Editing Bulimia nervosa (section)

==History==

===Etymology===
The term ''bulimia'' comes from [[Ancient Greek|Greek]] {{lang|grc|βουλιμία}} ''boulīmia'', "ravenous hunger", a compound of βοῦς ''bous'', "ox" and λιμός, ''līmos'', "hunger".<ref>{{Cite web|title = Online Etymology Dictionary: bulimia|date = November 2001|access-date = 2008-04-06|author = Douglas Harper|work = [[Online Etymology Dictionary]]|url = http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=bulimia&searchmode=none|url-status = live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080617205424/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=bulimia&searchmode=none|archive-date = 2008-06-17}}</ref> Literally, the scientific name of the disorder, ''bulimia nervosa'', translates to "nervous ravenous hunger".

===Before the 20th century===
Although diagnostic criteria for bulimia nervosa did not appear until 1979, evidence suggests that binging and purging were popular in certain ancient cultures. The first documented account of behavior resembling bulimia nervosa was recorded in [[Anabasis (Xenophon)|Xenophon's Anabasis]] around 370 B.C, in which Greek soldiers purged themselves in the mountains of [[Asia Minor]]. It is unclear whether this purging was preceded by binging.<ref name="Reference 1">Giannini, A. J. (1993). "A history of bulimia". In ''The Eating disorders'' (pp. 18–21). Springer New York.</ref> In ancient Egypt, physicians recommended purging once a month for three days to preserve health.<ref name= "Reference 2">Russell, G. (1997). ''The history of bulimia nervosa''. D. Garner & P. Garfinkel (Eds.), Handbook of Treatment for Eating Disorders (2nd ed., pp. 11–24). New York, NY: The Guilford Press.</ref> This practice stemmed from the belief that human diseases were caused by the food itself. In ancient Rome, elite society members would vomit to "make room" in their stomachs for more food at all-day banquets.<ref name="Reference 2" /> Emperors [[Claudius]] and [[Vitellius]] both were gluttonous and obese, and they often resorted to habitual purging.<ref name="Reference 2" />

Historical records also suggest that some saints who developed [[Anorexia nervosa|anorexia]] (as a result of a life of asceticism) may also have displayed bulimic behaviors.<ref name="Reference 2"/> [[Magdalena de Pazzi|Saint Mary Magdalen de Pazzi]] (1566–1607) and [[Veronica Giuliani|Saint Veronica Giuliani]] (1660–1727) were both observed binge eating—giving in, as they believed, to the temptations of the devil.<ref name="Reference 2"/> [[Catherine of Siena|Saint Catherine of Siena]] (1347–1380) is known to have supplemented her strict abstinence from food by purging as reparation for her sins. Catherine died from starvation at age thirty-three.<ref name="Reference 2" />

While the psychological disorder "bulimia nervosa" is relatively new, the word "bulimia", signifying overeating, has been present for centuries.<ref name="Reference 2"/> The Babylon [[Talmud]] referenced practices of "bulimia", yet scholars believe that this simply referred to overeating without the purging or the psychological implications bulimia nervosa.<ref name="Reference 2" /> In fact, a search for evidence of bulimia nervosa from the 17th to late 19th century revealed that only a quarter of the overeating cases they examined actually vomited after the binges. There was no evidence of deliberate vomiting or an attempt to control weight.<ref name="Reference 2" />

===20th century===

Globally, bulimia was estimated to affect 3.6 million people in 2015.<ref name="GBD2015Pre">{{cite journal |vauthors=Vos T, Allen C, Arora M, Barber RM, Bhutta ZA, Brown A, etal |date=October 2016 |title=Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability for 310 diseases and injuries, 1990-2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015 |journal=Lancet |volume=388 |issue=10053 |pages=1545–1602 |doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31678-6 |pmc=5055577 |pmid=27733282 |collaboration=GBD 2015 Disease and Injury Incidence and Prevalence Collaborators}}</ref> About 1% of young women have bulimia at a given point in time and about 2% to 3% of women have the condition at some point in their lives.<ref name="Sm2012">{{cite journal |vauthors=Smink FR, van Hoeken D, Hoek HW |date=August 2012 |title=Epidemiology of eating disorders: incidence, prevalence and mortality rates |journal=Current Psychiatry Reports |volume=14 |issue=4 |pages=406–14 |doi=10.1007/s11920-012-0282-y |pmc=3409365 |pmid=22644309}}</ref> The condition is less common in the developing world.<ref name="Hay2010" /> Bulimia is about nine times more likely to occur in women than men.<ref name="DSM5" /> Among women, rates are highest in young adults.<ref name="DSM5" /> Bulimia was named and first described by the British psychiatrist [[Gerald Russell]] in 1979.<ref name="Russell1979">{{cite journal |vauthors=Russell G |date=August 1979 |title=Bulimia nervosa: an ominous variant of anorexia nervosa |journal=Psychological Medicine |volume=9 |issue=3 |pages=429–48 |doi=10.1017/S0033291700031974 |pmid=482466 |s2cid=23973384}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Palmer R |date=December 2004 |title=Bulimia nervosa: 25 years on |journal=The British Journal of Psychiatry |volume=185 |issue=6 |pages=447–8 |doi=10.1192/bjp.185.6.447 |pmid=15572732 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

At the turn of the century, bulimia (overeating) was described as a clinical symptom, but rarely in the context of weight control.<ref name="Reference 3">{{cite journal | last1 = Casper | first1 = Regina C. | name-list-style = vanc | title = On the emergence of bulimia nervosa as a syndrome a historical view | journal = International Journal of Eating Disorders | volume = 2 | issue = 3 | pages = 3–16 | year = 1983 | doi = 10.1002/1098-108X(198321)2:3<3::AID-EAT2260020302>3.0.CO;2-D }}</ref> Purging, however, was seen in anorexic patients and attributed to gastric pain rather than another method of weight control.<ref name="Reference 3" />

In 1930, admissions of anorexia nervosa patients to the [[Mayo Clinic]] from 1917 to 1929 were compiled. Fifty-five to sixty-five percent of these patients were reported to be voluntarily vomiting to relieve weight anxiety.<ref name="Reference 3"/> Records show that purging for weight control continued throughout the mid-1900s. Several case studies from this era reveal patients with the modern description of bulimia nervosa.<ref name="Reference 3"/> In 1939, Rahman and Richardson reported that out of their six anorexic patients, one had periods of overeating, and another practiced self-induced vomiting.<ref name="Reference 3"/> Wulff, in 1932, treated "Patient D", who would have periods of intense cravings for food and overeat for weeks, which often resulted in frequent vomiting.<ref name="Reference 2"/> Patient D, who grew up with a tyrannical father, was repulsed by her weight and would fast for a few days, rapidly losing weight. [[Ellen West]], a patient described by [[Ludwig Binswanger]] in 1958, was teased by friends for being fat and excessively took thyroid pills to lose weight, later using laxatives and vomiting.<ref name="Reference 2"/> She reportedly consumed dozens of oranges and several pounds of tomatoes each day, yet would skip meals. After being admitted to a psychiatric facility for depression, Ellen ate ravenously yet lost weight, presumably due to self-induced vomiting.<ref name="Reference 2"/> However, while these patients may have met modern criteria for bulimia nervosa, they cannot technically be diagnosed with the disorder, as it had not yet appeared in the [[Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders]] at the time of their treatment.<ref name="Reference 2" />

An explanation for the increased instances of bulimic symptoms may be due to the 20th century's new ideals of thinness.<ref name="Reference 3"/> The shame of being fat emerged in the 1940s when teasing remarks about weight became more common. The 1950s, however, truly introduced the trend of aspiration for thinness.<ref name="Reference 3" />

In 1979, [[Gerald Russell]] first published a description of bulimia nervosa, in which he studied patients with a "morbid fear of becoming fat" who overate and purged afterward.<ref name=Russell1979 /> He specified treatment options and indicated the seriousness of the disease, which can be accompanied by depression and suicide.<ref name=Russell1979 /> In 1980, bulimia nervosa first appeared in the [[DSM-III]].<ref name=Russell1979 />

After its appearance in the DSM-III, there was a sudden rise in the documented incidents of bulimia nervosa.<ref name="Reference 2" /> In the early 1980s, incidents of the disorder rose to about 40 in every 100,000 people.<ref name="Reference 2" /> This decreased to about 27 in every 100,000 people at the end of the 1980s/early 1990s.<ref name="Reference 2" /> However, bulimia nervosa's prevalence was still much higher than anorexia nervosa's, which at the time occurred in about 14 people per 100,000.<ref name="Reference 2" />

In 1991, Kendler et al. documented the cumulative risk for bulimia nervosa for those born before 1950, from 1950 to 1959, and after 1959.<ref name="Reference 5">{{cite journal | vauthors = Kendler KS, MacLean C, Neale M, Kessler R, Heath A, Eaves L | title = The genetic epidemiology of bulimia nervosa | journal = The American Journal of Psychiatry | volume = 148 | issue = 12 | pages = 1627–37 | date = December 1991 | pmid = 1842216 | doi = 10.1176/ajp.148.12.1627 }}</ref> The risk for those born after 1959 is much higher than those in either of the other cohorts.<ref name="Reference 5" />

=== 21st century ===
In the 21st century, bulimia nervosa remains a significant public health concern. Data from 2001 to 2003 indicates that approximately 0.3% of U.S. adults experience bulimia nervosa in a given year, with a higher prevalence among females (0.5%) compared to males (0.1%).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Eating Disorders - National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) |url=https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/eating-disorders?utm_source=chatgpt.com#part_2574 |access-date=2025-03-06 |website=www.nimh.nih.gov |language=en}}</ref>

Globally, the age-standardized prevalence rates of bulimia nervosa have risen from 134.19 per 100,000 individuals in 1990 to 160.25 per 100,000 individuals in 2017, reflecting an annual increase of 0.71%.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wu |first=Jiayuan |last2=Liu |first2=Jie |last3=Li |first3=Shasha |last4=Ma |first4=Huan |last5=Wang |first5=Yufeng |date=January 2020 |title=Trends in the prevalence and disability-adjusted life years of eating disorders from 1990 to 2017: results from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/epidemiology-and-psychiatric-sciences/article/trends-in-the-prevalence-and-disabilityadjusted-life-years-of-eating-disorders-from-1990-to-2017-results-from-the-global-burden-of-disease-study-2017/E796E4299A618321EF4708C956E14E49?utm_source=chatgpt.com |journal=Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences |language=en |volume=29 |pages=e191 |doi=10.1017/S2045796020001055 |issn=2045-7960|pmc=7737181 }}</ref>