Anorexia Nervosa Essay Research Paper Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia Nervosa Essay, Research Paper

Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia nervosa is a relentless pursuit of excessive thinness that interferes with the fulfillment of responsibilities to the self and to others because it produces an intense and irrational fear of becoming fat, an obsession with food and weight control, and a life threatening weight loss. Eventually, a series of starvation-induced physical and psychological changes threatens control over eating and motivates more conscientious efforts to reduce. The result is a truly vicious circle of weight loss, hunger, and fear that will become a deadly noose if the process is not acknowledged and reversed.

Usually the condition occurs during early adolescence to young adulthood, although it may strike later. Some 90 percent of sufferers are female; about 1 percent of American women are afflicted. Anorexia is dangerous, and professional help should be sought early. Prompt treatment will usually keep the condition from progressing, but some cases are very resistant to treatment and may require hospitalization. Some anorexics die from complications.

Anorexia is believed to be primarily an illness of the mind or illness of psychological origin; however, it has significant medical and physical consequences. Often it begins with a relatively normal desire to lose a few pounds. But because dieting only temporarily relieves underlying psychological problems, it soon becomes compulsive; food intake is gradually minimized until eating is almost eliminated. The victim becomes obsessed with his or her body image and frequently sees themselves as fat even though the opposite is true. Ironically, the anorexic ritualizes food preparation and consumption. He or she becomes fascinated with recipes and cooking yet will not eat the food themselves, especially in the presence of others. Sometimes fasting is interspersed with periodic binging and purging (see Bulimia), particularly when trying to regain normal eating habits. About half of all anorexics become bulimic at some point. There is a strong association between eating disorders and depression.

Anorexics tend to come from families that have high standards of achievement, and they are often perfectionists, compulsive in many aspects of their life, especially school. Denial often accompanies their intense focus on remaining thin: Anorexics will typically refuse to admit that anything is wrong, and they may become angry or defensive at expressions of concern by others.

Usually the condition occurs during early adolescence to young adulthood, although it may strike later. Some 90 percent of sufferers are female; about 1 percent of American women are afflicted. Anorexia is dangerous, and professional help should be sought early. Prompt treatment will usually keep the condition from progressing, but some cases are very resistant to treatment and may require hospitalization. Some anorexics die from complications.

Anorexia is believed to be primarily an illness of the mind or illness of psychological origin; however, it has significant medical and physical consequences. Often it begins with a relatively normal desire to lose a few pounds. But because dieting only temporarily relieves underlying psychological problems, it soon becomes compulsive; food intake is gradually minimized until eating is almost eliminated. The victim becomes obsessed with his or her body image and frequently sees themself as fat even though the opposite is true. Ironically, the anorexic ritualizes food preparation and consumption. He or she becomes fascinated with recipes and cooking yet will not eat the food themself, especially in the presence of others. Sometimes fasting is interspersed with periodic binging and purging (see Bulimia), particularly when trying to regain normal eating habits. About half of all anorexics become bulimic at some point. There is a strong association between eating disorders and depression.

Anorexics tend to come from families that have high standards of achievement, and they are often perfectionists, compulsive in many aspects of their life, especially school. Denial often accompanies their intense focus on remaining thin: Anorexics will typically refuse to admit that anything is wrong, and they may become angry or defensive at express Anorexia nervosa should be suspected when a young man or woman experiences unexplained weight loss. Blood and urine should be thoroughly tested to rule out other possible causes of weight loss and to determine the extent of malnutrition and dehydration. Because extreme hormonal and nutritional imbalances can lead to death, frequent monitoring is essential visions of concern by others.

Despite 15 years of media coverage of the physical and memotional ravages of eating disorders, an estimated 5 million Americans every year still battle anorexia, bulimia and related disorders. While awareness and treatment have improved, no one has yet defined what triggers the problem. In an attempt to understand more, Australian researchers recently followed nearly 2,000 teens for three years to look for common characteristics among those who eventually developed eating disorders. Though we still don’t fully understand why eating disorders develop, the results confirm what many specialists already believed: Serious dieting is a powerful predictor that an eating disorder may emerge.

During any six-month p