Binge Eating Disorder Recognized As Mental Illness

Binge Eating Disorder finally made it into the latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V), a publication by the American Psychiatric Association that classifies mental disorders along with criteria. This debuted in May.

The New York Times' Well blog recently discussed the issues around the topic in its post, Fat and Thin Find Common Ground. Kelley Brownell of Duke University, a leading authority on eating disorders, points out 'Obesity was mainly dealt with in medical professions, and eating disorders were dealt with more in psychology professions.'

And this kind of makes sense because overweight and obesity are the new norm (about 2 out of 3 Americans are) and doctors (physicians) are focused on the physical health conditions, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, etc. Again, this makes sense because doctors are only required one semester course in nutrition in all of their medical school studies and, while these physical conditions are important, doctors end up losing sight of the ever-powerful mind that operates and plays a significant role in the patient as well.

Nutrition and wellness are not characterized solely on outer appearances. While physical unwellness can cause complications, mental illness makes life a real drag. The two go hand-in-hand.

The important thing to remember in understanding eating disorders, though, is that it's not about the food. It is NOT about the food. IT IS NOT ABOUT THE F*CKING FOOD! However many times it takes for this to be said, it shall be repeated.

That said, eating disorders don't have a size limit either.



Blogger Ellin inaccurately states 'Unlike people with anorexia or bulimia, who tend to be excessively thin... ' No. That's not true. Bulimics actually tend to fall within 'normal' range, sometimes even slightly above. That's why cases of bulimia are sometimes harder to identify— because their outer appearances tends to better mask the disorder than that of a pure, highly-restrictive anorexic. A story for another day but just so you know.

Given the degrade in quality of our food, the mass production, the technology and 'innovation'— in terms of both our food supply and access, and sedentary life— along with the emphasis on body image, human innate tendencies (such as eating the amount we're served despite portion-size), the disconnect of hunger vs. fullness, and a whole bunch of other factors, yes, it seems to make sense we would gain more weight.

But a few things are important to remember:

1. It is NOT impossible to maintain a healthy weight and have a healthy relationship with food (that is, no relationship with food— you eat it and move on), even despite this modern-day ecosystem. So overweight and obesity do NOT have to be inevitable. Goals are attainable. Realistic hope, there is.


2. There are overweight and obese people out there who are suffering. That's not to say they all are but some of them are. Every day, for those who are, is a struggle and torture. They hate food, they hate their body, they have hateful thoughts, and they likely hate themselves. Can you imagine what life might be like to live under those conditions Every.Single.Day? No holidays, no weekends, 24/7/365? That's a day in the life of an eating disorder.




3. Eating disorders don't discriminate size, age, race, socio-economic status, or gender. They can affect anybody. (And it's not about the food.) They are complex monsters attributed to several factors, no two people alike, though commonalities appear. Eating disorders are personal and as unique as the individual him/herself.

Now that this great leap in recognition has been made, hopefully this will help push in the fight against overweight, obesity, and mental illness. How treatment should be strategized will be an interesting topic to follow.



What are your thoughts?

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Happy Healthy Juicy Physical and Mental Wellness!

Why I'm Thankful - Reflecting On International Day Of The Girl

Last night, I spent a more-than-expected amount of time reading this UNICEF report about FGM/C, or Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting, a practice that is highly prevalent in Africa and perhaps occurring elsewhere.

Yesterday was the International Day Of The Girl, a United-Nations-declared day that seeks to 'recognize girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face around the world'. Girls' rights to Education is this year's focus but FGM/C is another pressing issue that girls face too amongst a list of others. The numbers and data are staggering and so very sad. Over 125 MILLION girls and women are subjected to this cruelty.

I had vaguely remembered reading about this horrid practice in a women's magazine once but couldn't remember the details (or maybe I didn't want to). In brief, according to the WHO (World Health Organization), FGM/C is defined as 'all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons'.

The horrid procedure can be performed at varying degrees— cutting, removing, pricking, sealing, to name a few— but to whatever degree, it is heart-wrenching and traumatic to even hear about. Even more unfortunate is to hear about the hardships these girls and women have to endure for the rest of their life, if they even survive— forced marriages, rape, beatings, denial of basic human rights... the list goes on. And on.

It's scary to see some of the data that shows the opposition of the desire to end these inhumane practices. Even scarier, many of them are women. Did you know, daughters of women who were cut are more likely to get cut than those whose mothers have not been? As hard as it is to understand and even fathom, I guess this sort of makes sense. Brutality breeds brutality. Ignorance breeds ignorance.

To take away from this on a personal level is to reflect on my own life and situation. It reminds me how good I actually have it, some reasons why I'm lucky, and how thankful I am that I and my daughter have been born in a society where this is the not the norm.

My daughter is at the forefront of my thoughts. While some of these issues are not commonplace in my country, there is still hate. And no matter where we go, it will always be a threat. Give me the opportunity to answer the infamous Miss Universe pageant question— What do you wish for the world?— and it would be to eliminate all hate (and ignorance too)... followed by a Why can't we all just get along? :>

But, as I gripe about things like not getting my daughter's year-long portfolio of artwork from her previous school ('Some school/education, hmph!'), I quiet myself, turn course, and quickly let it go. Instead, I smile because she's sitting next to me, smiling back, happy, safe, and HealthyButJuicy.

Share your thoughts in the Comments below and SHARE/LIKE this post if you thought it was worth your while.

We appreciate your thoughts and support! :>

Happy Healthy Juicy Girls!


This piece is authored by piecesofm, who blogs about parenthood, tech, food, fashion, and inspiration.

3 More Things Employees Want More Than A Raise

In response to Geoffrey James' 10 Things Employees Want More Than a Raise, here are a few more items to add to the list...

11. To be valued and respected.
    There's nothing worse than a company taking you for granted. If you're good at what you do, there are plenty of other companies out there in which you could do the exact same thing but be happier because they actually value you. On the lighter side, we mentioned some examples in Five Simple Habits That'll Make You A Better Co-Worker, having baseline respect, even if you don't get along, is nice. Please. Thank you. It's that damn easy.


12. To walk into the office kitchen without it feeling like a frat house.
    This is related to the previous point— respect. In this case, though, rather than it be about you as a contributor or team member, it's about sharing communal spaces with some decency. C'mon people, seriously? Is this really necessary? As much as places like Facebook might like you to live where you work, at least there is the distinction, however slight, between your own living space which you pay to use and the space you use to get paid, which you share with everyone in your office, aka. the company's (not your) office!


13. To be challenged.
    Again, this is related to point 11, which serves as the stepping stone. Take a look at Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs:
    
    There is a definite correlation between the original article and the theory. Capping it off, to reach maximum fulfillment, employees want to self-actualize. They want to reach their full potential and live the words of the army, Be All That You Can Be, without actually being at war.

What else do employees want aside from money?

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Happy Healthy Juicy Build The Company Culture You Envision, Don't Just Talk About It!

How To Deal With Negative People

Haters never win... unless you let them.

All of us encounter negative people sometimes (or often) in our lives and they are truly a bummer. Truly. Their actions, their words, their everything. It's important to remember, though, that you cannot control them nor should you bother to try. You can only control you— how you behave and react, who you hang out with, and how you filter messages and let them affect you. That doesn't mean you won't get hurt— because feelings are easily susceptible to harm— but how you DEAL with those feelings is what will define your HealthyButJuicy. Let them suck you dry and you will plummet to SickAndDepleted.

Whether you are a YouTuber, public figure, or neither, this video is motivational and empowering.



If you feel like people or things are getting to you, drop by and listen to the wise words of Miss Jessica Harlow. It helps. And remember: Believe in yourself. You are worth it. And you are not alone.

Have inspirational words or messages of your own?

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Happy Healthy Juicy Inspire Empower Take Control

Lo-Mein, Pork Chop, Shanghai Bok Choy

This is a dinner-sized plate (~10-12"). Notice portions.

You have your lean protein from the pork chop, vegetables as as its own portion and mixed in with the noodles, brain-energy carbs from the al dente pasta, and (minimal-saturated) fat dispersed throughout.

Got questions?

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Happy Healthy Juicy Balanced, Proporationed Dinner!

Beauty Is In The Function

- Friend, CK


Some other thoughts on beauty...

How do YOU define beauty? Share in the Comments below, we'd love to hear!

Happy Healthy Juicy Beauty-full!

A Lot Of Words About Love

'More reasons pop media screws us up', responded a friend to the blog post, I Didn't Love My Wife When We Got Married.

Being partial to 'pop media', I was curious to see what the bashing was all about. The post was a love story of sorts, where the writer/husband ends up, to date, still in his marriage, presumably happily ever after?, despite his huge disappointment of the process. And though his marriage remains intact, he blames 'pop media' for deluding him and the masses, and warning that the thrill of the ride is not all that it's cracked up to be.

It was a lot of words about love (comments, included)...

He accuses Disney for infiltrating us with lies even in spite of beating the odds, having realized what it takes to maintain a marriage— something only half (or less) of those married ever figure out. He feels betrayed and laments, almost making us hope his wife hasn't read the post, considering the amount of effort it took for him to make their union work. Did he deserve better?

'How many people are in pain simply because they’ve been lied to. Those people deserve better. We all deserve better.

From Disney movies to my favorite shows like “The Office” to practically every pop song released, love is constantly sold as an emotion we have before we’re married... It’s time that we changed the conversation about love. It’s time that we redefine it. Because until we do, adultery will continue to be common. Loveless marriages. Divorce. Living Disney movies in our minds, and tragedies in our lives.'

There are probably a lot of reasons to hate on Disney but that would be another post on another blog. But what's wrong with painting a better picture for our kids that love and life can be beautiful and that happily ever after is a possibility? Because, as they grow up, they learn all-too-fast the ugly truths that happily ever after doesn't always happen. In fact, it doesn't happen for likely the majority. Even some of the most popular Disney princesses are prime examples, including Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears, and Selena Gomez.

As for songs, our pop artists have no problem edu-taining us with the notion that love hurts and it 'ain't easy'.

The issue isn't pop media. It's that the writer is stuck in the nursery rhyme: 'First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes baby in the baby carriage...' He's confusing love with marriage.

Love is an emotion, a feeling, a sentiment, whatever you want to call it. Marriage is not. The two are not one in the same. Marriage is an institution, a practice, a formality that people utilize to symbolize their union. Ideally that union is built upon and bound by love but that is not a necessity, nor is love or marriage— two distinct entities— an ever-lasting commitment. Nor do you have to marry if you love.

Redefining love seems futile. Perhaps educating our kids on how to build and maintain HealthyButJuicy relationships, instead, might be something more worth talking about. Likewise, so might conversations about media literacy and distinguishing between idealism vs. reality. Beyond relationships, this could also include how our kids can realistically build/reach their life goals and aspirations, sans fru-fru idealism that might hazardously be floating around their thought-space.

In the end, it's not about decreasing divorce rates, though that would be nice. It's about raising HealthyButJuicy individuals. After all, in this day and age, we all know Dating Is The Worst.

This is just one opinion but what do YOU think?

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Happy Healthy Juicy Love and Build the Life You Do.