The Relationship Between Eating Disorders and Upbringing. A Perspective from a Group of Young Adults from Medellín City

Abstract

The perspective of a group of young adults from the city of Medellín on the relationship of their eating disorder with the parenting style they received is described. Initially, the influence of various factors, from social and family context, in the process of both parenting and in the development of an ED was discussed. A qualitative research with a descriptive-transversal design was carried out, for which a semi-structured interview was constructed and applied to four young adults from the city of Medellín. It was found that family and upbringing factors, together with deficiencies in communication and affection, and the level of parental demands, lead to difficulties in the family relationship and in turn with the development of the subject’s self-perception. The participants are aware of the disorder and its motivations, however, most of them prefer to face it without family support, leaving the parents excluded from the treatments. Finally, it is suggested that there are different social and interpersonal factors that contribute to the development of an ED; the participants affirmed that upbringing, family and social circle were key in this process.