Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters

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Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters; The Frightening New Normalcy of Hating Your Body
Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters.jpg
Author Courtney E. Martin
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Genre Psychology
Publisher Piatkus
Publication date
2007
ISBN 978-0-3494-0471-4

Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters; The Frightening New Normalcy of Hating Your Body is a book written by Courtney E. Martin, published by Piatkus in 2007, which looks at socio-cultural, psychological and historical influences that encourage eating disorders in young girls and women. [1] [2] [3] [4]

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An eating disorder is a mental disorder defined by abnormal eating behaviors that negatively affect a person's physical or mental health. Only one eating disorder can be diagnosed at a given time. Types of eating disorders include binge eating disorder, where the patient eats a large amount in a short period of time; anorexia nervosa, where the person has an intense fear of gaining weight and restricts food or overexercises to manage this fear; bulimia nervosa, where individuals eat a large quantity (binging) then try to rid themselves of the food (purging); pica, where the patient eats non-food items; rumination syndrome, where the patient regurgitates undigested or minimally digested food; avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), where people have a reduced or selective food intake due to some psychological reasons ; and a group of other specified feeding or eating disorders. Anxiety disorders, depression and substance abuse are common among people with eating disorders. These disorders do not include obesity. People often experience comorbidity between an eating disorder and OCD. It is estimated 20-60% of patients with an ED have a history of OCD.

Promotion of anorexia is the promotion of behaviors related to the eating disorder anorexia nervosa. It is often referred to simply as pro-ana or ana. The lesser-used term pro-mia refers likewise to bulimia nervosa and is sometimes used interchangeably with pro-ana. Pro-ana groups differ widely in their stances. Most claim that they exist mainly as a non-judgmental environment for anorexics; a place to turn to, to discuss their illness, and to support those who choose to enter recovery. Others deny anorexia nervosa is a mental illness and claim instead that it is a lifestyle choice that should be respected by doctors and family.

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