Daniela Zambri

Athletes and Eating Disorders in Western Culture

In today’s society, many people feel self-conscious about their body types, and have a constant desire to be thinner. Research has found that “Eating disorders influence alterations of brain functions, significantly impair cognitive function, judgment, and emotional stability; and restrict the life activities of persons afflicted with these illnesses” (Klump, Bulik, Kaye, Treasure & Tyson, 2009). People are constantly influenced by others and consumed by the ideology of having a thin body shape, which essentially consumes the majority of their thoughts; thus negatively affecting the way they perceive their own bodies. When people have these negative connotations with the self, they tend to be more at risk for developing an eating disorder.