Eating Disorders NOS

Eating Disorders Not Otherwise Specified (ED-NOS) are a category of eating disorders that do not meet the criteria for any specific eating disorder. The failure to meet formal criteria does not mean that the individual does not have a serious and significant disorder

Therefore having an EDNOS can mean a number of things. The following gives a list of the most commonly diagnosed examples of EDNOS;

  • All of the criteria for Anorexia Nervosa are met except the individual has regular menstrual periods.
  • All of the criteria for Anorexia Nervosa are met except that, despite substantial weight loss, the individual’s current weight is in the normal range.
  • All of the criteria for Bulimia Nervosa are met except binges occur at a frequency of less than twice a week or for duration of less than 3 months.
  • All of the Criteria for both Bulimia Nervosa and Anorexia Nervosa are met. This is often referred to as Bulimarexia
  • An individual of normal body weight who regularly engages in inappropriate compensatory behaviour after eating small amounts of food (example: self-induced vomiting after the eating a packet of crisps).
  • An individual who repeatedly chews and spits out, but does not swallow, large amounts of food. This is called Rumination.
  • An individual who has recurrent episodes of binge eating in the absence of the regular use of inappropriate compensatory behaviours normally associated with Bulimia.
  • An individual who eats only organic, natural or raw food and nothing else. This is often referred to as Orthorexia Nervosa.
  • A person who categorizes food as ‘safe’ and ‘off limits’ and who restricts certain foods for no medically good reason, although the individual has a normal body weight and isn’t Bulimic.
  • Someone obsessed with exercising but has more or less normal eating habits.
  • An individual who chronically diets, and who is always coming off or getting ready to go on a diet.

EDNOS are often labelled as unimportant or not as serious as the other 3 types of eating disorders. Such information is not true! Many people suffer from EDNOS and it is even more common than anorexia and bulimia. More people suffer from some form of EDNOS than all the people suffering from the other 3 disorders combined. The risks associated with EDNOS are just as profound as those associated with the other forms of disorders.