Question

Discuss the likely contributions of cultural versus biological factors in various eating disorders.

Answer 1

Cultural Factors that Can Contribute to Eating Disorders:

1. Narrow definitions of beauty that include only women and men of specific body weights and shapes.
2. Cultural pressures that glorify “thinness” or muscularity and place value on obtaining the “perfect body”.
3. Cultural norms that value people on the basis of physical appearance and not inner qualities and strengths.
4. Stress related to racial, ethnic, size/weight-related or other forms of discrimination or prejudice.

Biological Factors that Can Contribute to Eating Disorders:

1. Eating disorders often run in families. Current research indicates that there are significant genetic contributions to eating disorders.
2. Scientists are still researching possible biochemical or biological causes of eating disorders. In some individuals with eating disorders, certain chemicals in the brain that control hunger, appetite, and digestion have been found to be unbalanced. The exact meaning and implications of these imbalances remain under investigation.