Anorexia Nervosa: A Dangerous Obsession!

Are you obsessed with being thin? Do you believe and always say to yourself that you are fat even if, in reality, you are actually thin? Do you abnormally lose a lot of weight? And are you terrified of gaining weight? If you can relate to the aforementioned questions, then you might be suffering from a health illness called anorexia nervosa!

Anorexia nervosa is an illness is a psychological disorder whereby one attempts to use food and weight to deal with emotional problems. The cause of the disorder is not known, although most of the people who have the disorder believe that their lives would be perfect if they were thin. The disorder usually occurs in teenage girls; however, it has also been found to in teenage boys, and adult men and women.

Anorexia nervosa should not be confused with bulimia, which is another psychological eating disorder. People with bulimia do not lose as much weight as people with anorexia does. They eat huge amounts of food, but they throw up soon after eating, or take laxatives or diuretics to keep from gaining weight. On the other hand, people with anorexia starve themselves, avoid high-calorie foods, and exercise constantly because they believe that they are fat or weighty when, in reality, they are not.

If a person deliberately starves himself, fears gaining weight, refuses to eat, denies hunger even though he feels it, exercises a lot and constantly, gains greater amounts of hair on the body or on the face, becomes sensitive to cold temperatures, loses scalp hair, and perceives himself to be fat when in actuality he is really too thin, then there is a very high probability that he is suffering from this dangerous obsession.

Anorexia has adverse effects on the body. It causes dry skin and thinning hair on the head, while experiencing a growth of fine hair all over the body. It causes one to feel cold all the time, get sick often, and always fall in a bad mood. As to girls with anorexia, they usually stop having menstrual periods. At the most severe situations, people with anorexia may be at risk of death from starvation.

Anorexia nervosa is not just a common eating disorder; it is a dangerous obsession that should not be tolerated. So, if a close friend or a family member is showing symptoms of this psychological disorder, make the first move and bring him to a professional who can help him with his problems.