Bulimia Nervosa Research Paper

The National eating disorder collaboration defines Bulimia nervosa as “a repeated act of binge eating, which is later followed by compensatory behaviour” (“What is Bulimia Nervosa”). This is a mental disorder seen commonly with young women because of many reasons and causes. Bulimia has a large effect on a person that can stay for the rest of their lives. It is a real issue that does not ever go away. There are many reasons why someone would develop Bulimia depending on the individual and their own struggles. Contrary to popular belief upbringing has a bigger effect on the development of bulimia nervosa in female teens than the media in North America.
The environment in which a child develops in can shape and change who they become. A person’s …show more content…
The child must feel comfortable enough to speak freely and openly with his or her parents without feeling disappointed or ashamed. If good channels of communication are open the child is more likely to speak to their family about their issues and seek help instead of keeping it bottled inside which could lead to negative effects. In the article “The Role of Familial Factors in Bulimia Nervosa” it states that “Women with bulimia nervosa report more teasing and criticism from family members about their weight and feel pressure from family members to lose weight” (Crowther et al. 142). This is a great example of the control that a family holds. It only further proves the importance of family and its effect on the development of Bulimia Nervosa. In comparison, the media might have a role in the development of low self-esteem, but it does not cause a level of body dissatisfaction that would lead to the development of an eating disorder such as bulimia …show more content…
In an article written it states that “Mass media are saturated with potentially unhealthy messages, and citizens of virtually all ages are motivated to use and be engaged with these media on a regular basis” (Levine and Murnen 16). The question is whether the media actually hold value in the development of bulimia and other eating disorder or not. The media is not a direct cause of Bulimia Nervosa. If the media really held that much power, it would invalidate the severe effect that eating disorders hold. Bulimia Nervosa is not a mental disorder that appears out of nowhere with no earlier warnings. In 1998 an individual by the name Stice organized an experiment and found that “Neither perceived pressure from the media nor observational learning of unhealthy weight-shape concerns played a role in the onset of bulimic symptoms in adolescents”. This contributed to the idea that the media do not play as big of a role as many thought. There are other analyses that were conducted with similar results such as the study done by Cafri et al in 2005 (30). It is true that the amount of exposure could in fact have an effect on how much the media affects an individual, but the media has only been seen as a small to medium risk

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