Binge eating disorder has been one of the most prevalent disorder among the black women. Indeed, unlike their male black counterparts, most of the women have not developed an effective protective system in relation to their behaviour. Unlike the other discussed disorders, BED has a late onset of 22 -25 years which may reflect less of concern for the body size and image but perhaps more inclined to environmental stress (Jaquelyn et al, 2007). It is worth noting that the short duration that BED takes among the black women is an indication that care providers have developed its effective pre -screening consideration and thus timely treatment.
Reasons for the disorders’ prevalences According to Andrea and Arnold (1994), the search for an ideal woman’s body size has shifted towards achievement of a thinner body with time. It is worth noting that most of the black women unlike their white counterparts chose larger body sizes. As a result, they express less concern with their body weight and dieting. Many of the eating disorders, as Andrea and Arnold (1994) point out, result from the general perception of the ideal image in the society as a sense of satisfaction.
The perception that larger body sizes are indeed okay for them reduces their main desire to possess this idealistic body consideration. However, it is worth noting that this notion is fast shifting as indicated by the equalizing statistics of BN among the black and the whites. More black women especially at the lower ages are being sucked into the major consideration for this ideal body image. To add to that, the black women experience reduced levels of social pressure where their main ethnic group appreciates the larger body size.
Andrea and Arnold (1994) indicate that the black culture indeed protects the black women from the eating disorders by posing less value for thinness as opposed to the white culture. To add to that, the black women with larger bodies than the ideal consideration are also preferred by black men, a notion that has sought to cement their positive perception for size and dieting. More blacks have indeed been able to ignore the highly publicized media message and image that poses extreme thinness as the core for happiness. Conclusion
As it came out in the discussion, the prevalence for most eating disorders among the black women are indeed much lower as compared to their white counterparts. It also came out clearly that the disorders are also persistent depending on ethnic sub-groupings, age, and even geographical considerations. To add to that, cultural difference is a major factor that contributes to the prevalence of the disorders among the black women. It is therefore important to incorporate cultural consideration in the diagnostic criteria for the different eating disorders for the black as well as the white women to effectively address them.
However, it was clear that there are vast information gaps on the major links between the varying levels of the disorders for the black women. In this respect, this paper concludes by calling for further research into the eating disorders among the American women.
Reference list Andrea, D. & Arnold, S. (1994). Racial Differences in Women’s Desires to Be Thin. International journal of Eating Disorders, 17(2)191-195. Jacquelyn, Y. , Cleopatra, H. , Raymond, E. , Nakesha, F. & James, J. (2007). Prevalence of Eating Disorders among Blacks in the