Regular eating is the key to good health, so when your appetite begins to rapidly disappear, there is a serious reason for concern. Regular and prolonged refusal of food can lead to the development of a dangerous disease - anorexia. The causes of its occurrence vary, and symptoms begin to appear immediately. Signs of anorexia can be observed in weight loss, psychological distress and other painful symptoms.

What is anorexia

The name of the disease anorexia accurately describes its essence: an is a negative prefix to the root orexis (appetite). The body stops feeling hungry, although the need for food remains the same. At first, this is observed only on a psychological level, but the longer the refusal of food lasts, the more physiological processes are disrupted, which leads to complete exhaustion and, if the disease is not cured, to death.

Causes

The disease begins to occur when malfunctions occur in the part of the brain responsible for food. How anorexia begins can be monitored by the signs that appear. The reasons why this happens may be psychological disorders or other illnesses. These include:

• diabetes;
• addiction;
• thyrotoxicosis;
• anemia;
• alcoholism;
• malignant neoplasms.

Recently, the disease often occurs for psychological reasons. It is provoked by frequent depressive states, anxiety and phobias, and nervous tension. The latter condition is most susceptible to women and girls who are concerned about their excess weight. Symptoms of anorexia in women are manifested by long-term diets and complete refusal of food. They lose the ability to adequately perceive their body, continuing to lose weight to the detriment of their health, until a complete loss of appetite occurs and the body begins to reject food.

Types of anorexia

The disease can be divided into several types. They differ in the causes that contribute to anorexia and the methods of treatment. If anorexia occurs against the background of another illness, then for recovery it is necessary to get rid of the root cause. There is anorexia:

• nervous;
• mental;
• medicinal.

Nervous

One of the canons of beauty is the thinness that models have. Achieving this ideal is often motivated by the desire to conform to other people's views, which leads many representatives of the fair sex to illness. They strive to lose weight by imposing too strict restrictions on food intake. Obsessing over this behavior can lead to bulimia nervosa, eating disorders, and loss of the ability to adequately assess one's weight. It has been noticed that one’s own repulsive and even frightening appearance, which can be seen in the photo, and the real threat of death cannot sober up a person.

Mental

Serious mental illnesses that cause depression and catatonic states, pathological fear of poisoning, and mental disorders provoke another type of food refusal. Reluctance to eat can be caused by a conscious decision or loss of the feeling of hunger due to its suppression for a long time. It has been noticed that if in the waking state the feeling of hunger is weakened or absent, then in a dream the patient may feel a “wolfish” appetite.

Medicinal

Some medications can lead to a complete lack of appetite, causing anorexia. This can happen unknowingly during treatment for another disease, or it can be provoked specifically when a person deliberately takes medications to reduce his weight. Dangerous drugs include medications such as stimulants and antidepressants that are taken over a long period of time.

initial stage

Primary anorexia begins to take hold of a person very slowly, every year taking deeper roots into his psyche. The initial stage can last 2-4 years. During this period, dissatisfaction with one’s body gradually becomes stronger in a person’s consciousness, and the desire to lose weight arises more and more. One’s own appearance is subject to constant criticism; regular attempts are made to correct one’s figure, but the result never brings satisfaction. The first symptoms of anorexia should be a cause for concern:

• dissatisfaction with weight;
• fear of gaining weight;
• passion for diets;
• regular fasting;
• reluctance to eat in the presence of other people;
• excessive physical activity;
• caches of food hidden from oneself;
• provocation of vomiting, spitting out chewed food.

Adolescents during puberty are most at risk of falling into this state. At this time, the body undergoes significant changes, which also affect weight. The most dangerous period is observed from 14 to 25 years. The stereotype imposed by fashion on the beauty of thin people can cause real harm to teenagers with weak psyches when they begin to achieve the ideal with relentless and obsessive zeal. If clinical symptoms appear, you should immediately consult a doctor who can monitor the patient’s nutrition and prevent exhaustion of the body.

At what weight does anorexia begin?

The first stage of the disease can be seen in the physiological signs of anorexia. This applies to significant weight loss and a sharp deterioration in health, for example, the appearance of constant dizziness. A sign such as a loss of approximately 20% of total body weight can be considered indicative of the disease, but this indicator should be calculated individually for each person depending on the body mass index. This is the ratio of height squared to weight (60 kg/1.7 m). A mass index of 17.5 or lower indicates incipient anorexia.

Symptoms of anorexia

The disease can be observed physiologically and psychologically; it reveals itself in a person’s relationship to food. The following signs of anorexia indicate a threat to health:

• obsessive desire to lose weight;
• constant refusal to eat;
• unusual ritual of eating (placing small portions on a large plate, chopping food, carefully weighing food, obsessively counting calories);
• avoiding events where you have to sit at a table;
• depressed psychological state, tendency to solitude;
• reluctance to admit one’s painful thinness;
• induction of vomiting, enemas done to cleanse the body of food;
• refusal of treatment;
• fainting, dizziness, decreased sexual activity;
• aggressive defense of one's way of life.

Among women

Representatives of the fair sex are the first to suffer from anorexia. They begin to exhaust themselves with diets and hunger strikes from adolescence. If the desire to have a slim figure crosses the line and turns into a disease, it can be recognized by all of the above signs. Symptoms of anorexia in girls relate to the menstrual cycle (it is disrupted), refusal of sexual activity occurs, and hormonal levels change. The most dangerous period is 25-27 years. Failures in personal relationships and the desire to become more beautiful in the eyes of men can push the development of the disease.

In teenagers

From about 12 years of age, adolescents begin to pay increased attention to their body and carefully monitor their appearance in order to be attractive to members of the opposite sex. At this time, their inner world is very fragile, and simple remarks can push the child towards illness. As children grow up, parents can identify anorexia by the following signs:

• sudden mood swings;
• depressive states;
• disruption of the heart.

In men

Representatives of the stronger sex are much less likely to suffer from anorexia. Of the total number of cases, men make up only a quarter. Signs of the disease begin to be observed in adolescence. Most of the patients suffered from obesity in childhood and were short in stature; they have low self-esteem. Many manifestations of anorexia in men are similar to women. Anorexia can be recognized by the following signs:

• severe irritability;
• exaltation;
• intolerance towards others;
• sleep disturbance, depression, apathy;
• decreased appetite;
• abdominal pain after eating;
• weight loss.

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Anorexia is a serious disease that affects millions of people. If you have anorexia, gaining extra weight is essential. To get rid of this disease, you should change your attitude towards nutrition, and also determine what types of foods are most beneficial for you.

Steps

Increasing your calorie intake

Eat nutrient-rich foods. Eat high-calorie foods that contain enough nutrients to replenish your body's energy needs. At the same time, although some foods, such as fast food, are high in calories, they are less healthy than other, more natural, high-calorie foods.

Increase your calorie intake if possible. If you have the opportunity to add 50-100 calories, take it. Extra calories contribute to weight gain.

Drink high-calorie drinks. A significant number of calories can be obtained from drinks containing high-calorie nutrients. Drinks make you feel less full than solid foods, so you can drink them in large quantities without feeling full.

Changing your attitude towards your weight and nutrition

1. Prepare for the physical effects of the recovery process. Many people with anorexia have aversions to food and fears of being overweight, and these feelings are exacerbated by treatment. Often such people, having gained a little weight, become frustrated and do not want to continue treatment. Try to overcome these physical consequences, remembering that they are temporary.

   Change your attitude towards food. Many people suffering from anorexia believe that the diet consists of constant malnutrition, and therefore they develop this disease. Try to view food not as a necessary evil, but as an integral part of a healthy lifestyle - this will help you gain weight and significantly improve your health.

   Consult others. Anorexia is a very dangerous disease, which you are unlikely to be able to get rid of without the help of a psychologist, simply by gaining weight. There are many psychotherapeutic approaches proven to be effective in treating eating disorders, and the right counselor can help you overcome your illness.

   Make an appointment with a doctor who specializes in nutrition. As noted, anorexia is a serious condition and you are unlikely to be able to completely get rid of it without professional help by simply trying to eat more and gain weight. To gain weight, qualified assistance from a nutritionist is extremely important. Gaining weight is important, but there are some factors to consider that can be detrimental to your health. Your doctor will check you regularly to monitor your health as you recover.

Changing eating habits

Be careful about your food intake. How you eat is just as important to weight gain as what you eat. Mindful, intelligent eating is practiced in Buddhism and is aimed at fully experiencing and enjoying the taste of food. The ultimate goal is to satisfy the body's physical needs, primarily hunger, and not to eat for food's sake or simply out of boredom.

Eat throughout the day. Anorexia is often associated with poor eating habits. Your body needs energy sources throughout the day, especially if you are trying to regain normal weight lost due to anorexia. To gain weight the right and healthy way, eat regularly, leaving 3-4 hours between meals.

• Snack often. Remember to eat regularly, with extra snacks between meals; Eat as soon as you feel hungry - this will help you recognize your stomach signals. Get into the habit of lightly snacking on healthy snacks throughout the day. By doing this, you will increase the number of calories you consume without overloading your stomach.

1. Train yourself to eat normal portions. Gaining weight after anorexia will be difficult because your perception of portion sizes is distorted. Getting used to normal portions is not easy, but an important element of the recovery process.

• Sometimes during recovery from anorexia, people experience strong cravings for fast food and sweets, caused by acute hunger in the early stages of recovery. It is necessary to fight this feeling, because your body, unaccustomed to proper nutrition, requires healthy and natural foods, and not unsupported calories.
• At the very beginning of the recovery process, eating can cause pain, accompanied by stomach cramps and nausea. These are normal and symptoms will subside over time. If the discomfort is so severe that you are unable to eat, talk to your doctor about how to reduce its intensity.

Hollywood stars are melting before our eyes, models are becoming slimmer, and mere mortals, watching them, in turn think about the need to radically lose weight. But once they start, some people just can’t stop. This is how people develop a severe eating disorder, which doctors around the world call “anorexia nervosa.” How not to “catch” such an “infection”, and what to do if the disease is already present?

Anorexia is a hysterical desire to lose weight, taken to the point of absurdity. Often, anorexia nervosa threatens its “owner” not only with serious health problems, but even with death!

It would seem that there is nothing wrong with wanting to look good and not be overweight. But those living under the slogan “Slimmer, slimmer, even slimmer” face one serious danger - anorexia nervosa. This disease is typical for women. About 90% of patients are girls under the age of 24, the remaining 10% are older women and men.

The desire to lose weight becomes an obsessive state, accompanied by a refusal to eat. There are two main behavioral patterns in anorexia nervosa. In the first case, patients refuse to eat. Secondly, they first eat enough, and then induce vomiting, “cleaning” the body with the help of laxatives and diuretics.

The fear of becoming fat takes on hypertrophied forms - for example, it may seem that from one peach (half an apple, etc.) fat folds will immediately appear on the thighs and abdomen, and in order to cleanse the stomach, it is not enough to induce vomiting, it needs to be washed out at least three more times.

Where does anorexia come from?

As a rule, this disease has a whole complex of reasons - biological (genetic predisposition), psychological (the presence of internal conflicts and low self-esteem) and social (pressure from society - “hangers” walk along the catwalks, celebrities do nothing but lose weight, and Russian size 48 has become the “fat” and medical size.

Among the latter are a number of diseases that are in one way or another associated with loss of appetite: disorders of the endocrine system and metabolic disorders, diseases of the digestive system, genitourinary system and cancer. Taking certain medications, such as caffeine and antibiotics, can lead to anorexia.

Anorexia nervosa: who is at risk

• 1 Children who grew up in families where there was no indifference to food. It doesn’t matter whether they were forced to eat “more and more often,” or vice versa - their mothers themselves were constantly on diets and encouraged their daughters’ desire to lose weight.
• 2 Those who were teased at school for good grades and fatness, and who could not cope with these insults at that time.
• 3 Those who experience an increased need for praise and are more dependent than usual on generally accepted standards.
• 4 Having a genetic predisposition to mental disorders.
• 5 Those who were sexually abused as children or teenagers.

The main symptom of anorexia nervosa is a pathological desire to lose weight, no matter what and in spite of everything, and no less pathological dissatisfaction with one’s appearance. In other words, someone suffering from the “slim disease” will never admit that she looks good. Weighing 40 kilograms, she will feel like she is a “fat cow” and it would be good to lose another 10, or better yet 15, kilograms. Any weight loss is perceived as a personal achievement, and an increase, even 100 grams, as a loss of control over the situation.

Allegra Versace, heir to the Versace empire, due to anorexia nervosa, brought her body to a critical state and in 2007 weighed only 32 kilograms.

Anorexia Nervosa Symptoms: Check Your Risk

Is your weight constantly decreasing? Do you have a panicky fear of being overweight? Do you constantly feel fat and feel all your fat deposits and folds? Do you prefer to eat while standing or “break” your food into crumbs? Do you have trouble sleeping? Do you have nightmares about food? Do you have problems with your menstrual cycle? Do you tell yourself “I must become perfect no matter what”? Do you feel guilty about what you eat? Are you suffering from depression? Are you hiding food? Do you constantly give your portion to others or feed it to your pets?

If you answered “yes” to at least three questions, you should think about what is happening to your body. Do you think that all this is nonsense, and you are “still” very fat? Let's leave emotions and talk in the impartial language of facts. The World Health Organization uses a parameter called BMI (body mass index) to estimate a person's weight. A BMI less than 18.5 is considered low. A BMI below 17.5 is one of the criteria for diagnosing anorexia nervosa, a BMI of about 15 is a sign of starvation.

Anorexia nervosa develops rapidly and literally “captures” its victim, leading him to complete exhaustion...

To calculate your body mass index, you need to know your height and weight. BMI = weight (kg) : height (m) squared. Normal BMI values ​​are from 19 to 25 units.

The path of an anorexic: the course of the disease

Anorexia nervosa takes a person “captive” gradually. From dissatisfaction with one’s own appearance, a person turns to active action and begins to lose weight. In the process of losing weight, he loses 20-30% of his body weight, while constantly saying that “there is no appetite”, “I don’t want to eat at all”, “I need to exercise as much as possible”.

This period is characterized by hypotension (low blood pressure) and bradycardia (a very low heart rate, below 55 beats per minute, due to which the body does not receive oxygen and nutrients), accompanied by symptoms such as chilliness, increased dry skin and baldness.

The “road to thinness” is littered with hair and teeth (damage to tooth enamel caused by stomach acid during vomiting cannot be prevented by regular brushing). Then interest in sexual life is lost and the menstrual cycle stops. With a weight loss of 50% or more, protein-free edema occurs, potassium levels drop, and water-electrolyte balance is disturbed - without treatment, death is likely.

The stars are not even afraid of the fate of 22-year-old Uruguayan model Luiseli Ramos, who died of heart failure on the catwalk (her diet included only lettuce and diet cola), as well as 21-year-old Brazilian Anna Carolina Reston, who died of anorexia nervosa (the model ate only apples and tomatoes ).

Anorexia nervosa without treatment

• According to statistics, without treatment, 5-10% (according to some data, 15%) of patients die from anorexia nervosa. This is a very high number.
• Today, there are no 100% recovered from anorexia, just as there are no people who have recovered from alcohol addiction forever. Treatments for anorexia nervosa that prevent relapses have not yet been found.
• Approximately 40% of patients return to a normal lifestyle and gain weight, in 30% the condition improves only slightly, and in 24% of cases the disease becomes chronic.

In no case can you treat anorexia nervosa on your own; you must consult a specialist, since each case requires a strictly individual approach and a detailed treatment plan.

Anorexia nervosa in facts and figures

• About 60% of top models suffer from anorexia nervosa or its “sister” -.
• In approximately half of deaths, the cause of death is suicide.
• There is a high risk of dying from acute heart failure, since when losing weight, not only fat deposits are lost, but also the structure of organs and tissues, including muscles, is disrupted.
• Those who were able to return to normal life often face a childless future, in which there is only room for gastritis and diseases of the nervous system.
• To walk the catwalk at Madrid Fashion Week, you need to have not only the standard measurements of 87-58-88, but also a body mass index of at least 18. Spanish authorities are against fashion models dying from exhaustion.
• The “working” BMI of Claudia Schiffer is 17.9, Heidi Klum is 17.2, Gisele Bündchen is 16, Kate Moss is 17.

Over the past 5 years, the number of patients diagnosed with anorexia has increased almost 10 times! 40% of them are teenagers aged 11 to 16 years, another 35% are models, actresses and other public people. In connection with such a catastrophic situation, numerous studies began to be conducted in the United States and Western European countries on this disease, which annually leads to nervous and physical exhaustion, and also claims the lives of thousands of people around the world.

It's time to find out what kind of deviation this is, what are its causes and mechanisms of development, and most importantly, whether it can be treated and how effective modern therapeutic methods are.

What it is?

Anorexia is not just a disease. In all reference books it is listed as a syndrome. The difference is that the mechanisms of development of the latter have not yet been studied well enough and are the subject of close study by scientists around the world. In this regard, the effectiveness of treatment methods for such pathologies is questioned and is not guaranteed. Indeed, psychotherapy, which is today the main tool in the fight against this disease, does not produce positive results in all cases.

The essence of anorexia is a lack of appetite, despite the body's need for nutrients. Most often, a person consciously refuses food due to a mental disorder against the background of internal complexes about his own figure and excess weight. By accustoming themselves not to eat, constantly exhausting the body with diets, patients bring the body and psyche to complete exhaustion. Much less often, this happens unconsciously and is dictated by the presence of other, no less serious diseases (for example, schizophrenia, intoxications of various kinds, cancer, etc.).

Difference from bulimia

Along with, anorexia is considered an eating disorder. According to many models, they suffered from both at the same time, although the manifestations of these diseases are completely different.

Bulimia is characterized by uncontrollable hunger pangs. After long and grueling diets, patients break down and eat huge amounts of food at once. And after they realize what happened, they become ashamed of such behavior. This leads to artificial induction of vomiting, abuse of laxatives and enemas, just to get rid of consumed food. Then the everyday life of grueling diets begins again until a new breakdown.

Anorexia is not characterized by such attacks of hunger; with this diagnosis, appetite is almost completely absent. And if with bulimia the body occasionally, but still receives and even manages to absorb at least some nutrients during such breakdowns, then here exhaustion is diagnosed much earlier, and more deaths are noted.

Interesting fact. In the course of research, scientists have established a connection between the type of eating disorder and the character of the person who suffers from it. People who are emotionally unstable and impatient and find it difficult to control themselves are prone to bulimia. Among anorexics, on the contrary, there are many closed and stubborn people who find it difficult to prove something. This explains the difficulty of treating the latter.

Causes

The reasons are so varied that in some cases it can be extremely difficult to identify them. Most often, depression is the main provoking factor, but this formulation is not enough for successful treatment. Psychotherapy digs much deeper and seeks to identify more root problems.

Mental

Age factor: adolescents and young adults are at risk, and the lower bar has been falling lower and lower in recent years. Excess weight in childhood, leading to problems with the environment (pressure from parents, calling names by classmates).

The presence of a negative example in the family: relatives with anorexia, bulimia, or obesity, as well as those suffering from depression, alcoholism, drug addiction. Tensed relationships in the family, too strict parents, because of which the child strives to meet high standards and becomes depressed if he does not live up to them. Lack of parental attention.

Wrong eating habits: eating unhealthy foods in large quantities, not following a diet.

Low self-esteem, self-doubt, internal complexes, feelings of inferiority. Perfectionist-obsessive personality type. Mental illnesses, neurological pathologies. Parents' divorce. The formation of personality when a teenager tries to prove to himself and others that he has willpower and can consciously refuse food in order to meet the expectations of society.

Hobbies, interests, profession requirements: actors, models, musicians, singers and other public people.

Physical

These include:

• alcoholism, drug addiction;
• aneurysm;
• anemia;
• Addison's disease;
• gastritis, pancreatitis;
• helminths;
• hemochromatosis;
• hepatitis, liver cirrhosis;
• hypopituitarism;
• hormonal dysfunction;
• zinc deficiency;
• dysfunction of neurotransmitters responsible for eating behavior (dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine);
• prolonged coma;
• malignant tumors;
• leukemia;
• lymphoma;
• excess weight;
• neurosurgical operation;
• digestive problems, gastrointestinal diseases;
• early onset of menstruation in girls;
• sarcoidosis;
• diabetes mellitus type I;
• Kanner, Sheehan, Simmonds syndromes;
• thyrotoxicosis;
• brain injuries;
• schizophrenia;
• eclampsia.

Genetic

Not so long ago, genetics was practically not considered as one of the possible causes of anorexia, considering the latter a purely mental and social syndrome. However, not so long ago (in 2010) large-scale studies were conducted in the United States, which involved not only patients with this diagnosis, but also their closest relatives of at least 2 people. The DNA responsible for feeding behavior was studied. The results surprised many: obsessions with losing weight and refusing to eat were often determined at the chromosomal level. They found a gene for brain-derived neurotrophic factor, which differed from the others in its sensitivity to this disorder.

It is involved in stimulating appetite and satisfying hunger in the hypothalamus, and also controls the level of serotonin in the body. Researchers have concluded that people may be genetically predisposed to anorexia. This consists in the inheritance of dysfunctions of neurotransmitter systems, a certain personality type and a number of mental disorders. Moreover, in most cases, such heredity may not manifest itself throughout life. But as soon as it receives an impetus from the outside (illness, depression, taking powerful medications, long-term diet) it manifests itself in all its “glory.”

And others

Uncontrolled use of anorexigenic drugs for the purpose of losing weight. A side effect of using certain medications - hormones, psychostimulants, glucocorticosteroids.

Single stressful events that occurred 4-6 months before the onset of the eating disorder: this could be the death of a loved one or physical (sexual) abuse.

Dream of becoming a model. An obsession with thinness, which is perceived as the ideal of modern beauty. Persistent promotion of certain beauty standards in the media, passion for social networks.

Facts, facts... Sad statistics blame the family for everything, claiming that anorexia is rooted in childhood. As practice shows, teenagers suffering from this disorder have seen enough of their mother (aunt, sister) losing weight and have not been taught to eat properly.

Classification

There are different types of anorexia. Due to the fact that the mechanisms of its development have not yet been fully studied, medical circles adhere to several classifications of this syndrome. They are based on the factors that provoked its appearance.

Classification No. 1

• Somatogenic (primary) - develops against the background of other physical pathologies and diseases.
• Functional-psychogenic (secondary) - caused by stress and mental disorders.

Classification No. 2

• Neurotic - strong negative emotions lead to powerful stimulation of the cerebral cortex.
• Neurodynamic - inhibition of the appetite center in the hypothalamus due to strong stimuli of a non-emotional nature (most often pain).
• Neuropsychiatric (or cachexia) is a persistent, conscious refusal of food, a sharp limitation in the amount of food consumed, caused by a mental disorder.

Classification No. 3

• Medicinal - develops against the background of taking anorexigenic drugs for the purpose of losing weight; it can be a side effect of other medications (most often antidepressants, psychostimulants, hormones).
• Mental - a mental disorder accompanied by loss of appetite: develops against the background of schizophrenia, paranoia, and advanced stages of depression.
• Symptomatic - a sign of a serious somatic disease: lungs, gastrointestinal tract, hormonal system, in the field of gynecology;
• Nervous (psychological) - conscious restriction of oneself in food, fear of weight gain, distorted perception of one’s own body.

There are different codes for different types of anorexia in the ICD. Correct and accurate diagnosis allows you to choose the most effective treatment methods in each individual case.

Clinical picture

At first, people with anorexia do not seem like that, because today most women diet and care about their own weight. Is it possible to suspect a model who strives to achieve ideal body parameters using all kinds of methods of an eating and mental disorder? After all, this is her profession, and she must look good and take care of her own body. But over time, when a person can no longer stop and continues to lose weight, it is impossible not to notice.

The very first signs of anorexia:

• BMI falls below the normal value of 18.5;
• refusal to eat;
• weight and figure become an obsession (in the nervous form of the disease).

It is impossible to say exactly at what weight anorexia begins, because this is too individual a parameter, which also depends on height. For example, 44 kg for a height of 154 cm is still the norm, but the same body weight for a height of 180 cm is already a pathology. Therefore, first of all, BMI is calculated and compared with normal values. If he has dropped below the bottom bar, it’s time to sound the alarm.

Determination of body mass index:
I (BMI designation) = m (body weight in kg) / h 2 (height in meters).

Common symptoms for all forms:

• discomfort after eating;
• muscle weakness and cramps;
• low body weight, which only decreases over time;
• limiting food intake under any pretext;
• refusal to get better;
• constant feeling of cold and chills due to poor circulation;
• fear of food;
• depressed, depressed state;
• phobia of excess weight.

This is just the beginning. Over time, the patient’s condition worsens more and more, and this is noticeable in his appearance, health and broken psyche.

Mental condition

These symptoms are characteristic primarily of anorexia nervosa:

• apathy;
• insomnia at night and drowsiness during the day;
• fast fatiguability;
• depression;
• looking at your naked (or in underwear) body in the mirror for a long time;
• daily weigh-ins;
• unhealthy fascination with topics related to weight;
• incorrect goal setting: “I want to lose weight from 45 kg to 30 kg” (and this is with a height of 180 cm);
• mood instability;
• refusal to share meals (for example, teenagers do not go to the school canteen and, under any pretext, do not attend family meals);
• lack of appetite;
• complete eating disorder: they eat either only standing, or only crushed, pureed foods, or only cold, or only raw, and other oddities;
• irritability, aggressiveness, constant feeling of resentment towards others;
• decreased libido;
• social isolation, cessation of communication.

Appearance

• Alopecia;
• pale or yellowish skin;
• bleeding gums, caries, tooth loss and destruction;
• weight loss, muscle dystrophy, unhealthy thinness;
• splitting and brittleness of nails.

Health

• Algodismenorrhea;
• anemia;
• gastritis;
• dizziness;
• delayed physical development in adolescence and childhood: growth stops, girls’ breasts do not enlarge and menstruation does not occur, boys’ genitals do not develop;
• leukopenia, leukocytosis;
• hormonal imbalance;
• fainting;
• cessation of menstruation in women;
• gallbladder problems;
• indigestion;
• spontaneous gag reflex after eating;
• failure of the liver and kidneys;
• cardiac arrhythmia;
• thrombocytosis;
• endocrine disorders: amenorrhea in women, impotence in men, increased cortisol levels, insufficient production of thyroid hormone, problems with insulin secretion;
• enterocolitis.

Unlike other diseases, anorexia is insidious in that the patient himself, for mental reasons, is not aware of the disease and does not see even its most striking symptoms. His consciousness is so permeated with obsessive ideas that even among the bones covered with skin (this picture is observed in the last stages), he manages to see folds of fat.

Through the pages of history. In Soviet psychiatry, anorexia, in its clinical manifestations and treatment methods, was practically equal to another mental illness - schizophrenia. Nowadays medicine has moved away from such an understanding of the syndrome, but they have not stopped comparing these two conditions. Recently, cases of schizophrenia developing against the background of anorexia have become more frequent (a person is delusional with obsessive ideas about his body and the excess weight from which he allegedly suffers).

Stages

Doctors call three stages of development of anorexia with their corresponding symptoms.

1. Dysmorphomanic (initial) stage

• Looking at your body in the mirror for a long time, often with the doors locked.
• Obsessive thoughts about one's own inferiority.
• Food restrictions, searches and compliance with the most.
• Depressed state, anxiety.
• Constant conversations about food, diets, models.
• Weight loss is not yet critical, but already noticeable.

2. Anorectic

• The fasting continues and does not end: the patient does not agree to all the persuasion of loved ones to improve nutrition, believing that he is leading a normal lifestyle.
• Inadequate assessment of the degree of one’s weight loss (considers one’s weight to be normal).
• Refusal of sexual activity.
• Noticeable weight loss of 20%.
• Complete loss of appetite: the patient may not remember to eat all day.
• The first signs of concomitant diseases appear: hypotension, bradycardia, alopecia, adrenal insufficiency.
• With nervous forms of anorexia, excessive physical activity is also added to the diet.
• Reducing the volume of the stomach.

3. Cachectic

• Deficiency of vitamins and microelements.
• Dystrophy of the body and internal organs.
• Violation of water and electrolyte balance.
• Unhealthy thinness, weight loss by 50% of the original value.
• Dehydration.
• Swelling of the whole body.
• Inhibition of the functions of almost all body systems.

As a rule, the first stage proceeds almost unnoticed and, with timely support from loved ones, may not develop further into a pathological condition. But the latter often ends in death (sometimes due to suicide) and is very difficult to treat. Even if a person manages to get out, the consequences will haunt him throughout his life.

Diagnostics

The main diagnostic tool for detecting the disease is the anorexia test, whose name is “Attitude to Eating”. The first part consists of 26 general and easy questions. The second is only 5, but they involve monitoring your own eating behavior over the past 6 months. This method has several significant disadvantages, due to which it is not always possible to rely on it for an accurate diagnosis.

Firstly, in most cases the patient cannot objectively assess his own eating behavior. Accordingly, he cannot truthfully answer the questions in the text.

Secondly, this test predominantly detects anorexia nervosa, while all other types require additional diagnostics.

This test can be taken by absolutely anyone online. For a more accurate diagnosis, various studies may be prescribed:

• blood, stool and urine tests;
• gastroscopy;
• MRI of the head;
• sigmoidoscopy;
• X-ray contrast examination of the digestive tract;
• esophagomanometry;
• X-ray;

The last resort will be a consultation with a psychotherapist. Through an interview and based on laboratory results, he makes a final diagnosis, determines the stage and prescribes treatment.

Treatment

Comprehensive treatment of anorexia involves the use of a variety of techniques. Not all of them show high effectiveness, but with careful adherence to medical instructions and a positive attitude of the patient himself, recovery occurs (albeit not as quickly as we would like). This is a rather complex disease, so at the first symptoms you should immediately contact a psychotherapist. Only they can pull the patient out of the hole into which he has fallen.

Psychotherapy

• Visualization of the final result: the patient is told in detail about the consequences of anorexia.
• Cognitive restructuring: combating negative thoughts and obsessions.
• Controlling your own behavior.
• Correction of distorted consciousness.
• Monitoring: the patient records his eating behavior in full detail, on the basis of which conclusions are drawn and errors are eliminated.
• Increased self-esteem.
• Resolving family conflicts (in the treatment of anorexia in children and adolescents).

Nutritional rehabilitation

• Exercise therapy for the formation of a beautiful body (the purpose of the exercises is to build muscle mass).
• Bed rest.
• Diet therapy.
• Creating motivation for recovery.
• Emotional and physical support from family and friends.

Drugs

• Vitamin complexes.
• Neuroleptics.
• Selected vitamins and microelements: folic and ascorbic acid, B12, iron, zinc, magnesium, calcium, potassium.
• Drugs that increase appetite: Elenium, Frenolone, Pernexin, Peritol, anabolic steroids like Primobolan.
• Tablets for normalizing metabolism: Polyamine, Berpamin.
• Antidepressants: Zoloft, Coaxin, Ludiomil, Paxil, Fevarin, Fluoxetine, Chlorpromazine, Cipralex, Eglonil.

Folk remedies

With the permission of your doctor, you can use various folk remedies at home to restore normal appetite. However, you need to be extremely careful with them. Some herbs are too aggressive for various organs and systems that are already affected. Therefore, watch for contraindications for each such recipe.

Calming (drink before bedtime):

• valerian;
• nettle;
• Melissa;
• mint;
• dandelion.

Appetite stimulants (drink half an hour before each meal):

• St. John's wort;
• centaury;
• mint;
• sagebrush.

Treatment must be comprehensive. Even well-proven psychotherapy does not always work and give the desired effect without the same antidepressants (for the nervous form of the disease).

It is a fact. Experts say that it is impossible to cope with anorexia on your own. Patients, even if they understand that not everything is all right with them, cannot force themselves to eat normally. This is due to the fact that their ideas about food and weight are too distorted and require professional correction.

To overcome anorexia, the patient himself needs to make a lot of effort. It is not enough to strictly follow medical recommendations; you need to overcome yourself every day and change your own consciousness and attitude towards yourself. This is incredibly difficult and requires support from family and friends. A few tips will speed up your recovery.

First of all, with anorexia, you need to normalize your diet. If possible, consult with a nutritionist who has a medical education: he can create an individual menu for the near future, taking into account the characteristics of the course of the disease.

Every 2-3 days you need to increase the daily calorie content of food consumed by 50 kcal until it reaches the norm - 1,300 kcal for women and 1,500 kcal for men, and this is the lower level. With the same consistency, it is necessary to increase portion sizes by 30-50 g.

For the first 2 weeks, the basis of nutrition should be liquid and pureed dishes, crushed foods, and drinks. Next, vegetables and fruits (in any form) are gradually introduced into the diet. After another week, protein foods (boiled chicken breast, eggs, milk, seafood), a minimum of carbohydrates (oatmeal, brown rice), and a small amount of natural sweets (dried fruits and honey) are allowed.

Formation of new eating habits: adherence to the regime, fractional meals, calculation of the balance of food and drink and daily caloric intake, refusal of harmful foods.

Without normalizing your diet, it is almost impossible to get rid of anorexia. And this point can be realized only after correction of the patient’s consciousness and personal orientation.

Physical activity in advanced stages of the disease is excluded. You will need to join the sport gradually, with the permission of your doctor.

Consequences

Unfortunately, many of the consequences of anorexia will haunt a person throughout his life, even if the disease is completely cured. Recovery of the body can take from 6 months to several years.

The most common complications are:

• alopecia;
• arrhythmia;
• rapid, abnormal weight gain up to obesity;
• dystrophy;
• slow metabolism;
• impotence, decreased libido, infertility;
• obsessive-compulsive disorder;
• osteoporosis;
• serious digestive problems;
• reduction in brain mass.

If we talk about forecasts, then a fatal outcome is quite possible. Death from anorexia occurs either due to failure of vital organs or due to suicide.

Prevention

If a person has recovered from anorexia and returned to a normal lifestyle, he will still have to constantly fight this syndrome. As practice shows, even psychotherapy does not guarantee complete recovery. In 30% of cases the disorder returns. To prevent this from happening, you need to carry out prevention:

• see a psychotherapist;
• follow the principles of proper nutrition;
• monitor your BMI so that it does not go beyond the normal range;
• avoid stressful situations;
• exercise moderately;
• actively communicate;
• find a hobby you like (preferably not modeling).

Even if an anorexic patient has managed to recover, he is simply obliged to follow these preventive measures in order to avoid relapse of the disease. Doctors warn that repeated failure in most cases ends in death.

Special cases

Although anorexia is most often diagnosed in teenage girls and young women, it affects both children and men. The course of their illness varies somewhat.

In children

It proceeds completely differently than in adults. The main difference is in the mechanism of its development. For them, it is primarily a somatogenic disorder, which is diagnosed against the background of other diseases. These could be basic allergies, thrush, stomatitis, worms, otitis media, rhinitis and other diseases that so often affect children of different ages.

Therefore, if there is a long and persistent refusal to eat with a persistent decrease in weight in a child, parents should first of all send him for a full medical examination, identify the disease and treat it. After this, with the help of psychotherapy, anorexia in most cases is completely cured.

In men

Very similar to a child's room. This eating disorder in them is also primarily due to a special physiological state. Psychogenic causes are rarely noted because representatives of the stronger half of humanity are accustomed to restraining their emotions and not showing them.

Their nervous system is still stronger in relation to excess weight. If men discover it, they do not rush to induce vomiting or go on a diet. Some go to the gym, others continue to calmly sip beer in front of the TV. That's the solution to the problem. According to statistics, among those who suffer from anorexia, only 5% are men, and 3.5% are initially suffering from mental disorders.

According to statistics. Among men suffering from anorexia, more than 50% are schizophrenics, and another 25% are of non-traditional sexual orientation. Having a type of psyche that is as close as possible to that of women, and distinguished by a reverent attitude towards their own appearance, the latter get used to going on newfangled diets and deliberately refusing to eat.

Additional Information

For prevention, as well as during treatment in the initial stages, illustrative examples of what this disease leads to can be used. To do this, patients are given relevant reading (mainly biographical) and viewing (fiction and popular science) on this topic.

Books

• A. Kovrigina. 38 kg. Life in “0 calorie” mode.
• A. Nikolaenko. Deadly diet. Stop anorexia.
• A. Terrina. Happinnes exists! The story of my struggle with ANO.
• E. Goncharova. Anorexia. The disease of our time, or Why you shouldn’t chase fashion.
• J. Wilson. Girls in pursuit of fashion.
• Justine. This morning I stopped eating.
• I. K. Kupriyanova. When is it dangerous to lose weight? Anorexia nervosa is a disease of the 21st century.
• I. Kaslik. Skinny.
• K. Panic. NRXA, I love you!
• K. Reid. I'm slimmer than you!
• M. Tsareva. A girl with hungry eyes.
• Portia de Rossi. Unbearable Lightness: A Story of Loss and Growth.
• S. Sussman. Dieting.
• F. Ruse. 0%.

Movies

• Anorexia (2006).
• Battle for Beauty (2013).
• God Help the Girl (2014).
• Weight (2012).
• Hunger (2003).
• To the Bone (2017).
• Ideal figure (1997).
• For the Love of Nancy (1994).
• When Friendship Kills (1996).
• The Bony Hand of Beauty (2012).
• Beautiful (2008).
• The Best Girl in the World (1981).
• First love (2004).
• Life, Interrupted (2009).
• Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story (1998).
• Dance is more valuable than life (2001).
• Thin and Thick (2017).
• Thin Life (2017).

Famous people who died from anorexia

• Ana Carolina Reston - Brazilian model, 22 years old;
• Debbie Barem - British writer, died at 26;
• Jeremy Glitzer - male model, 38 years old;
• Isabelle Caro - French model, 28 years old;
• Karen Carpenter - American singer, 33 years old;
• Christy Heinrich - American gymnast, 22 years old;
• Lena Zavaroni - Scottish singer, 36 years old;
• Luisel Ramos - Uruguayan model, 22 years old;
• Mayara Galvao Vieira - Brazilian model, 14 years old;
• Peaches Geldof - British model, journalist, 25 years old;
• Hila Elmaliah - Israeli model, 34 years old;
• Eliana Ramos is a Uruguayan model, 18 years old.

Over the past few years, anorexia has taken a huge number of people hostage, most of whom are teenage girls with an unbalanced psyche. The danger is that many patients refuse to consider themselves as such and do not voluntarily undergo treatment. All this ends not only in dystrophy and protein-energy deficiency - deaths with such a diagnosis have become far from uncommon. Statistics showing an ever-increasing number of people suffering from this syndrome makes us think about the standards of beauty imposed by society, the victims of which are primarily teenagers.

When you look at photos of young girls who died from anorexia, you are filled with horror. A tribute to fashion for the ideal figure finds its fans. Only the views of those who want to lose weight and lose weight to death and those who understand that this is a mental illness differ from each other. The Medical Encyclopedia characterizes the eating disorder as a type of anorexia: anorexia nervosa.

Who is affected by anorexia nervosa?

Anorexia nervosa affects people who are overly concerned about their diet and appearance. This disorder is persistent voluntary fasting to maintain excessively low weight that is inappropriate for age and height. The reason is the unfounded fear of getting fat. It occurs in both sexes, but adolescents, maturing girls and women are most often affected.

Symptoms include continuing to diet even after reaching a weight below that appropriate for height and age and despite excessive weight loss and an emaciated appearance and weight loss - counting calories, which becomes an obsession. As a rule, the diagnosis is made in the late stages of the disease. Anorexia nervosa should be diagnosed with Simmonds' disease, adrenal insufficiency, neuroses with anorectic syndrome, depression, and schizophrenia.

Sad consequences

Anorexia nervosa ultimately leads to abnormal changes in the body: cessation of menstruation, changes in body hair, muscle weakness, dehydration, anemia, low blood pressure, weak heart rate, constipation, mouth ulcers, tooth decay, metabolic disorders, decrease in body temperature. Long-term anorexia often impairs the functions of the heart, liver, bone marrow and causes a decrease in calcium in the bones (osteoporosis) and changes in internal organs, as a result of eating a small amount of food and insufficient intake of microelements and vitamins useful for life, etc.

Treatment includes gradual changes in diet under medical supervision to ensure adequate calorie intake and gradual weight gain; individual, group or family therapy. Life-threatening weight loss requires hospitalization. Unfortunately, sometimes it is too late, the organs undergo changes, and even if doctors rescue such patients from the “clutches” of death, they remain disabled forever.

After discharge from the hospital, patients need long-term contact with a psychotherapist. One third of girls, even after treatment to restore body weight, do not experience menstruation, as a result of which they urgently need treatment from a gynecologist-endocrinologist.

A little math

Calculation of body mass index (BMI) (the relationship between weight and height). The BMI indicator gives a rough guide, since people may have different bone density and the proportion of muscle in their total body weight.

BMI = Weight (kg) / Height (m) squared.

• 16 kg/m2 or less Marked weight deficiency
• from 16 kg/m2 to 18 kg/m2 Insufficient (deficit) body weight
• from 18 kg/2 to 25 kg/2 Norm
• from 25 kg/2 to 30 kg/2 Overweight
• from 30 kg/2 to 35 kg/2 Obesity 1st degree
• from 35 kg/2 to 40 kg/2 Obesity 2 degrees
• from 40 kg/2 or more Obesity 3 degrees

His calculation: divide your weight in kilograms by your height in meters squared. Example: BMI = 68 kg: (1.72 m x 1.72 m) = 23. (from 18 to 25 is normal).

Symptoms of anorexia

The standard of female beauty in the modern world is considered to be thin, graceful and slender girls, shining with their beauty on fashion catwalks and on the screens of Hollywood films. It is no wonder that most teenagers, especially the fair sex, with all the fervor of youthful maximalism, strive in everything to be like their famous idols. Therefore, they consciously and purposefully refuse food, go on strict diets and simply starve themselves in order to achieve aristocratic pallor and a physique like that of well-known stars. But such abuse of one’s own body does not pass without a trace; most often it leads to the development of a disease such as anorexia.

What is such a disease? Why does it occur and how does it begin? What are the first signs of the disease and what should you focus on?

Anorexia and its varieties

The name “anorexia” itself is borrowed from the Greek language and literally translates as “no appetite.” It manifests itself in a complete refusal to eat, which leads to rapid weight loss and entails mental disorders and nervous disorders, the main manifestations of which are phobia of obesity, manic desire to lose weight, unreasonable anxiety about weight gain, as well as a false painful perception of one’s physical health. forms.

Approximately eighty percent of anorexia sufferers are teenage girls between twelve and twenty-four years of age. The remaining twenty percent are women and older men.

The worst thing is that this disease leads to very sad consequences and in twenty percent of cases ends in death, the vast majority of which are suicide. Anorexia is considered an occupational disease in models, where it accounts for approximately seventy-two percent of cases. Timely qualified medical care leads to a complete recovery of patients only in forty to fifty percent.

There are several varieties of this disease.

According to the mechanism of development, anorexia occurs:

• neurotic – when refusal to eat is caused by a strong negative emotional background, pathologically affecting the cerebral cortex;
• neurodynamic - when the decrease and loss of appetite is caused by the impact on the brain of strong non-emotional stimuli, such as severe and intense pain;
• neuropsychiatric - in other words, neurological, nervous, psychogenic anorexia or cachexia, which occurs against the background of a purposeful and conscious refusal to eat and is considered as a severe mental disorder - one of the types of self-destruction, classified in several degrees of severity.

In the countries of the European Community, the use of sibutramine was suspended in 2010, when the European Medicines Agency published the results of studies on the risks of side effects of the drug: the drug should not be taken by patients who have ever had diseases of the cardiovascular system - it can cause tachycardia, atrial fibrillation, and increased blood pressure , as well as convulsions, dizziness, dysmenorrhea and more than 20 side effects.

Motivator from the “40 kg” community

Fluoxetine

He's Prozac. This is not a weight loss drug, but a strong antidepressant, one of the side effects of which is loss of appetite. A person suffering from depression, when taking fluoxetine, will notice an improvement in mood, a decrease in anxiety and fear, and normalization of sleep. A pronounced effect will appear within a week of taking the drug. If fluoxetine is suitable for the patient. If not, then the impressive list of side effects of taking fluoxetine is not the worst thing. At one time, the pharmaceutical company that produced Prozac hid the fact that more than 2,000 people committed suicide while taking fluoxetine drugs. Despite the fact that before this, suicidal thoughts did not bother them, despite depression.

Aspirin or turmeric? 8 methods of contraception that are better not to try!

Hell's cocktail: ephedrine, caffeine, aspirin. Ephedrine is a psychoactive poisonous alkaloid, a raw material for the production of drugs containing methamphetamine and ephedrone. The storage, use and sale of ephedrine is prohibited in Russia, but this fact does not stop anorexics. It is impossible to find ephedrine in its pure form, but ephedrine-containing drugs are easy to find: for example, Broncholitin cough syrup. The standard composition of the cocktail is 25 mg of ephedrine, 250 mg of caffeine and 250 mg of aspirin. Girls take this mixture three times a day. Supposedly it helps burn fat at lightning speed. This naturally has an adverse effect on the cardiovascular system.

Motivator from the 40 kg community

Laxatives and diuretics

The principle of action of these drugs is clear: the first help to empty the intestines, the second have a diuretic effect - due to this, the illusion of weight loss is created. Naturally, neither the volume of muscle mass nor the volume of fat changes from taking these drugs. But problems with the gastrointestinal tract begin from the constant use of laxatives. Diuretics cannot be used at all without a doctor’s prescription: they remove potassium, calcium and magnesium ions from the body. It is very difficult to restore their balance without the supervision of a doctor and under the condition of a semi-starvation diet.

Lack of body weight is a reason to consult a doctor to determine the causes and ways of weight correction.

Body Mass Index (BMI) Calculator

Using this online calculator you can calculate your body mass index, BMI (from the English Body mass index - BMI). Using your body mass index, you can check the relationship between your body weight and your height and find out whether you are overweight or underweight. To calculate your body mass index (BMI), fill in the fields corresponding to your height and weight in the calculator. Enter your height and weight with an accuracy of tenths, then the calculation result will be most accurate.

Signs of anorexia: psychological changes

Despite the conspicuous low weight, the main symptoms of anorexia are still psychological. It is in the consciousness of a girl with anorexia that the most significant changes occur, which lead to mental disorder.

Anorexia begins as usual. The psychological impetus for starting to lose weight comes from ridicule or harsh statements from classmates/fellow students. Sometimes statements about fatness can be especially traumatic if they are said by a guy to whom the girl is not indifferent. The girl's self-esteem is reduced, and after such ridicule it decreases even more: she begins to think of herself as unattractive and inferior.
At some point, the girl decides to lose weight.

She believes that if you change your appearance, you can immediately become attractive and popular among your peers and among the opposite sex.
With such motivation, the girl quickly brings her weight back to normal. It’s good if she managed to lose weight wisely and avoid harmful diets, taking laxatives, weight loss drugs and inducing vomiting.

What prevents her from stopping losing weight?

Self-esteem in anorexia is very strongly related to body image. The first successes in losing weight cause real euphoria: the girl feels more beautiful and more successful than before. She sees the envious glances of her friends, the interested glances of guys, and this is a powerful incentive for her to continue working on her body. Work on the body usually continues with losing weight - the girl is used to this, and her consciousness has already firmly connected losing weight with popularity, success and happiness.

A patient with anorexia has a distorted perception of her body image: with extremely low weight, she continues to believe that in some places, for example, on the hips, there is fat that needs to be gotten rid of. It is virtually useless to convince her - neither for the parents nor for the psychologist.

In addition to the obsessive desire to lose weight, a person with anorexia usually communicates less with friends, and her circle of contacts narrows. Thoughts and hobbies are related to food: cooking, diets, calories.
The mood of a patient with anorexia may be depressed or change frequently. Depression and sleep disturbances are common.

Physiological symptoms of anorexia

The physiological symptoms of anorexia vary depending on the stage of anorexia. When you lose weight significantly below normal, all systems and organs of the body suffer, but disorders are not always noticeable in the first stages of anorexia: a healthy young body has a margin of safety. The first visible signs of anorexia are:

• problems with the menstrual cycle
• constant weakness
• hair loss, brittle nails

The functioning of the endocrine system is disrupted, the concentrations of hormones, primarily sex hormones, change.
With a lack of protein in food, the body begins to destroy muscle protein, including the heart muscle. This leads to various negative consequences...

When to see a doctor for anorexia?

As with most diseases, with anorexia the rule is true: the earlier treatment is started, the easier and faster the patient can be cured.
If in the first stage of anorexia it is possible to do without medications, only with outpatient treatment, then in the last stages the patient ends up in intensive care, with a body weight below 35-40 kg and the risk of death. According to statistics, the mortality rate for anorexia without therapy is 5-10%.

Anorexia? We are ready to help you!