Beth M. McGilley and Tamara L. Pryor

About the author: Beth M. McGilley and Tamara L. Pryor codirect the eating disorder clinic at the University of Kansas School of Medicine in Wichita, where they are both faculty members. Beth M. McGilley maintains a private practice. Tamara L. Pryor is clinical associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and a member of the Managed Care Task Force of the Academy of Eating Disorders.

Bulimia nervosa, more popularly known as bulimia, afflicts three percent of young women in the United States. It is considered a mental or psychiatric disorder with physical manifestations that include episodes of eating binges, followed by purging to prevent weight gain. It is also often accompanied by fasting, excessive exercise, and the misuse of diuretics, laxatives, or enemas. In severe cases, a victim may suffer...