Eating disorder and anorexia nervosa
Introduction
The eating disorder anorexia nervosa is one kind. Eating disorder sufferers struggle with their ideas, feelings, and eating habits. They have a skewed perception of their bodies and try to manage their weight by eating less. A person with anorexia nervosa is underweight and hardly eats. Despite being too slim, many believe they are too overweight. If you think frequently about food and your weight, you’re not alone. Such thinking is very common, especially in today’s society.
However, stressing over food and weight may indicate a more serious issue. Anorexia is both a mental and physical condition. Anorexia nervosa can cause death, severe medical issues, and hunger if left untreated. Seek professional assistance right away if you or a loved one start to feel deeply concerned about or afraid of gaining weight. Therapy, medicine, inpatient stays, or a mix of these are all forms of treatment.
Different Forms of Anorexia
Based on eating habits, anorexia nervosa can be divided into two subtypes:
- A person with restrictive anorexia drastically restricts the kind and quantity of food they eat.
- A person with binge-purge anorexia severely limits the kind and quantity of food they eat. However, they also have episodes of purging and binge eating. They might devour a lot of food quickly and then purposefully throw up or take laxatives or diuretics to eliminate it.
Causes
Anorexia nervosa has unknown causes. Like many diseases, there are likely a number of contributing factors:
Genetics: Your risk of developing anorexia may increase due to genetic changes, although the exact genes implicated are still unknown. This scenario entails inheriting characteristics such as sensitivity or the urge to be flawless.
Psychological Well-being: Sometimes obsessive-compulsive personality features in eating disorder sufferers make it easier to follow rigid diets and avoid eating when they are hungry. Additionally, they could strive for perfection in all that they accomplish.
Environmental: In contemporary Western culture, being slender is highly valued. Social media has a significant impact. You can want to be strong, slender, or slim due to peer pressure. An ongoing pressure to maintain a healthy diet may result in extremely rigid eating patterns. These behaviors might develop into eating problems.
Symptoms
Individuals who suffer from anorexia nervosa frequently find it difficult to recognize or communicate that they are struggling. Individuals with anorexia nervosa often deny that they have an eating disorder. Family members frequently recognize the signs of anorexia nervosa and help the sufferer receive treatment.
Most patients start treatment when they have rather advanced symptoms. Anorexia nervosa symptoms might differ from person to person. Individuals who suffer from anorexia nervosa lose weight by at least 15% below their ideal weight and do not eat enough food. Extreme weight loss and malnutrition are possible. They are basically starving themselves.
Additional conditions that may coexist with anorexia nervosa include substance misuse, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, despair, and anxiety. It is possible for someone to not eat in front of other people, play with their food, or conceal it rather than consume it. Eating can involve organized routines, like consuming just five peanuts all day.
People with anorexia nervosa may abuse diet pills, laxatives, enemas, or induce vomiting after consuming. To burn calories, people can also exercise excessively and check their weight frequently. Anorexic people lose body fat and muscle mass. Females may experience irregular or nonexistent menstruation. Impotence can affect men.
As a result, the skin may appear blotchy, dry, and yellow. Body hair could be OK. Self-induced vomiting can lead to complications such as tooth decay and gum disease. Apart from malnutrition, dehydration, ulcers, diabetes, anemia, kidney failure, heart disease, electrolyte imbalances, liver failure, pancreatic failure, low blood pressure, and osteoporosis, inadequate treatment for anorexia nervosa can result in severe and occasionally deadly health complications. To make matters worse, anorexics are more likely to commit suicide.
Diagnosis
You could attempt to conceal your anorexia from other people. Your weight and conduct may eventually cause coaches, instructors, and family members to become concerned. Prolonged illness can be avoided with early treatment. Your health history will be questioned by your healthcare provider. You will get a physical examination. Your doctor might suggest psychiatric testing. An individual can start by having a psychiatrist assess whether they fit the diagnostic criteria for anorexia nervosa. To rule out other conditions that could result in severe weight loss and to assess a person’s general health, a thorough medical checkup is typically required. When establishing a course of treatment, a psychiatrist can identify the specific subtype of anorexia nervosa that a patient possesses. Speaking with family members and other grownups who are worried might also be beneficial.
Treatment
- Individual therapy sessions might be inpatient or outpatient as part of the treatment.
- Self-image, self-esteem, constructive coping mechanisms, organized meal plans, and healthy eating and exercise can all be addressed in group therapy settings or day programs for individuals with eating disorders.
- Family therapy is useful for recognizing and resolving difficulties. Depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and anxiety can all be treated with medication.
Individuals who are at risk of hunger might need to be admitted to the hospital right away to regain their liquid and weight. Each person recovers from anorexia nervosa. After only a single event, some people recover. Others may have to fight it for the rest of their lives, which calls for constant care, therapy, and dietary control. Family members’ encouraging words might be crucial to a person’s achievement. The fact that anorexia nervosa is a legitimate condition with treatment options should not be overlooked.
Prevention
Preventing anorexia nervosa is not a sure thing. Pediatricians, family physicians, internal medicine specialists, and other primary healthcare providers may be well-positioned to spot early warning indicators of anorexia. During routine medical visits, for example, they can inquire about eating habits and contentment with appearance.
This could lead to a discussion about health and where to get help. Consider having a conversation with someone about their appearance or dieting habits if you observe that they are overly strict. While you can’t prevent eating disorders, you can talk to them about your concerns and offer to help them get help.
