Info about Anorexia

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Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia is characterized by a significant weight loss resulting from excessive dieting. Anorexics consider themselves to be fat, regardless of their actual weight.
People who have Anorexia develop unusual eating habits such as avoiding food and meals, picking out a few foods and eating them in small amounts, weighing their food, and counting the calories of everything they eat. Also they may exercise excessively.


People with anorexia may feel the only control they have in their lives is in the area of food and weight. Therefore, they feel powerful and in control when they can lose weight. People with anorexia usually deny that anything is wrong. Hunger is strongly denied. They usually resist any attempts to help them, as the idea of therapy is seen as a way to force them to eat. Once they acknowledge their problem and are willing to seek help, they can be treated effectively through a combination of psychological, nutritional, and medical care.


• Signs and Symptoms


• Deliberate self-starvation with noticeable weight loss•
• Excessive exercise•
• Fatigue•
• Dizziness and headaches •
• Shortness of breath •
• Sensitivity to cold temperature or cold peripheries •
• Muscle weakness •
• Obsession with food, calories, recipes •
• Restricting to only diet foods •
• Denial of hunger•
• Intense fear of gaining weight, despite being underweight •
• Guilt or shame about eating •
• Depression, irritability, mood swings •
• Frequently checking weight on scale •
• Pale complexion •
• Difficulty in concentrating•
• Absent or irregular menstruation •
• No known physical illness that would explain weight loss •

• Medical Complications


• Skeletal myopathies •
• Amenorrhea •
• Dehydration •
• Hyperacidity•
• Constipation •
• Hair loss •
• Skin problems •
• Loss of bone mass •
• Kidney and liver damage •
• Electrolyte imbalances •
• Insomnia •
• Anemia•
• Infertility •
• Depression •
• Cardiac arrest (commonly due to low potassium level) and/or death •