Understanding Anorexia Nervosa - 2305 Words

Introduction Abnormal eating and an unhealthy preoccupation with ones body image is the hallmark of an eating disorder. Anorexia nervosa is a type of eating disorder where the individual is at least 15% below his/her expected body weight and is using various methods to stop them from gaining weight. This disorder mainly affects adolescent girls and young women. There are two categories of anorexia nervosa: restricting and binge-eating/purging. The restricting type does just what the name implies: they restrict what they eat. By severely under eating, they are able to maintain a low weight. The binge-eating/purging type eats much more food at one time than most people would eat in the same context. For example, a snack might be a whole pack†¦show more content†¦Using 36 men who participated in this experiment as an alternative for going to war, Keys witnessed the horrible psychological effects of starvation: sensitivity to light, cold, and noise; less sleep; decreased sex drive; and a wor sened mood. These men even showed signs of depression and anxiety. What sadder is that these horrific effects persisted for months after the men were returned to their normal diets. A young girl with anorexia nervosa might be thinking that she’s just losing a few calories to stay thin. In the end, however, she could be losing her life. Causes Much research has been done to determine whether abnormalities in the brain could be a possible factor for people with an eating disorder. Neuroimaging studies have revealed many differences between the brains of people with eating disorders and the brains of those without it. Take, for example, the study done by Dr. Laura M. Holsen and her colleagues at Harvard. They hypothesized that a causal factor for victims with anorexia nervosa might be lower-than-normal levels of food motivation in the sections of the brain that control your appetite. For her study, she used 12 women with restricting type anorexia nervosa, 10 that had a history of anorexia nervosa and were now at a healthy weight, and 11 healthy women who were the control group. After fasting for 12 hours, the participants were asked to consume a meal in 15Show MoreRelatedUnderstanding Anorexia Nervosa1008 Words   |  5 PagesAnorexia nervosa has the highest mortality rate of any psychiatric disorder, with more than 10% of those that suffer from it will die. Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that is categorized by severe food restriction, excessive exercise and body dysmorphia, which leads those that suffer from it to believe that they are overweight. Anorexia nervosa is commonly misunderstood by the general public. Research has disproved many of the previous thoughts about anorexia nervosa. According to the scientificRead MoreThe Risks And The Management Of Adolescents With Eating Disorders1218 Words   |  5 Pageswas supplied by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Dentistry. The ultimate goal of this research was to educate dental professionals on anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa and how to identify the predisposing factors. To begin, Hicks and Roberts start off by start off by telling us that statistically speaking anorexia and bulimia are serious medical conditions that most commonly effect adolescents and young adults. In 2014, 70 million people worldwide showed clinical signsRead MoreAnorexia Nervos A Serious Disease996 Words   |  4 PagesIntroduction Anorexia nervosa is a very serious disease that involves the mind and the body. This paper will describe the disease itself, signs and symptoms, diagnostic measures, treatment and complications, and nursing considerations. After reading this paper the reader will be more knowledgeable about the disease and how to acknowledge patients who are suffering with anorexia nervosa and treat them accordingly. Body Anorexia nervosa, otherwise known as fat phobia, is a disease that can be describedRead MoreBackground History of Anorexia Nervosa1452 Words   |  6 PagesHISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF ANOREXIA NERVOSA Anorexia nervosa’s (AN) first descriptions began during the twelfth and thirteenth century with the historical Saint Catherine of Siena (Deans, 2011). It is related to participating in religious functions and medieval practices of self-starvation (Deans, 2011). Furthermore, the death of popular singer, Karen Carpenter in 1983 created the societal awareness about the effect of anorexia nervosa and become widely known at the end of the twentieth century (RaderRead MoreEating Disorders : Anorexia Nervosa1493 Words   |  6 Pages408 Hernandez Illness Paper – Anorexia Nervosa February 28, 2016 According to the Mayo Clinic (2016), eating disorders are â€Å"conditions related to persistent eating behaviors that negatively impact your health, your emotions, and your ability to function in important areas of life.† One such eating disorder is anorexia nervosa. Not to be confused with anorexia, which is simply a general loss of appetite that can be attributed to many medical ailments, anorexia nervosa is a serious eating disorderRead MoreAnorexia and Bulemia Nervosa: The New Epidemic919 Words   |  4 Pagesanorexic models to portray that a perfect physical appearance entails an achievement. There have been cases, where some modistes specify that their clothes designs are just for slim people. The two most common eating disorders are Anorexia and Bulimia Nervosa. Anorexia Nervosa is an eating and psychological disorder. This condition goes beyond weight control; the patient starts a diet to lose weight until it becomes a symbol of power and control. Thus, the individual comes to the brink of starvationRead MoreEating Disorder : Anorexia Nervosa1658 Words   |  7 Pagesdisorder, is Anorexia Nervosa, the restricting type. An eating disorder â€Å"involve[s] disordered eating behaviors and maladaptive ways of controlling body weight† (Nevid, Rathus, Greene, 2014, p. 335). Another well-known eating disorder is Bulimia Nervosa which is characterized by binging and purging (Nevid, Rathus, Greene, 2014, p. 338). Bulimia is different than anorexia since victims of bulimia are often normal weight while anorexia victims are well below the average weight. Anorexia Nervosa is anRead MoreAnorexia Nervosa- Eating Disorder1685 Words   |  7 PagesEffects of anorexia are mostly seen on the outside of the victim’s body, but do not be fooled. This detrimental eating disorder affects one’s mind just as much as it would the body. What Anorexia does to the mind is that it distorts the way one views their body. Victims of anorexia become fixated on their body image and overly critical about their flaws and weight. Even being obviously underweight, Anorexics will continuously deny that they have a problem and continue with their fatal practices.Read MoreEye Opener : The Mind And Body1478 Words   |  6 Pagesmost common are Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, and Binge Eating. It is only human to wish to look differently or want to lose weight; however, many young people choose an unhealthy route to achieve these goals. The main cause of Anorexia Nervosa is unknown but there a lot of leading factors such as depression, anxiety, being bullied at school, etc. â€Å"Anorexia is a complex condition that arises from a combination of many social, emotional, and biological factors† (Anorexia Nervosa: Signs, SymptomsRead MoreDiagnostic And Statistical Manual Of Mental Disorders1631 Words   |  7 Pagesoutlines the four feeding and eating disorders as, Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, Binge-Eating Disorder, and Other Specified Feeding and Eating Disorder (OSFED). These are complex and highly devastating disorders that cause health, emotional, and relationship problems (NEDA, 2016). These conditions should not be taken lightly due to their potential to cause long term emotional and physical health problems. Without professional help and an understanding o f the disorder, they become life threatening