Page Index

We mentioned earlier that some self image problems will require professional help and anorexia is one of them. Many children and young people have self image issues surrounding their weight and believe they are overweight when the reality is they are not. Weight issues tend to be more problematic to young girls than young men, usually because girls are more conscious of their image and even from a young age strive to look as good as they can.

Anorexia Nervosa

Who is affected?

Many girls tend to suffer a natural weight gain in adolescence which can make the problem more of an issue to them and sometimes they start a dieting regime which can be harmful to their health and can lead to the onset of anorexia.

The Healthy Eating section of BEST Advice shows why we need to have a balanced diet and if a young person starts to suffer from anorexia, a very vicious circle begins to take over their life. Anorexia, or to give it it's correct and full title, anorexia nervosa is a life threatening eating disorder and around ninety-five percent of anorexia sufferers are young women between the ages of 12 and 18.

It can and does effect males and those outside that age range.

Telltale Signs and Symptoms

The disorder takes the form of obsessive dieting or drastically reduced food intake, causing rapid and sustained weight loss. Part of the vicious circle we mentioned earlier is that the sufferer doesn't see this and regardless of how much weight they loose and how thin they get, they still perceive themselves to be overweight. They still see themselves as fat, so they continue to deny themselves food until they become dangerously undernourished. In the most severe cases sufferers have literally starved themselves to death, while in the process convincing themselves that they are fat.

One of the big problems which people suffering from anorexia have, as this excellent cartoon* shows, is they frequently don't recognize or admit that the problem exists. That means it often falls to others to recognise the problem and that means you need to know what to look out for:

    Body Image and Anorexia Nervosa
  • Significant weight loss, or having a weight which is much less than it should be for the person age and height.
  • The person may deny being underweight or having a problem with food.
  • They may obsessively weigh themselves, sometimes several times every day.
  • This obsession my manifest itself in frequent measuring and examination of their body.
  • They may have a have a distorted body image and will say they are fat.
  • They may start to use 'over the counter' diet pills, appetite suppressants or laxatives.
  • If they are using laxatives to control their weight, they will make frequent trips to the toilet.
  • Eat very small portions of food, or restrict what they eat to a very limited intake of specific foods.
  • They may start to wear baggy, loose clothing to hide the weight lose from others.

* This image was taken from a non-copyright web site http://webpages.scu.edu/ftp/CJaeckels/anorexiahomepage.html We have been unable to source ownership of this image. If you are the owner of this image please contact BEST Advice.)

In addition to these, anorexia sufferers may show changes to their physical appearance besides weight loss:

  • Altered sleep patterns
  • Hair loss
  • Mood swings and irritability
  • Constant feelings of tiredness and fatigue
  • Dizziness
  • Tummy pains or swelling
  • Delayed onset of puberty
  • Missed periods
  • Problems with oral hygiene, such as discoloured teeth and bad breath
  • Patches of dry, flaky skin
  • Chest pains

Not all these things may appear, just some, but the obvious one will be the sustained weight loss.

And the causes...?

As to the causes of anorexia, well, medical opinion is a little divided. Some believe genetics can play a part and a family history of eating disorders may be part of the cause. Some Doctors think anorexia is the manifestation of underlying depression or an overt symptom of something like obsessive/compulsive disorder while other experts think it is more closely aligned to issues centered around self image and a desire to be perfect.

Certainly anorexia is considerably more common in western society, where self image is more important, but the truth is no one really knows. Maybe all these factors play their part in different people.

Treatments

The best form of treatment for any medical issue is always prevention, but with anorexia, this is a tough one as in all likelihood the illness will be established by the time you notice.

Rapid or sustained weight loss is a job for a medical professional. It could be that anorexia is not the cause and another underlying medical condition is to blame. Either way a trip to the Doctors is a must. If you can talk to your child and find out if there is an underlying problem so much the better. That can be addressed at the same time your child is getting the help they need.

If the weight loss is 15% or more than the normal body weight, the priorities for a medical professional will be "Cause & Effect." The effect can be treated by slowly increasing the calorific intake of the sufferer and introducing vitamins and mineral which the body will have lost. At the same time the cause must be addressed and often a Doctor may recommend counseling. This can help a child or young person change the way they see themselves and their aims and goals, especially where their bodies are concerned.

It will encourage a child to think differently about themselves and about how others see them. Counseling often involves other family members so parents, carers, brothers and sisters may become involved in the recovery process. This is a good thing as any young person recovering from anorexia will need to know they have the love, support and help of their family.

A variety of treatments are available to your Doctor, and as well as counseling, these may include medication and self help plans. In very severe cases, where the loss of body weight exceeds 25-30% of the normal weight a stay in hospital may be needed to re establish the body weight to a safe level and get the much needed nutrients back into the sufferer's body. When the condition is stabilised and the body weight is no longer dangerously low the recovery process can start.

A Personal Story

One of the Best Advice team has a friend whose daughter suffered from anorexia in her early teens. She is now fully recovered, but when she heard we were working on this topic she asked to contribute.

She said:

"When I was 13 I became obsessed with my body and how I looked. I had posters of supermodels on my bedroom wall and that's how I wanted to look. Slim, elegant and drop dead gorgeous. I started on what I thought was a diet, but was never happy with the results. I lied to my Mum often telling her I was going to have tea at a friend's house but I wasn't. When I got home I would tell her I had eaten and wasn't hungry. I would deliberately stay in bed on a school day so I would have to dash out of the house to avoid being late for the bus and that way miss breakfast. My school lunch box used to go in the bin. I would empty the yogurt cartoon out and put it back in the box with the sandwich wrapping so she would think I ate it.
I got so thin, but the really weird thing was I still thought I was too big, I just couldn't see it. It got to the stage where I couldn't hide from my parents and that's when they took me to the Doctor. Looking back I can see how I was literally killing myself."

Sources of Information

The information on which this part of Body Image is based was sourced from many different internet web sites and medical publications. As a result we can offer you some excellent sites to visit for more information.