Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS) involves disordered eating patterns. EDNOS is described in the DSM-IV-TR as a "category [of] disorders of eating that do not meet the criteria for any specific eating disorder".

This category is frequently used for people who meet some, but not all, of the diagnostic criteria for anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa. For example, a person who shows almost all of the symptoms of anorexia nervosa, but who still has a normal menstrual cycle and/or body mass index, can be diagnosed with EDNOS. A sufferer may experience episodes of binging and purging, but may not do so frequently enough to warrant a diagnosis of bulimia nervosa. A person may also engage in binging episodes without the use of inappropriate compensatory behaviors; this is referred to as binge eating disorder.

People diagnosed with EDNOS may frequently switch between different eating disorders, or may with time fit all diagnostic criteria for anorexia or bulimia.

People who eat a normal amount of food, but become exceedingly obsessed with healthy eating, or strictly categorize normal foods or entire food groups as "safe" and "off-limits", may be referred to as having orthorexia. However, this diagnosis is not formally accepted by the psychiatric community.



PURGING DISORDER


Purging disorder is an eating disorder characterized by recurrent purging (self-induced vomiting, misuse of laxatives, diuretics, or enemas) to control weight or shape in the absence of binge eating episodes that occurs in people with normal or near-normal weight. Purging disorder differs from anorexia nervosa (AN) because individuals with purging disorder are not underweight, and purging disorder differs from bulimia nervosa (BN) because individuals with purging disorder do not consume a large amount of food before they purge. In current diagnostic systems, purging disorder is a form of Eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS). Research indicates that purging disorder may be as common as bulimia nervosa or anorexia nervosa in women, that the syndrome is associated with clinically significant levels of distress, and that it appears to be distinct from bulimia nervosa on measures of hunger and ability to control food intake.