starving for perfection

             Like any other illness, eating disorders need to be diagnosed by a health care professional. People with eating disorders may also have psychological problems (WebMD.Com Eating 1). Because of this, medical and mental healthcare workers are able to diagnose both disorders (ANRED Treatment 3). The Mayo Clinic states that race, age, and social status of patients are also factors that affect the diagnosis of eating disorders: .
             One misconception is that eating disorders are confined to young white people from affluent families. People of all races, ethnic groups and socioeconomic levels can be affected. In the United States, researchers have found that Hispanics are diagnosed with eating disorders at about the same rate as whites, while higher rates are found among American Indians. Although the disorders are less common among young people who are Asian and black, there is evidence that blacks are more likely to develop bulimia than anorexia. (MayoClinic.Com 3) .
             Males suffering from anorexia and bulimia are often not correctly diagnosed. Some healthcare professionals consider eating disorders to be a female problem, .
             and therefore, fail to properly diagnose males with these disorders (ANRED Males 1). However, men are just as affected by societies demand for the perfect body. Colleen Rush of Dr.Drew.Com writes,?of the 5 million Americans who suffer from eating disorders, approximately 10 percent--or 500,000--are men? (Rush 1). Anorexics are usually very thin, with a body weight that is 15% below their required body weight. However, in addition to assessing their physical appears, doctors must also perform an Eating Attitudes Test (EAT) and an Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI) to determine if a patient is truly anorexic and not afflicted with a psychological disorder (?Anorexia Nervosa? 4). Bulimia may be harder to diagnose because bulimics may not be visibly underweight and may even be overweight (AABA Bulimia 1).