When did eating disorders first come into existence?

Answer 1

It is uncertain exactly where or how eating disorders got started. Most began to be diagnosed and accepted by the medical society in the late 1800s and early 1900s, all the way up to present day. Many religious texts describe fasting, which can be considered a form of anorexia, as it promotes self-starvation. Catherine of Sienna was believed to have died from an eating disorder, as notes of church officials near to her reported that she ate only fruits and berries and would often skip meals. Some writings and texts dating abck to the ancient Greek and Roman empires describe self-induced vomiting, starvation, and extreme diet measures, all very similar to what would now be considered eating disorders.

Answer 2

There is no exact answer to that. Anorexia was not recognized as a disorder / disease until the 1880s. It was not commonly diagnosed until well into the 1900s. Many cases of anorexia may have existed centuries before that, but they were unknown and undocumented. Certain writings dating as far back as the ancient Greeks and Romans describe behaviors that could be classified as eating disorders, such as self-induced vomiting (bulimia) and long period of religious fasting (anorexia). Priest journals describe the death of Saint Catherine of Siena in a manner that would be diagnosed as a severe form of an eating disorder in today's world. Before her death, she fasted for extrodinary lenghts of time, ate very little (often only fruits or berries), and commonly threw up whatever she would eat. She most likely died as a result of severe malnourishment at the age of 33, in the late 1300s.