Eating Disorders Are Grouped Under One Word In Conversation

That Word Covers Several Conditions At Once

The Diagnostic And Statistical Manual Separates Each One

Anorexia Is Not The Most Common Of Them

Each Diagnosis Has Its Own Threshold Written Down

Prevalence Was Measured Separately For Each

Impairment Was Not Recorded For Every Diagnosis

This Part Covers The Three Diagnoses And What They Cost

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OKAY BACK FROM THE MANUAL 📋

Eating Disorders Are Disruptions In Eating Behaviour

Excessive Concern About Body Weight Accompanies That

The Definition Requires Impaired Physical Health Or Functioning

That Last Clause Is What Makes It A Diagnosis

Without It There Is No Disorder To Name

The Manual Now Calls The Chapter Feeding And Eating Disorders

It Lists Eight Diagnostic Categories In Total

Three Of Them Are The Ones Named In Conversation

Anorexia Nervosa Is The First

Bulimia Nervosa Is The Second

Binge Eating Disorder Is The Third

Five More Sit In The Chapter Without Common Names

Weight And Shape Concern Is Not A Feature Of All Eight

Pica And Rumination Disorder Do Not Involve It

Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder Does Not Either

Bulimia Nervosa Has A Written Frequency Threshold

At Least One Binge Episode A Week With Compensatory Behaviour

Three Months Is The Minimum Duration

A Threshold Like That Describes No Habit

It Is A Line A Clinician Checks Against

Below The Line The Diagnosis Is Not Made

Above It The Diagnosis Is

No Part Of That Process Records A Food Preference

A United States Survey Measured Lifetime Prevalence In Adults

Anorexia Nervosa Reached 0.6%

Bulimia Nervosa Reached 1.0%

Binge Eating Disorder Reached 2.8%

That Is The Largest Of The Three

It Runs More Than Four Times The Anorexia Nervosa Figure

The Order Is The Reverse Of The Public Ranking

Only Those Three Diagnoses Appear In The Survey

Sex Splits Were Published Too Though Not All Cover Lifetime

Anorexia Nervosa Was Three Times Higher Among Females At 0.9%

The Male Figure Was 0.3%

Those Two Anorexia Nervosa Figures Are Lifetime Ones

The Next Two Pairs Describe The Past Year Instead

Bulimia Nervosa Was Five Times Higher Among Females At 0.5%

Its Male Figure Was 0.1%

Bulimia Nervosa Overall Was 0.3% Over Twelve Months

Binge Eating Disorder Was Twice As High Among Females At 1.6%

Males Sat At 0.8% There

Binge Eating Disorder Overall Was 1.2% In The Past Year

That Is The Narrower Of The Two Past Year Gaps

No Past Year Estimate Was Generated For Anorexia Nervosa

Its Figures In This Survey Are Lifetime Only

Every Figure Here Describes United States Adults

The Same Survey Rated Impairment On A Named Scale

Ratings Came From The Sheehan Disability Scale

They Covered Behaviour In The Past Year

Two Of The Three Diagnoses Have Impairment Figures Here

78.0% Of People With Bulimia Nervosa Had Any Impairment

43.9% Had Severe Impairment

62.6% Of People With Binge Eating Disorder Had Any Impairment

18.5% Reached The Severe Band

Any Impairment And Severe Impairment Are Different Measures

Both Were Reported Because Both Carry Information

The Most Common Diagnosis Is Not The Mildest One

Binge Eating Disorder Impairs Most People Who Have It

Bulimia Nervosa Impairs More Than Three Quarters

Neither Figure Describes A Preference About Food

They Describe Function Lost Over A Year

Work And Social Life Are What The Scale Rates

The Definition Required Exactly That Before Any Diagnosis

Impairment Was Never An Afterthought In The Criteria

It Was The Entry Condition

A Disorder That Impairs Most Of Its Cases Is Not A Choice

The Measured Answer Sits In Those Two Percentages