Watch your weight
With the demand for size zero figures on the rise, anorexia is becoming rampant amongst the youth. The increasing fad amongst celebrities is largely impacting teenage girls as they desire to look like them. This is leading to an increase in the number of youngsters suffering from anorexia as they believe that starvation is the key to a size zero figure. Peer pressure is one of the biggest contributors to this problem, as these kids are very self-conscious of the image they want to portray.
An eating disorder
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder where people starve themselves. It is characterised by a refusal to maintain a healthy body weight. People suffering from the disorder have an obsessive fear of gaining weight and are highly conscious of their self-image. It usually begins in young people around the onset of puberty. Individuals suffering from anorexia have extreme weight loss. They do feel hungry but deny themselves and consume very small quantities of food. A person suffering from the eating disorder may exhibit a number of signs and symptoms. The primary ones being — rapid weight loss, scarring of knuckles, self-induced vomiting, obsession with calorie and fat content, fear of gaining weight, extremely low blood pressure and withdrawal from family and friends.
Psychological complications
The treatment for anorexia nervosa tries to address three main areas. Restoring the person to a healthy weight; treating the psychological disorders related to the illness; reducing or eliminating behaviours or thoughts that originally led to the disordered eating. There are an alarming number of psychological complications associated with anorexia nervosa, some of which are life-threatening.
Depression is a very common problem faced by people suffering from anorexia. The following symptoms are observed in such patients: sleep problems, low energy, irritability, appetite changes, persistent low moods, poor concentration and social withdrawal. Another problem is anxiety, which pertains to food intake, weight, self-image, excessive exercise, etc.
Therapies such as Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) and Cognitive Analytical Therapy (CAT) do help but they are not substitutes for proper nutrition. Obsessive thoughts about food and the desire to binge may be overwhelming for the anorexic, further accentuating anxiety levels. The frequency of such thoughts slows down once the body and brain are being regularly fed.
The writer is Senior Consultant, Neuro-Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, New Delhi
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