NEDA TOOLKIT for Educators
Glossary This eating disorders glossary defines terms you may encounter when seeking information and talking with care
providers about diagnosis and treatment of all types of eating disorders. It also contains some slang terms that
may be used by individuals with an eating disorder.
Alternative Therapy In the context of treatment
for eating disorders, a treatment that does not use
drugs or bring unconscious mental material into full
consciousness. For example, yoga, guided imagery,
expressive therapy, and massage therapy are
considered alternative therapies.
Amenorrhea The absence of at least three consecutive
menstrual cycles. Amenorrhea was a DSM-IV diagnostic
criterion for anorexia, but was removed as a criterion in
the DSM-5.
Ana Slang. Anorexia or anorexic.
ANAD (National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and
Associated Disorders) A nonprofit corporation that
seeks to alleviate the problems of eating disorders,
especially anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge
eating disorder.
Atypical Antipsychotics A new group of medications
used to treat psychiatric conditions. These drugs may
have fewer side effects than older classes of drugs used
to treat the same psychiatric conditions.
Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder A DSM-5
diagnosis, the primary feature of which is the avoidance
or restriction of food intake, without evidence of a
disturbance in the way in which one’s body weight or
shape is experienced.
B&P An abbreviation used for binge eating and purging
in the context of bulimic behavior.
Anorexia Nervosa (AN) A disorder in which an
individual refuses to maintain minimally normal body
weight, intensely fears gaining weight, and exhibits
a significant disturbance in his/her perception of the
shape or size of his/her body.
Behavior Therapy (BT) A type of psychotherapy that
uses principles of learning to increase the frequency
of desired behaviors and/or decrease the frequency
of problem behaviors. When used to treat an eating
disorder, the focus is on modifying the behavioral
abnormalities of the disorder by teaching relaxation
techniques and coping strategies that affected
individuals can use instead of not eating, or binge
eating and purging. Subtypes of BT include dialectical
behavior therapy (DBT), exposure and response
prevention (ERP), and hypnobehavioral therapy.
Anorexia Athletica The use of excessive exercise to
lose weight.
Binge Slang. Binge eating episode or binge eating
disorder. Anticonvulsants Drugs used to prevent or treat
convulsions. Binge Eating (also Bingeing) Consuming an amount
of food that is considered much larger than the
amount that most individuals would eat under similar
circumstances within a discrete period of time.
Antiemetics Drugs used to prevent or treat nausea and
vomiting. Anxiety A persistent feeling of dread, apprehension,
and impending disaster. There are several types
of anxiety disorders, including: panic disorder,
agoraphobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social
and specific phobias, and posttraumatic stress disorder.
Anxiety is a type of mood disorder.
Arrhythmia An alteration in the normal rhythm of the
heartbeat. Art Therapy A form of expressive therapy that uses
visual art to encourage the patient’s growth of self-
awareness and self-esteem to make attitudinal and
behavioral changes.
Binge Eating Disorder (BED) A type of eating disorder
that is characterized by recurrent binge eating without
the regular use of compensatory measures to counter
the binge eating.
Beneficiary The recipient of benefits from an
insurance policy
Biofeedback A technique that measures bodily
functions, like breathing, heart rate, blood pressure,
skin temperature, and muscle tension. Biofeedback
is used to teach people how to alter bodily functions
through relaxation or imagery. Typically, a practitioner
describes stressful situations and guides a person
through using relaxation techniques. The person can
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