Anorexia: What Parents Need To Know

What is Anorexia?

Anorexia (full name- anorexia nervosa) is an eating disorder characterized by a significant weight loss caused by excessive dieting. The cause of this illness in women, and now, an increasing number of men, is motivated by the strong desire to be thin and/or the fear of becoming obese. Anorexics see themselves as being fat. An anorexic’s actual weight has little to do with this eating disorder. Many anorexics do not even recognize they are underweight. They often report that they still "feel fat" when their weight is at 80 lbs. Some anorexics, even to the point of death, will show you on their bodies where they feel they need to lose weight. In their attempts to become even thinner, the anorexic will avoid food and taking in calories at all costs, which can result in a shut down of vital body organs (liver, pancreas and heart). An estimated 10 to 20% of diagnosed anorexics will eventually die from complications due to this disorder.

Eating Disorders: What Parents Need To Know

Eating Disorders

When people hear of someone with an eating disorder they often assume the person has a food or diet problem. Eating disorders are not a sign that a person has a problem with their diet or the food that they eat, but a sign that there’s underlying problem(s) in their life that that need to be addressed. Before children enter school they are under a tremendous amount of pressure from their parents, relatives, friends and the media that they need to act or behave a certain way to fit in. Part of “fitting in” means that you have to fulfill an image to meet the demands of societal looks, fashion and behavior. This, compounded with the growing trend to be successful often leads some individuals to find away out of the pressure and demands. For some, it’s chemicals (alcohol and drugs). For others, it involves other forms of addictive behavior that come with an eating disorder.

By definition, an eating disorder is a psychological disorder centering on the avoidance, excessive consumption, or purging of food. When eating becomes an individual’s object of dependency and interferes with a “balance” in life, a disorder is occurring. An eating disorder is an illness. It is also treatable. The most common examples of eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder and compulsive eating.

For more in-debt information regarding eating disorders (i.e. What is Anorexia?), please refer to the other eating disorder articles on this site.

Eating Disorders: Anorexia & Bulimia Help

When an obsession and preoccupation with food and the amount of food one eats begin to affect self image to the point where one is saying, "I'm too fat," "I'm ugly," help is often needed.

People suffering with Anorexia or Bulimia often feel a sense of power out of their eating habits. It is not uncommon to find an Anorexic or Bulimic who feels the "high" after periods of starvation or purging. Compulsive over-eaters often feel the exact opposite; lack of power and a loss of control.

What is Anorexia?

According to the National Institute of Mental Health (MIMH), "Anorexia nervosa is characterized by emaciation, a relentless pursuit of thinness and unwillingness to maintain a normal or healthy weight, a distortion of body image and intense fear of gaining weight, a lack of menstruation among girls and women, and extremely disturbed eating behavior. Some people with anorexia lose weight by dieting and exercising excessively; others lose weight by self-induced vomiting, or misusing laxatives, diuretics or enemas."

What is Bulimia?

The NIMH describes bulimia as, "Bulimia nervosa is characterized by recurrent and frequent episodes of eating unusually large amounts of food (e.g., binge-eating), and feeling a lack of control over the eating. This binge-eating is followed by a type of behavior that compensates for the binge, such as purging (e.g., vomiting, excessive use of laxatives or diuretics), fasting and/or excessive exercise. Unlike anorexia, people with bulimia can fall within the normal range for their age and weight. But like people with anorexia, they often fear gaining weight, want desperately to lose weight, and are intensely unhappy with their body size and shape. Usually, bulimic behavior is done secretly, because it is often accompanied by feelings of disgust or shame."

Treatment for Eating Disorders

The NIMH recommends treatment programs that involves " psychological and medicinal treatments are effective for many eating disorders... treatment plans often are tailored to the patient's individual needs that may include medical care and monitoring; medications; nutritional counseling; and individual, group and/or family psychotherapy. Some patients may also need to be hospitalized to treat malnutrition or to gain weight, or for other reasons."

Treatment facilities can be located by going to: Ask a Counselor

Read eating disorder signs and symptom articles at: Disordered Eating: My Child Is Not Eating

Disordered Eating: My Child Is Not Eating

Signs and Symptoms of Eating Disorders in Children

"Eating disorder" is when a person eats, or refuses to eat, in order to satisfy a psychic need and not a physical need. An eating disorder is a medical condition and requires a medical doctor to diagnose and treat. The following list provides the general symptoms and signs of an eating disorder.

• being secretive about eating
• refusal to eat, eat and purge (vomit)
  
• not willing to talk about food
• fear or feeling of becoming "fat" or obese
• food rituals: eating only certain foods in a certain order, preoccupation with weight and food calories
  
• loss in body weight (15%, or more) in a short period of time ( 1 month)
• low self-esteem
• isolation, away from friends and family
• loss of menstrual period (girls)
• higher levels of stress and anxiousness
• mood swings
• hair loss and brittle nails
• wearing bagging clothes, or layered clothes

If you suspect your child is not eating properly, or has an eating disorder, go to Ask a Counselor for help.


Read other articles regarding types of eating disorders and treatments in this blog site.