If you are asking yourself, Do I have an eating disorder? Am I suffering from anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa? If you want answers then read this article. After reading this article, you will get familiar with the eating disorder assessment. Moreover, you will also know the different strategies of assessment for eating disorders. You will know which kind of eating disorder assessment questions are asked of patients. In addition, you will get familiar with how eating disorders are diagnosed.
Eating disorders
Eating disorders are complex, but common behavioral disorders. Persons with eating disorders feel a persistent disturbance in eating behavior. Moreover, the occurrence of intrusive thoughts is also common in these disorders. Affected persons also experience emotional instability. Various physical, physiological, and social factors cause the onset of this disorder. Different studies have reported the existence of assessments for eating disorders.
Types of eating disorders
Different types of eating disorders are linked to the eating disorder assessment. Some common types of eating disorders include:
- Anorexia nervosa
- Bulimia Nervosa
- Binge eating disorder
- Rumination disorder
- Pica
- Avoidant or restrictive food intake
Onset of Eating disorders
The onset of eating disorders mostly occurs in the teenage years. It is also linked with the eating disorder assessment. They can affect both men and women. However, women are more affected by eating disorders. Anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are most common among other eating disorders. Eating disorders are associated with abnormal eating patterns that can persist for a longer period. Furthermore, affected persons exhibit varied behaviors. However, the most common behavior is the sudden restriction of food. Furthermore, stress also arises with time. Then they result in the assessment for eating disorders.
Read More: Is eating disorder a mental illness?
Warning Signs of Eating disorder
If the individuals are exhibiting the following symptoms, then there is a greater risk of developing an eating disorder.
- Sudden weight gain or loss
- Intense mood fluctuations
- Breathing issues
- Chest pain
- Gastrointestinal tract issues
- Constipation
- Bloating
- Vomiting
- Hemorrhoids
- Brittleness or skin dryness
- Lanugo
- Poor wound healing
- Cardiac arrest
- Hypertension
- Edema
- Dental abrasions
- Cognitive abnormalities
- Seizures
- Epilepsy
- Hypothermia
- Extreme concern about weight
- Fatigue
- Insomnia
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Risk of self-harm
- Suicidal thoughts
- Extra strenuous exercises
- Addiction
All the above-mentioned symptoms and signs are considered for the eating disorder assessment.
Eating disorder assessment is extremely important to determine whether the person should take any therapy from a health care professional or not. Moreover, an appropriate diagnosis involves the accurate observation of signs of disorder. To diagnose eating disorders, healthcare experts perform physical and psychological evaluations.
Eating Disorders Examination Questionnaire
In most cases, healthcare experts ask the patients to fill out the questionnaires for eating disorder assessment. Then they can evaluate their eating disorder based on the provided details. Before implementing any therapy to treat or prevent the eating disorder, they effectively perform in-depth analysis. In addition, the entire confidential information of patients is protected. To determine the threshold of prevailing risk. The data of one eating disorder patient is also compared with the others. After completing the surveys, patients are also asked again before proceeding with any therapy.
Eating disorder assessment questions
The most commonly asked questions in the evaluation surveys comprise:
- Are you taking any treatment for an eating disorder?
- What is your current and previous weight especially in the last six months?
- What is your current height?
- Did you feel stressed last month regarding your body weight?
- Are you facing any irregularities in your menstrual cycle?
- Are you a patient of hypertension or felt elevated blood pressure?
- How long have you delayed the gastric emptying?
- Do you feel any dryness or itching on your skin?
- How often do you feel hunger pangs?
- What is the ratio of your saliva production?
- Are you suffering from a deficiency of red blood cells?
- Have you ever felt the painless bluish discoloration of both hands?
- How many times have you felt the fever in the last few days?
- Do you think that food dominates your life?
- Have you recently lost or gained body weight?
- Are you feeling uncontrollable over your diet plans?
- How often do you vomit after your meal?
- Do you fear food obsession?
- When was the last time you initiated your diet?
- In the past few months, have you opted for any strategy for weight management?
- Do you skip foods due to their texture, aroma, and consistency?
- Have you ever experienced the choke?
- Sometimes, healthcare experts also ask which of the following is not an appropriate measure to prevent eating disorders.
- By strongly believing the misconceptions about diet and body weight
- Inhibiting restrictive diet patterns
- Skipping of meal
- Habitual measurement of BMI
- Participating in productive activities at school, college, or university
Screening tools
In addition, various screening tools are used to early diagnose different eating disorders. They are specifically used for eating disorder assessment. MPST-renowned healthcare professionals utilize the following screening tools:
- SCOFF
- The Eating Disorder Screen for Primary Care
- Eating Disorders Examination Questionnaire
SCOFF
This screening tool is based on certain questions which include:
- S: Do you make yourself sick after experiencing undesired stomach fullness?
- C: Are you stressed that you have lost control over your diet?
- O: Have you recently lost more than one stone in the previous six months?
- F: What are your opinions regarding food domination in your life?
The number of yeses in answers to these questions decides whether a person needs quick therapy or not. In most of the cases, two more questions are also asked in SCOFF survey:
- Do you feel content with your eating patterns?
- Do you eat food in privacy?
Disease-specific Questionnaires
Anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are the two common eating disorders. Some questions are asked concerning the eating disorder. If the person is suffering from bulimia nervosa, the following questions are asked:
- What is the period of your binge eating?
- Do you feel a lack of control over the binging episodes?
- Have you ever done self-induced vomiting?
- Do you use any drugs, laxatives, or certain medications for weight control?
- Is your intake period rapid or normal?
- Do you continue your binge episode until you feel uncomfortable?
- Does your stomach feel more empty during periods of stress?
- Do you prefer to eat alone to prevent shame from others?
- Similarly, the anorexic patient answers the following questions:
- Do you have a persistent fear of gaining weight?
- Have you restricted your energy intake against the body’s requirements?
- Are you experiencing any mood alterations due to your eating disorders?
Laboratory tests
To determine the inner physiological condition and eating disorder assessment, different laboratory tests are also used which include:
- Complete blood count
- Creatinine test
- Glucose level determination
- Liver function tests
- Drug screening in blood or urine
- Pregnancy tests
- Estimation of glucose levels
- Determination of TSH
- Estimation of levels of carbon dioxide, NA, CL, or K
Eating disorder self-assessment
If you are watching any video of someone who is explaining any eating disorder, then you can also do the eating disorder self-assessment. The more you watch that video, the more you think that you are suffering from the eating disorder that you are watching. However, if you think that you can better judge the symptoms, then you are wrong. Only professionals can better diagnose the actual symptoms. However, getting professional support is extremely difficult. People who are living in distant places often need help in reaching out to professional experts. Moreover, the financial crisis also became an obstacle for them to grab professional therapies.
Who can diagnose eating disorders?
Physicians or health care professionals can expertly diagnose different eating disorders. Moreover, both children and adolescents have to pass through different examination surveys. Professional healthcare experts can better conduct a detailed assessment. They not only analyze the physical condition but also the internal physiological body condition. Moreover, they can also identify various other mental illnesses. Afterward, they can suggest an effective treatment or therapy based on your condition.
How do doctors diagnose eating disorders?
It is also important to know how doctors diagnose eating disorders. Various other disorders are linked to eating disorders. Some disorders develop eating disorders, while in some, eating disorders become the main reason for their onset. As in most females, eating disorders are common with diabetes mellitus. There are two types of eating disorders. However, type I is more commonly linked with eating disorders. Furthermore, eating disorders also result in various other body complications.
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What are the standard criteria used for diagnosing an eating disorder?
To find out what are the standard criteria used for diagnosing an eating disorder, read the below-mentioned points. Persons suffering from any eating disorder must meet the following criteria.
- Anorexia Nervosa
- Significantly reduced weight
- Persistent fear of weight gain or loss
- Disturbance in the body’s shape
- Bulimia Nervosa
- Restricted episodes of binge eating
- Eating in a reduced period
- Inappropriate eating behaviors
- Incorrect self-evaluation
- Binge eating disorders
- Recurrent episodes of binge eating
- Mood swings
- Rapid eating than normally
- Most often feel embarrassed or guilty
- Pica
- Intake of less nutritious foods
- Abnormal eating patterns
- Clinical adversity in the presence of other mental conditions
- Rumination disorder
- Continuous and frequent food regurgitation
- The most common gastrointestinal issues
- Avoidant or restrictive food intake
- Drastic weight loss in teenage years
- Psychosocial functioning
- Severe nutritional deficiency
What is the role of the medical provider in the initial assessment of eating disorders?
After diagnosing the eating disorders, it is important to assess all health complications. Eating disorder assessment is undoubtedly worthwhile. You should be familiar with the role of the medical provider in the initial assessment for eating disorders. They can better point out the maladaptive eating patterns. Furthermore, they can also figure out the different health risks. Eating disorders are directly linked with numerous physical disorders. Based on the condition, they can better suggest the appropriate treatment module.
The medical providers first prioritize the safety of affected persons. Instead of directly admitting them to the hospitals, they first determine whether there is any need for hospitalization or not. Medical providers analyze different factors such as age, previous medical history, presence of electrolyte imbalance, the duration of food refusal, etc.
Family history
Professional healthcare experts make sure to focus on all underlying causes of eating disorders. They can determine the eating disorder assessment. As each person suffering from an eating disorder responds differently, experts also analyze their family history and all environmental stress factors. Moreover, they also asked the teenagers about any childhood trauma or distressing situations. Through a thorough analysis of family history, it is useful to find the reason for stress in disturbed eating patterns. If the domestic or professional environment is toxic and unsupportive, then there is an increased chance of anxiety or depression. Stress is also a leading factor in causing varied eating disorders. They are then directly linked with behavioral disorders. Similarly, at school or college, the academic stress factors of teenagers are also analyzed.
What happens after completing the eating disorder assessment?
If the person has passed the eating disorder assessment, then it’s extremely significant to begin the different treatment therapies. Furthermore, medication management is also preferred.
Healthy Eating Habits
Patients can consult dieticians as they can make healthy diet plans. Moreover, they can also join and learn valuable eating patterns from educational programs. Furthermore, there are also different cooking groups that they can join to seek information regarding the best diet plans.
Cognitive Behavioral therapy
This psychotherapy is highly useful in determining the mental beliefs that contribute to eating disorders. Talk therapists first identify the main cause and then guide different strategies to manage or treat the eating disorders.
Last thoughts
Eating disorders are complex physical and behavioral disorders. They specifically involve altered eating patterns. Affected pets usually eat more or restrict their food intake. Moreover, an unhealthy relationship develops with the food. Without effective treatment, eating disorders can adversely affect different life aspects. Anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, rumination disorder, pica, and avoidant restrictive food intake disorder are the most common types of eating disorders.
Their rate of occurrence is higher in females as compared to males. However, if you know anyone who is facing the complexities of eating disorders, Inland Empire Behavioral group experts can assist. We provide competent healthcare experts who can effectively treat any kind of eating disorder. They can perform the best eating disorder assessment. Whether the person is anorexic or suffering from bulimia nervosa, Inland Empire Behavioral group can guide the best coping strategies. Persons can learn how to effectively manage negatively altered eating behaviors. Moreover, telehealth services are also preferred for the ease of patients.
