Facts & Dangers about Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia Nervosa is an emotional disorder characterized by severe weight loss (or failure to gain weight in young people). Individuals with anorexia nervosa are determined to become thin and have an intense, irrational fear of becoming fat, both of which often increase as weight is lost.

Weight is lost through a variety of methods: severe caloric restrictions, fasting, relentless exercising, use of over-the-counter diet aids, diuretics and laxatives, and in some cases, self-induced vomiting. Most individuals with anorexia nervosa strongly deny the disorder, in part, because they often "feel fat" even when they are thin. They may experience a sense of control by restricting food intake and often turn away from food in an attempt to cope with life's stresses. Approximately six in 1,000 young women suffer from anorexia nervosa.

Symptoms of Anorexia Nervosa

  • Abnormal weight loss of ten percent or more with no known medical illness accounting for the loss
  • Restriction (reduction) of food intake
  • Denial of hunger and/or the problem
  • Decrease in the consumption of foods containing animal fat
  • Intense fear of weight gain
  • Abnormal reproductive functioning (amenorrhea in women, low testosterone levels in males)
  • Prolonged exercising despite fatigue and weakness
  • Peculiar patterns of handling food
  • Distorted perception of weight, body-size and/or shape
  • Inability to control weight-loss and amount of exercise
  • Social isolation
  • Unusual sensitivity to the cold
  • Weight-loss through use of vomiting, diuretics and/or laxatives
  • Lanugo: fine hair on the body surface
  • Symptoms of starvation

Warning Signs of Anorexia Nervosa

  • Abnormal weight loss of 25% or more with no known medical illness accounting for the loss.
  • Reduction in food intake, denial of hunger and decrease in consumption of high carbohydrate and fat-containing foods.
  • Prolonged exercising despite fatigue and weakness.
  • Intense fear of gaining weight.
  • Peculiar patterns of handling food.
  • Amenorrhea in women (loss of menstrual cycle).
  • Some exhibit bulimic episodes of binge eating followed by vomiting and/or laxative diuretic abuse.

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