"Bulimia was classified as a distinct disorder by the American Psychiatric Association in 1980; the name was changed to bulimia nervosa in 1987."
             Bulimia nervosa is known as the "binge-purge syndrome", which in its extreme form, can also lead to death. Sufferers of this disorder usually binge large amounts of food in a small period of time, then purge the food. There are several ways of purging, including self-induced vomiting, Laxative abuse, fasting, and excessive exercise. They do this, so that much of the food will not be able to absorb into the body. Bulimia is not only a physical appearance disorder, but is also a mental disorder, that usually effects young women in their 20's and 30's as well as some men. These bulimics have ongoing feelings of isolation, no self-confidence, depression, and low self-esteem. Bulimics show great concern for their weight and body shape, but bulimia may go undetected for many years because most bulimics are within normal weight range.
             There are three types of bulimia. Bulimia Nervosa is best considered as three separate illnesses that share the important features. There is Simple Bulimia Nervosa, Anorexic Bulimia Nervosa, and Multi-impulsive Bulimia Nervosa. Simple Bulimia Nervosa is an illness that begins usually when the girls are about 18 years old. These groups of girls are usually fairly normal before the illness and tend to have been slightly under confident. These girls are usually fairly popular. This illness is usually started by a period of unhappiness. This might have been caused by a destructive relationship with a boyfriend. The girls have a feeling of self-dislike about their appearances, so they start to diet hoping that this will improve their self- esteem. Vomiting is used to achieve this weight loss, and so the cycle of bingeing and vomiting occurs. The weight of the bulimic will remain close to normal weight, but the eating p...