Anorexia Nervosa and Nutrition - Essay Example

"Anorexia Nervosa and Nutrition" is a great example of a paper on food and nutrition.
Nutrition is defined as the process by which organisms take in and utilize their food material (Dictionary.com). It forms the building blocks of all living organisms. However, some humans are prone to develop eating disorders and interfere with their natural Nutrition requirements and processes. Such eating disorders can have drastic effects on an individual’s well-being. Two such eating disorders widely existing among masses all over the world are Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa. Both are attributed to weight loss and failing health. 

Anorexia Nervosa is a psychological disorder in which the affected person refuses to maintain his/her minimum body weight within 15% of their normal body weight. Furthermore, Anorexia Nervosa is characterized by an intense fear of gaining weight, imagining oneself as an extensively distorted body figure, refusal to recognize the seriousness of illness and amenorrhea (Nami.org). The behavioral signs of its onset include relentless exercising, going to washrooms immediately after meals for purging, refusing to eat around other people, and using diet pills and other pills with similar weight-reducing effects. The symptoms of this disease include depression, loss of muscles, weakening bones, poor memory and judgment, and blotchy pale skin. Its health consequences include the patient becoming excessively frail, thin, and emaciated. Severe complications may occur resulting in the patient’s hospitalization (Berger). 

Bulimia Nervosa is another psychological disorder, slightly different from Anorexia Nervosa. In this eating disorder, a patient develops regular unexplained bouts of over-eating, followed by the realization of guilt in this regard and subsequently extreme reactions in the form of crash dieting, over-exercising, and purging (Nordqvist). The signs of Bulimia Nervosa are identical to Anorexia Nervosa. Its symptoms include broken vessels of eyes due to strain of vomiting, swollen salivary glands, rashes and pimples, and severe depression. The health consequences of this disorder also include excessive weight loss and the frail health of patients. As with Anorexia Nervosa, severe complications can occur, demanding hospitalization of the patient (Berger). 

Therefore it is necessary to eat well and not deprive ourselves of necessary nutrition. However, an essential part of this includes consuming food that is safe as it is rapidly contaminated by disease-causing organisms like bacteria. There are four core practices established for ensuring safe handling of food; Clean, Separate, Cook, and Chill. Clean requires all the equipment that comes in contact with food – including hands – to be washed properly and often. Separate symbolizes that all food items should be stocked individually to prevent the transfer and spread of disease-causing organisms. Cook establishes the necessity for all consumable items to be heated and cooled at proper temperatures. Lastly, Chill means that all food items need to be refrigerated promptly (fightbac.org). 

It is not only important to be able to identify the onset of eating disorders, but it is equally important that the food we consume is safe.