Eating Disorders and Addiction
Living with an eating disorder and addiction can feel overwhelming, but help is available, and recovery is possible. Our dual-diagnosis programs provide compassionate care, expert guidance, and evidence-based treatments to support your journey toward healing. Understanding the connection between eating disorders and addiction can empower you to take the first step toward a healthier, more fulfilling life. Here’s what you need to know about the challenges and solutions for co-occurring disorders, offering a path forward with hope and confidence.
An eating disorder is a mental health condition that spurns abnormal and harmful eating patterns and behaviors. These behaviors never get better without professional help. These destructive behaviors will continue to grow progressively worse as the mind continues to feed debilitating behavioral patterns. Unhealthy eating habits stemming from eating disorders are often due to a false mental image of one’s physical deficiencies. The scary part is these mental health conditions can conceal themselves from public or personal recognition for a long time.
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Key Correlative Statistics Between Eating and Addiction Disorders
Those with disordered eating are susceptible to developing a substance use disorder. Learn more about the connection between eating disorders and addiction.
Eating Deficiencies Increase Proneness to Addiction
Many studies cite those who possess an eating disability have around a 50 percent higher likelihood of developing an addiction problem. It’s important to reiterate that while these harmful eating behaviors do not cause addiction, the behaviors can encourage addiction behavior. While treating one doesn’t mean solving the other, our dual-diagnosis programs can help you get to the root issues. From there, we can cut through these problems en route to helping you resolve your eating and substance struggles simultaneously.
About 20 Percent of ED Sufferers Develop Substance Use Disorder
Medical research suggests about 1 in 5 who develop ED will also develop an addiction problem sooner or later. This doesn’t mean simultaneously, but it can coincide with co-occurring disorders in some cases. One of the reasons this occurs is likely because the initial problem was never recovered from properly. That’s why at Eagle Creek Recovery Center we pride ourselves in implementing our core values to ensure true remission. We’ll help you prevail against the twenty percent of ED strugglers who develop SUD by providing our unparalleled thorough treatment.
Food Addiction is a Rising Problem
One statistic that notes at least 70 million US adults are food addicts suggests addiction isn’t just a substance problem. Addiction and food disorders such as binge eating can be one and the same. This rising issue is often overlooked as simply overeating when it should be recognized for the problem it is. It’s important to remember that sometimes the correlation between eating and addiction disorders is simply a food addiction. Elaborative examples of food addiction are noted in the following section.
What are the Different Types of Eating Disorders?
EDs are not just blanketed into one group. Several different types of eating conditions affect the body in various ways. Here is a detailed list of the different types of disorders and their effects.
Anorexia is a mental disorder that feeds the sufferer with a false body image. In addition, they believe everyone has the same image of them, regardless of how much reassurance they get from loved ones. These preconceived thoughts of being overweight occur despite how small or skinny they may be. As a result, people with anorexia adopt eating habits to change what they see wrong with their bodies. Unfortunately, these behaviors often consist of long, unhealthy periods without eating. Over time, their bodies are starved of necessary nutrients, which eventually results in several life-threatening problems without mental health therapy. These life-threatening health conditions include heart or organ damage to the point where organs begin to shut down.
This disorder is the opposite of most other disorders. Instead of exhibiting an inability to eat, this disorder is characterized by the inability to stop eating even when full. This is a primary example of a food addiction. An individual with this disorder has several recurring episodes of binge eating that cause them to gain weight rapidly. This rapid onset of weight gain in conjunction with continued binge eating quickly takes a toll on your body. Sudden weight gain is taxing on your heart, blood pressure, on other vital organs. This leads to further heart problems, liver or kidney diseases, and circulatory issues. If you feel you or somebody you love is suffering from irrepressible binge eating, we have a program for you.
Bulimia shares some likenesses to binge eating disorder, except bulimia binge eating is followed by unhealthy weight loss methods. That is to say, people suffering from bulimia will binge eat, but unlike binge eating disorder, will force themselves to vomit what they’ve consumed. This prevents the body from processing vital nutrients needed to perform vital organ functions. Eventually, untreated Bulimia, like other harmful eating behaviors, causes severe nutritional deficiencies. If this persists, vital organs and functions will shut down and ultimately lead to death.
Orthorexia disorder, though less common than others, is an unhealthy craving for healthy foods. However, too much of anything, even a good thing, is just as unhealthy as any other type of binge eating. Your body still needs some meat or nutrients from “unhealthy” food to maintain healthy functions. Orthorexia sufferers have an unhealthy craving for eating healthy foods and banish everything they deem as unhealthy. Ironically, this is the extreme opposite that also starves the body of the nutrients it needs.
What are the Similarities Between EDs and Addiction Behaviors?
Behavioral cues of eating and addiction disorders are very alike, therefore having the potential to be misconstrued. Regardless of which mental condition one has, any of the following behaviors are indicative of one or both kinds of disorders.
If anybody portrays a persona of overly keeping to themselves, it may be a symptom of an underlying issue. Many individuals who possess either an eating or addiction disorder struggle will be very secretive about their lives. This includes sharing little to no personal information as well as secluding themselves from social environments and loved ones.
Eating and addiction disorder symptoms similarly inflict a gaunt or unhealthy appearance. In the case of EDs, nutrient deficiencies, and necessary protein give your body a pale, gaunt look over time. On the other hand, drugs take such a toll on the body that it seeps your body’s energy source. This includes soaking all bodily nutrients to fuel the drug’s effects, which then contributes to difficult withdrawal symptoms later on. Therefore, if you or a loved one exhibits such an appearance, enroll in a mental health or dual-diagnosis program today.
Many eating disorders, similar to the cravings of an addictive personality, induce irrepressible desires to indulge in binge eating. These unfortunately are not treated the same as addiction cravings when they should be because they’re triggers of the same mentality. Whether they are cravings for food or substances, these mental trains of thought derive from a mental health problem. Don’t make the mistake of overlooking these unnatural cravings as they are just as unhealthy as addiction.
There is an unfair and untrue stigma towards individuals who suffer from both eating and addiction condition symptoms. Both types of disorders are more alike than you think, stemming from chemical imbalances in the brain. It’s important to note if you struggle with any of these mental health problems, you’ve no reason to be ashamed. Both behavioral symptoms are not at the fault of the sufferer, who sometimes gets unfairly stereotyped. These addiction behaviors are mentally induced triggers that the sufferer has no control over and needs professional help to overcome. Especially in the case of irrepressible eating behaviors, it’s important to understand these deficiencies are uncontrollable mental impulses.
One of the key correlations between ED and addictions is that harmful behaviors and habits only worsen over time. The longer an individual goes without getting the help they need for either condition, the worse it will be. In turn, the symptoms and signs of addiction and ED will exacerbate to unconcealable degrees. Once these symptoms reach their peak it becomes life-threatening. That’s why it’s mortally important to act upon behavioral cues you observe as it could mean a matter of life and death.
Heal from Addiction and EDs at Eagle Creek Recovery Center
There’s no greater opportunity to heal from your addictions or EDs than the one afforded you at Eagle Creek Recovery Center. Whether it’s addiction, eating, or other mental health struggles, your therapy is always personalized to treat your needs. We are dedicated to your joy, your struggles, and your recovery from the start. We’ll make the road to healing a memorable journey with the best quality support you could ask for.
Clinical Director
Kendall Maloof is the clinical director at Eagle Creek Ranch Recovery. She is a licensed marriage and family therapist and has held multiple leadership roles before settling here at Eagle Creek. Kendall received her master’s degree in marriage and family therapy from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology in 2016. Her career in mental and behavioral health began in 2014 when she took up internships in both the nonprofit and for profit sectors. She interned at multiple reputable companies, such as The Living Success Center and 449 Recovery in California.
In 2019, Kendall became the clinical director of Sunsets Recovery for Woman, a dual diagnosis program in southern California. Kendall is a natural leader. She has an incredible ability to problem solve and stay calm in any situation. Kendall never fails to show up when she is needed, and her calm demeanor makes her team and clients feel at ease. Eagle Creek Ranch Recovery is proud to have Kendall as our clinical director.
