In Anorexia Nervosa (AN) sufferers: 

• Will try to keep their weight as low as possible by not eating and/or over-exercising 

• Are likely to be medically underweight 

• Will often experience themselves as fat which they find very distressing 

• Might have obsessive or compulsive tendencies especially around food 

In Bulimia Nervosa (BN) sufferers: 

• Will binge eat (eat a large amount of food in a short time) and then ‘Purge’ (find a way to ‘get rid’ of the binged food. This might be through making themselves vomit, through using laxatives, or by using extreme exercise. 

• May be very secretive about their behaviours and feel deeply ashamed of them 

• May be any size or weight 

• Are likely to see experience themselves as fat, which will be extremely distressing to them. 

Binge Eating Disorder (BED), sufferers: 

• Will eat very large amounts of food in short amounts of time 

• May feel ‘out of control’ or ‘in a trance’ when binge eating and continue eating even when full 

• Could live in a larger body (be overweight) or have a high BMI 

• Feel extreme shame about their eating 

Many more people may have other forms of Disordered Eating; sufferers may: 

• Struggle with their relationship with food and weight and may experience great distress with some symptoms from AN, BN or BED (see OSFED) 

• Experience obsessions or compulsions around food and eating (see orthorexia, ARFID) 

• Struggle with eating a range of foods or with the texture or other aspects of food or the feeling of being full (see ARFID) 

• Use food as a way to self-soothe or comfort themselves and then experience guilt or shame

ARFID – Avoidant or Restrictive Food Intake Disorder

OSFED – Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder – used when someone may have some symptoms of another ED but does not fully match the medical criteria – this is still a serious mental illness