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Author: Helen Hecker | Total views: 1600 Comments: 0
Word Count: 737 Date: Sat, 22 Nov 2008 7:34 AM

Bulimia Side Effects - The Effects Of Bulimia On Your Health - Nurse's Guide

Between six and ten million adolescent and teenage girls and women have eating disorders. More than one million males have an eating disorder and the numbers are rising. Eating disorder treatment centers and doctor spedcialists have become increasingly common.

The three most common eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder. They are all thought to be due to a coping mechanism. These disorders all involve an obsession with food and/or with weight. Guilt and anxiety about eating can cause adverse effects on an eating disorder patient's health, both physical and psychological.

Over other eating disorders, bulimia nervosa is known to cause fewer bad health effects than anorexia nervosa. This is because the effects of binge eating and purging are less serious than the medical complications of starvation and malnutrition that effect anorexics.

However the effects of bulimia nervosa can be quite serious. Bulimia can be fatal. The dangerous use of laxatives and the abuse of ipecac syrup and the serious effects of binge eating, can result in health conditions that require serious eating disorder treatment.

Vomiting risks and dangers in bulimia nervosa: Vomiting over and over can result in metabolic alkalosis, which is an imbalance in the acid/base balance of the body. These effects can range from slowed breathing (and can include apnea, which means you stop breathing during sleep) to irritability of your heartbeat or an irregular heartbeat. You can get convulsions and go into a coma.

There are some obvious effects that repeated vomiting has on the teeth. The acid in your stomach acid can gradually erode your dental enamel. It can discolor your teeth and cause a lot of dental cavities. While dental enamel erodes over time your teeth can become more sensitive to hot and/or cold foods, beverages and other liquids.

Because of the frequent vomiting you can also aspirate fluid into your lungs. This can cause serious damage to your lung tissue. This vomited material can cause pneumonia and respiratory distress.

Adverse effects of ipecac syrup: Many bulimics induce vomiting with ipecac syrup. The adverse side effects from using ipecac syrup over and over can be serious. Ipecac misuse and abuse can cause muscle weakness and an abnormal, and potentially dangerous, rapid heart rate. Ipecac abuse can cause cardiomyopathy, which is a condition in which the heart muscle can no longer pump enough blood. This has killed many bulimics.

Dangers of laxative use: Laxatives are often used and abused by bulimics. Laxatives are used to quickly get rid of food ingested while they are binge eating. Many bulimics have developed laxative dependency. The side effects of laxative misuse include constipation, dehydration and painful, bleeding hemorrhoids.

Using laxatives for a long time can affect the normal functioning of the bowel and colon. Getting the bowel function back to normal can take many weeks after the laxatives are discontinued. In some bulimics with heavy use, it may require surgery to gain back their bowel function.

Electrolyte imbalances and laxatives: Laxatives can cause hypokalemia, which is a low potassium level in the blood. This can lead to an electrolyte imbalance.

Using laxatives, diuretics, and other binging/purging techniques keep the body from its proper level of electrolyte minerals.

Electrolytes are important for getting the right electric signals in the heart. This is one of the most serious risks of electrolyte imbalance in bulimia. This heart arrhythmia or irregular heartbeat is a significant danger. Heart problems are the leading cause of death in bulimia nervosa.

Risk and other side effects of bulimia binge eating: Binge eating can cause the lining of the esophagus or stomach to tear or rupture from the pressure of eating/vomiting.

Other adverse effects of binge eating include ulcers, and acid reflux from the stomach into the esophagus.

These are a few of the most serious bulimia side effects or bulimia adverse effects. If you think you have bulimia nervosa or know that you do, seeking bulimia treatment or eating disorder treatment as soon as possible will help stop the bad health effects of bulimia nervosa. You can do it! Many before you have done it including well-known celebrities like Jane Fonda. Why not start on the path right now to getting help!

About the Author

For more info on bulimia and bulimia treatment go to http://www.EatingDisorderTreatmentDoctor.com a nurse's website specializing in eating disorder tips, symptoms, treatments, natural treatments and causes including info on anorexia, binge-eating and eating disorder treatment centers

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