut down. It depends how long the woman stays underweight for.

Some anorexia sufferers who’ve only been underweight for a year or two can gain weight, and their repoductive system recovers itself. But any period of time being too skinny will reduce the chances of conceiving. But for the women who’ve maintained a damaging weight over a longer period of time (say 10 years+?), they destroy their fertility basically. It’s because the body expects to be insufficient to carry a child, after the absence of the essential fat for a certain time period.

For example, anorexia (to be thin like models you see on tv) and other things on tv that can influence your thoughts and ideas. Explain how tv influences them. You can include reality tv shows, ads and world news.

Sometimes TV can creep into my daily life and blur the edges between reality and make believe. I have learned a lot from watching TV about what not to do sometimes. Sometimes the characters become like visiting a favorite friendship when the show is on. But, life and love are outside the box and what you can feel, hug, talk to and touch.

I know of several eating disorders… Bulimia Nervosa, Anorexia Nervosa, Diabulimia, and overeating (I don’t know the technical name for this one).

Are there any more? Or do I have an incorrect name for any of the ones I listed?

Can you think of anything else? Thanks so much for your help! I appreciate it!
Twilight- Thanks I think you're right!
ALi- Thanks the link is helpful!

I think you’ve named most of them right there. Here is the link to the wiki page about eating disorders for more information!

It was not so long ago I heard in the news that being overweight is contagious…..I also heard it was wrong to call them chuddy and say it was more to love since this encourge them not to lose weight. It was best to called them as it is and crush them so they would lose that weight.
1.) Should criticism come from a person who has never gain a pound from their normal weight in their lives?

2.) Should genetics be an excuse?

3.)If you had a love one that is overweight and you care about their well being, what advice would you give them?

4.) Should someone who suffer from bullimia and anorexia give any advice at all?

5.)How would your life be affected if you gained five pounds extra from your healthy weight?…would you feel adnormal or live life as you always have?
I believe that this questions seems harsh but really I do not judge, since I do suffer from an extra pounds and i have to hear every ridiculous thing everyone says. For example people thing I am depressive, since I gain weight, the news came out with overweight and obesity was contagious so bye bye friends. And It has beem harch to live the life I live I just do not understand why everyone is on my case. I can see the good criticism, and advice as well as teh anoxious commentaries and dirty looks at school, work and department stores.

It's been my experience that people who are overweight already know it, and don't usually appreciate hearing it from anyone. Criticism certainly doesn't tend to influence anyone to change their ways either. When you criticise a person for their weight, all that usually happens is that they get angry at you and avoid you in the future. You don't really influence anything positively, and you just lose a friend/relative. Genetics and medical conditions can both be explainations for weight gain, and I don't think anyone should have to walk around defending themselves, or carrying a doctor's excuse for their extra pounds. Frankly, it's not anybody's business what put the pounds on somebody's middle section, except them, their doctor, and possible a spouse. Nobody else's opinions will be appreciated. Because you are dealing with somebody's appearance for the most part, the message has to be given gently and with love. That is always best done by somebody very close to the person. And not through attack, by any means. Actually, I think it's best to simply voice a concern that you have noticed weight gain and are concerned for their health effects. If you are the one doing the cooking, then sometimes it's best to simply attack the problem quietly through food prep and purchase. If they notice, you can simply say you are concerned for your own diet- not a real lie, since you should be- and are trying to make some changes to help. Then ask if they mind joining you, just to make it easier and offer their support.
My life isn't affected much one way or the other by the gain or loss of five pounds. Weight can fluxuate from day to day up to five pounds in either direction. Your clothing and such shouldn't be fitted so snuggly that it makes a critical difference. So no, it doesn't make any impact for me at all. I'm more concerned with my overall health and fitness, and as long as I am in fit condition and am not experiencing a creep down or up over a period of time, then I don't get wrapped up around the scale reading. Plus, most scales are simply too inaccurate to bother with the energy of it.
Anorexia, Bullimia, and obesity are all abnormal eating disorders, with food being the common link. None of them are healthy, and I can't exactly see where criticism from one would improve matters for any of the others. Sort of a pot calling the kettle black, in many ways. All of them are signs of deeper psychological problems expressed in eating, just different ends of the weight scale. So no, outside a group therapy session, I don't think the advice would be very welcome.
While it's true we are becoming a nation of overweight people, I don't think the real problem lies with simply over eating. It's not that simple, for starters. It certainly won't be solved by forming a fat police, or an eating habits police. Our national fixation on food is a sign of some deeper problems that need to be addressed. And until we look past the fat to find and solve the deeper problem that causes it, we are just going to continue to get fatter.

There is so many resources and money spent on anorexia and bulimia all because girls have crappy self-esteem. I think it is more of an attention-getting thing than an actual disorder. Female celebrities seem to brag about it when they have it. And girls on the internet go to websites that support eating disorders.

Meanwhile there are people out there with real psychological problems that could use the help and resources that is being wasted on girls because all they care about is their own self appearance and have no intention of even trying to get healthy.

I think you are wrong. Eating disorders can cause serious health problems and even death.

If it isn't a "real problem", how does it do that?

If it is for attention, why are most people with eating disorders very secretive about it?

Yes, there is a fad where celebrities talk about personal problems, and sometimes I wonder if they are just making it up just for publicity. And it does make real problems seem trivial.

Forget those self-centered famous people. Real people (mostly girls) are dying from eating disorders all the time.

http://www.eating-disorders.net/memorial/memorial.php

I have three tests tomorrow (Math, English, Science), a Latin quiz, 8 pages of French homework (120 questions), a project due in Latin, and a Science Project, plus an English Essay, and 50 Math Problems, and a History essay!

It is currently 10:00 PM and I am stressing out because I have only done half of that. I haven't even begun studying! I started crying a few minutes ago. And I am only in 8th grade, not even high school! Plus, there is stress because my dad is going to jail for a fraud crime he did not commit and my mom is never sober and I am in a massive fight with a few friends and another friend was just diagnosed with anorexia and I just heard another friend tried to commit suicide!

AND on top of all of that, everyone expects my life to be perfect because I am popular, have a really hot and nice boyfriend, I am upper class and go to an exclusive private school.

WELL NEWS FLASH: my life isn't perfect AT ALL!!

HELP PLEASE!? I am sooo stressed out and I am in tears right now.
oh yeah, and I am also sick but am not allowed to stay home without a fever.

First, take 15-20 minutes and do something you enjoy that isn't schoolwork that will help you relax and calm down. Then, do the homework first that you like the best so you can maybe enjoy it. Then, you work your way through the rest of it as you can. If you aren't able to finish it all, don't worry.

At any rate, you need to talk to an adult, maybe your school counselor, who can help you with what sounds like a very overwhelming situation. Talking to someone who isn't involved in your life can help give you perspective, and it is really nice just to be able to vent your feelings. The counselor may be able to get some help for your mom, too.

I am currently at school, doing my sociology coursework. I am doing whether magazines influence young girls to develop eating disorders.

I would like to know all your opinions, please give reasons! Don’t just say yes or no, I would like a good opinion :]

Thank you for taking the time to help me!

Yes, I think they do, along with television (which is more widespread, reaching more girls) and music videos.

I was raised to put less importance and value on physical appearance than personality, spirituality, intelligence, etc. However, as an adolescent, I also fell into the trap of feeling insecure and inferior because I didn’t look like the young models in Seventeen and other magazines. Young people are impressionable and even with good upbringings and positive role models, they can still fall sway to idealized media images.

Impressionable young girls + ridiculous societal ideals about the “perfect” body + a culture that places too much emphasis on appearance = low self esteem, body image issues, and eating disorders. No one can measure up to the images they are bombarded with because most of those images aren’t even REAL. We are striving to attain the unattainable — running a race with no end that can’t be won.

And that’s another thing — in the past, you would periodically see “perfect” images of “perfect” people in magazines and occasionally on tv, but with our modern media it is more prevalent and accessible than ever. No matter where you turn you are pelted with these images — you can’t escape it. So you have not only young girls who feel they need to live up to the supermodel or socialite standard, but also housewives who feel they should look and be utterly perfect with gleaming white smiles and salon quality hair at home, on the soccer field, cleaning the toilet…and you have families that are made to feel like crap because they can’t afford the “perfect, ‘affordable’ Disney vacation”. If every single appliance, window, and pillowcase in your house isn’t Green, you might as well throw yourself off a bridge, and if you’re not living in a 3-story McMansion and driving a tricked out Infinity, why bother living? We are bombarded with these messages constantly, and it’s no wonder why kids (girls AND boys) feel this unbelievable pressure to be utterly perfect. Their parents do so, and then inadvertently (or not) pass that message on to their children. It’s a vicious cycle.

So I’m doing a project at school where you have to find an article for each conflict (man vs man, man vs nature, man vs self, and man vs society). I found this article about Luisel Ramos, a model who starved herself to death on a diet of only lettuce and diet coke. I cant decide wether or not to classify this as man vs self or man vs society. It could be man vs self because she was fighting anorexia but I’m leaning more towards man vs society because she felt that to be a successful model she had to starve herself to be thin to be accepted in a way… what do you think and why?

Heres the article:

http://www.theage.com.au/news/eating-disorder/survival-of-the-thinnest/2006/10/05/1159641434825.html

It could fall into both categories.
She is fighting herself in the way that she is anorexic and her body needs more nutrition. She starved herself to death on foods that don’t really help your body.
Also, society pressures her into being anorexic, she is going by their opinions, not what should be done.
You might want to pick a different article if you really can’t decide.
Both will work though, you just have to back up your arguement.

I need help with an assignment. I need to know whether eating disorders are easy or hard to eat.

Short Answer; Eating disorders are difficult to treat, because it is very difficult to get the individual being treated to see their bodies as being normal or appropriate; they can weigh 84 lbs and near death and still see themselves as fat.

My personal vote is: Yes absolutely.

First of all, the criminalization of Marijuana use has hampered the lives of millions of Americans. Drug charges can deter people from getting jobs (great in a failing economy), and from joining the armed forces (even though they need recruits). Many Americans who have an education, pay taxes, hold a job, and support a family are labeled as criminals for using a substance that studies show is about as harmful as the most common legal indulgences i.e; cigarette smoking, drinking, gambling.

Secondly, facts show that millions of Americans use marijuana regardless of legal consequences. These users are forced to purchase pot from dealers who might be in connection with gangs or the mafia. Thus, they are indirectly supporting criminal elements. A disturbing news story announced that more deaths take place in Mexico over the drug wars than in Iraq. This makes sense; Mexican drug lords hold a monopoly over the drug market, and will do whatever necessary to keep their American customers buying from them.
This problem could easily be remedied by legalization. Local, American growers could satisfy the needs of domestic users, reducing the dependence on criminal supply completely. Furthermore, the establishment of legal, legitimate suppliers would greatly increase the safety and security of drug trade. Dealerships could be required to meet health standards and to enforce age restrictions. New jobs would be produced in the growing and selling of pot, bringing millions of dollars into the American market.

Third, legalization would reduce American dependence on prescription drugs, and therefore reduce prescription drug abuse. It is widely known that most common prescription drugs are very harmful to your body and carry many side effects that only increase the intake of more p-drugs. Marijuana has been proven to be an effective remedy for nausea, pain, glaucoma, epilepsy and more, so legalization is in the best interesting of those suffering from such ailments. Increased hunger resulting from smoking would aid those suffering from anorexia, and the resulting drowsiness would be a welcome effect to those suffering from insomnia.

As to the ‘Gateway Drug Theory’, which states that marijuana use leads to dangerous drug use, this writer is not convinced. Perhaps it is not Marijuana that leads some to experiment with hard drugs, but its status as a criminalized substance. Common sense would favor the assumption that being labeled as a Criminal would not positively influence one’s self-esteem and moral judgment. Perhaps it is the mentality of “Well, I’m a criminal, so there’s nothing else to lose…” that persuades those to delve into dangerous substance abuse. I say, it is the illegality and societal taboos surrounding marijuana that forces people into a life of fear and reclusion from society. Unfortunately, the taboo around pot says that one cannot be both a pot-smoker, and a legitimate citizen, which creates a very unhealthy self-image for those to choose to smoke.

Finally, legalization would relax longstanding tensions in American society. Parents would no longer have to treat their pot-smoking sons and daughters like criminals. Friendships and relationships would no longer be destroyed because of the hardships of dealing with someone who society has deemed a law-breaker. The marijuana user would no longer be intimidated when trying to get a job, or serve their country. Legalization would reduce the culture of fear in America by giving citizens one less thing to be afraid of, ashamed of, and dishonest about.

To those who might take up the argument of “Well, smokers are criminals, and deserve to be arrested.” I ask to remember that illegality is not a universal, indefinite status. Racism, condoned 50 years ago, is now completely illegal. Alcohol was banned until only 70 years ago in the United States, and now is accepted legally and culturally. I respect your opinions nonetheless.

First of all, marijuana doesn't kill brain cells. Personally, I used to believe it before, but then, I began reading the myths of marijuana, telling how it isn't true and also realized if it DID kill brain cells, it wouldn't be used for medical purposes such as maintaining glaucoma. Marijuana shouldn't be smoked however because it's bad for the lungs, but eating it would be a great method of consumption. Marijuana could be mixed with a number of foods, creating hash[insert food here.]

As taken from my last link, it said, "An early study reported brain damage in rhesus monkeys after six months exposure to high concentrations of marijuana smoke. In a recent, more carefully conducted study, researchers found no evidence of brain abnormality in monkeys that were forced to inhale the equivalent of four to five marijuana cigarettes every day for a year. The claim that marijuana kills brain cells is based on a speculative report dating back a quarter of a century that has never been supported by any scientific study." If you didn't catch it, read how it said 'smoke.' Well, when you think about it, it's ALWAYS bad to have smoke in lungs, so that why weed is better off eaten than smoked.

Personally, after opening my mind to marijuana, yes, I believe it should be legal because it's less harmful than any other drug, and in my opinion, including the LEGAL drugs placed on the shelves in local pharmacies. After going to the store to purchase some aspirin to cure my pain, I read MANY side-effects and surprisingly, if taken wrongly, I could possibly be trading a mere headache or cramp for stomach bleeding. That's horrible. Nonetheless, weed doesn't have much side-effects but tiredness and an extreme need to eat when you wake up in the morning. From watching the news, truTV, and from reading articles on the internet everyday, in my mind and many others, it's apparent the most vicious legal drug alcohol, is VERY dangerous as drunk drives kill many people on the road. Marijuana itself hasn't killed anyone. Sure enough, gang members and thugs on the streets may kill people either other for it, but that doesn't mean the weed killed anyone. Saying weed kills people in THAT method equivalent to a gun killing someone without a person pulling the trigger, (and that doesn't include dropping it or automatic guns) which is physically impossible.

Also, marijuana does more good than harm unlike some pain relievers, alcohol, and many other dangerous drugs that are commonly consumed like, cocaine, crack, PCP, crystal methamphetamine, and LSD because it can potentially cure cancer, (mostly leukemia) cold, influenza-like symptoms, glaucoma, and many more. To find out, click the links. What is alcohol proven to cure? NOTHING. In my birth city, Denver, in 2005, people have opened their minds and made weed legal, but you can only have a certain amount, but still, it's more than enough. And think about it, do you hear anything bad about Denver often? Nope. So why can't people in other cities open their minds? Hehe, seeing how I'm born in Denver, I must say, great minds think alike. lol. Additionally, commenting, even with weed legal, I still wouldn't consume it on a daily basis, but I'll eat some hash-sweets whenever I have horrible pains or influenza.

Therefore, weed should be legal, no questions asked.

EDIT – 10:42PM: To Alexandrea: Apparently, I agree with you about weed being legal as you can see above, you're WAY off when you say smoking weed is bad for brain cells, but good for lungs. Actually, smoke does harm to lungs and like I said, weed is better when eaten.