Signs and Symptoms

Distorted body image

Dissatisfaction with body

Pronounced weight loss

Low body fat

Excessive fear of becoming fat

Reduction in food intake and/or food refusal

Preoccupation with calories, food, and food preparation

Loss or absence of menstrual periods (in women)

Extensive exercise

Dry, flaky, or cracked skin

Dry, sparse hair on scalp

Pale, downy hair on face and body

Hypothermia

Depression

Description

Anorexia nervosa is a psychological disorder that most often affects young women between the ages of 12 and 21. In fact, less than 10 percent of all those with anorexia nervosa are males. The problem typically occurs in someone with a distorted body image who desperately wants to lose weight. She may start by eliminating high-calorie foods and snacks from her diet, then progress to skipping meals altogether, or eating smaller portions. Often, a person with anorexia nervosa may eat only a few small items of food a day, such as an apple and a few carrot sticks. To burn off even more calories, many sufferers become obsessive exercisers.

Unfortunately, when the body doesn't have a store of calories to use as fuel for everyday functions (such as breathing, walking, moving), It starts to burn its own muscle cells in order to come up with the calories it needs to survive. In deed, the anorexic's heart muscle can often be. come so weak and depleted that it stops beating, Many victims of severe anorexia die of heart attacks-even though they may be in their teens or twenties. Other consequences of anorexia include delayed sexual maturation gastrointestinal disorders (including constipation), and liver and kidney damage.

Anorexia doesn't have one specific cause. Risk factors include:

Low self-esteem

Perfectionist personality

High expectations, stress due to multiple responsibilities and/or tight schedules

Ambivalence about independence

Early puberty

Conventional Medical Treatment

Sychotherapy, rather than drug therapy, is the first line of treatment for anorexia. A mental health professional trained to treat eating disorders encourages the patient to gain weight by increasing daily caloric intake by 300 calories every two weeks. The psychotherapist also tries to determine the psychosocial issues affecting the sufferer's body image, and seek to build her sense of self-worth and a more positive body image. In severe cases, bed rest with supervised meals are called for until patient has gained 10 to 20 pounds. Since the goal in treating anorexia is to encourage the individual to get better on her own, forced or tube feeding is usually avoided. In instances where the individual is clinically depressed, an anti-depressant may be given.