What is Anorexia?
Anorexia nervosa, known as anorexia, is defined as a potentially
life-threatening eating disorder that is characterized by self-starvation and
excessive weight-loss.
People who have anorexia usually stop eating and start exercising more as
they see themselves as someone who is fat when they are actually very thin.
This disease, when untreated, can be very fatal and in some instances it can
lead to death.
What causes anorexia?
To this day, it is still unsure what exactly may cause anorexia and
researchers are still working on finding out. According to the website
medicinenet.com, some researchers though think it may be caused due to a
genetic component making someone more or less at risk of becoming anorexic.
Others think that it may be a dysfunction coming from the brain’s hypothalamus
or that it may come from imbalances in the brain’s neurotransmitters. Anorexia
may also be contracted through an environment one lives in. In many societies
today, beauty standards are to be thin and as people are constantly shown this,
people aspire to look like this and subconsciously want to look like this to
‘fit in’. After a few years of this, many are trying to change this and
suppress Photoshop to create a healthier society. People may also be able to
become anorexic if teased about their looks during their life making them feel
insecure about their appearance. According to webmd.com, anorexia can also have
physical causes such as hormone changes which can lead to anorexia.
What are the symptoms to look out for?
There are many symptoms for anorexia but the main symptoms are:
- Over-exercising
- Continuous dieting when
underweight
- Unusual interest in calorie intake
- Fast weight loss
- Fear of gaining weight
- Feeling like they are too fat when
thin
How can we treat anorexia?
In many cases patients who have this disease won’t recognize having it and
will say that they have nothing. To treat it therefore there are several ways.
To have an effective treatment it is best to usually have a combination of the
following ways. One method is to do psychotherapy where the patient will have
one on one therapy which will focus on modifying the person’s behavior and way
of thinking. Another method is to have prescribed medication as some help with
the anxiety a person may have or other problems the person may be dealing with.
Other ways may include nutrition counseling, family therapy and in some cases,
hospitalization.
What to do if I think I, a friend or a close
one has this disorder?
It is always very important to seek help from others if you suspect you
may have this eating disorder. If you suspect one of your friends or someone
close to you has this disorder go talk to them about this. If external help
from professionals is needed go get such help.
Resources:
PRM
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