Several similarities and differences exist between the symptoms of anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Some of the similarities between the two eating disorders are increased obsession with food, weight and having a thin body image, tendency to use the bathroom immediately after eating, engagement in compulsive exercises, fear of gaining weight, reduced level of self-esteem as well as having symptoms of anxiety and depression (Derenne & Beresin, 2018).Symptoms of Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa Essay On the other hand, the first difference between the two disorders is on the relationship of those affected to food. Those with anorexia nervosa avoids eating as much as they can and frequently engage in fasting or restrictive diet while in bulimia nervosa, they engage in binge eating followed by purging or using other compensatory methods such as excessive exercises or excessive use of laxatives. The second difference is on the physical appearance of the victims. In anorexia, they are extremely underweight and bear an unhealthy figure while those with bulimia in many cases have an average or slightly higher weight (Derenne & Beresin, 2018). More importantly, Anorexia nervosa is a life-threatening eating disorder characterized by body weight less than below minimum expectations, an intense fear of being fat, a severely distorted body image, and refusal to eat or binge eating and purging (PhD Rn, 2017, pp. 411).Symptoms of Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa Essay