Eating disorders are a group of conditions characterized by severe disturbances in eating behavior with an extreme reduction or extreme increase in food intake, which negatively affect the mental and physical health of the individual . There are two main types of eating disorders: anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. There is a third category of eating disorders called “eating disorders not otherwise specified”. Binge eating disorder falls into this category. Eating disorders appear mostly during adolescence and early adulthood and affect women and girls much more than boys. Eating disorders are not self-inflicted illnesses, but real illnesses with biological and psychological causes. They often coexist with other disorders such as depression and substance abuse and can lead to a number of other health complications such as kidney failure, heart problems and even death. Eating disorders are complex conditions that arise from a combination of biological and emotional factors. behavioral, psychological and social factors. While they may start with a concern about food, weight, and body image, they go much deeper than that. People with eating disorders use food control as a means to cope with overwhelming feelings and emotions and to have a sense of control over their lives. As you can see, eating disorders are real biologically based diseases that affect the brain and body and should be treated like any other disease. At least 24 million Americans suffer from eating disorders, which have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. 20% of people with eating disorders will die prematurely due to complications related to the disease. Schizophrenia, depression and… some paper… health conditions and substance abuse, they won't be required to treat them all. Under the law, if an insurance company covers mental health and substance abuse, it must do so at an amount or level considered average. Eating disorders are real illnesses with a biological basis and therefore deserve insurance coverage. Studies show that it is cheaper for insurance companies to cover eating disorders than to deny coverage because they would then have to cover the more serious, life-threatening, and more expensive medical complications that arise as a result of untreated eating disorders. Paying for treatment out of pocket for many individuals and families is simply not possible, and people suffer and die because many insurance companies do not provide enough, if any, coverage for eating disorders..