Types of Eating Disorders: List of Eating Disorders

Types of eating disorders, such as anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating disorder include extreme emotions, attitudes, and behaviors surrounding weight and food issues. Eating disorders are serious emotional and physical problems that can have life-threatening consequences for both women and men. In the eating disorders list below, you'll find these disorders typically involve starvation, purging, and binge eating behaviors.

The following is a list of eating disorders and their symptoms.

Types of Eating Disorders: Anorexia Nervosa

First on the eating disorders list is Anorexia Nervosa. Anorexia is characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss.

The following are common anorexia symptoms:

• Refusal to maintain body weight at or above a minimally normal weight for height, body type, age, and activity level
• Intense fear of weight gain or being "fat"
• Feeling "fat" or overweight despite dramatic weight loss
• Loss of menstrual periods
• Extreme concern with body weight and shape

Information on the treatment of anorexia.

Bulimia Nervosa

Second on our list of eating disorders is Bulimia nervosa, which centers around the bingeing and purging of food. Bulimia includes eating excessive amounts of food in short periods of time (often in secret), then getting rid of the food and calories through vomiting, enemas, laxative abuse, or over-exercising.

Common symptoms include:

• Repeated episodes of bingeing and purging
• Feeling out of control during a binge and eating beyond the point of comfortable fullness
• Purging after a binge, typically by self-induced vomiting, abuse of laxatives, diet pills, diuretics, excessive exercise, or fasting
• Frequent dieting
• Extreme concern with body weight and shape

Information on the treatment of bulimia nervosa.

Binge Eating Disorder

Binge eating disorder (also known as compulsive overeating) is characterized primarily by periods of compulsive, uncontrolled, continuous eating beyond the point of feeling comfortably full. While there is no purging, there may be sporadic fasts or repetitive diets, and often feelings of shame or self-hatred after a binge. Body weight may vary from normal to mild, moderate, or severe obesity.

Information on the treatment of binge eating disorder.

Other Types of Eating Disorders

This eating disorders list includes disorders which are a combination of the signs and symptoms of anorexia, bulimia, binge eating and other disordered eating behavior. These types of eating disorders may, or may not, be officially recognized as a specific mental illness, but any time eating behaviors cause distress, they should be evaluated by a professional.

You can read more about these other types of eating disorders here:

1. Eating Disorder NOS
2. Night Eating Syndrome
3. Orthorexia
4. Pica
5. Prader-Willi Syndrome
6. Rumination
7. Nocturnal Sleep-Related Eating Disorder

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