Dwyer 1
MK Dwyer
Ward
E1/ Research Paper
21 October 2016
Anorexia Nervosa
Do you ever look in the mirror and wish your body was smaller? Many people have the same thought daily. Anorexia is an eating disorder that effects people mentally and physically in numerous ways. From what anorexia is, to the effects, symptoms and the treatment continue studies of this disease. To begin, "Anorexia is an eating disorder that causes people to lose more weight than is considered healthy for their age and height." as said in the article "Anorexia" a Medline Plus article by Fred Berger. People with this eating disorder commonly have a large fear of gaining weight, even if they are underweight. Most that suffer with this illness usually diet
…show more content…
People with anorexia usually always think they are overweight. They usually limit what they eat, will eat and then make themselves puke, exercise constantly, refuse to eat around other, take diet pills and many more behaviors one with anorexia will do. There are very many symptoms a person with anorexia may have but a few main ones are "blotchy or yellow skin, poor memory, depression, dry mouth, thinning of the bones wasting away muscle and loss of all body fat." If there is someone you know that constantly goes to the restroom after every meal that is one of the biggest signs of an eating disorder (Berger). It is very important for people to understand this disease so that treatment can be easier and farther advanced stated Jacquelyn Ekern in the article "The Genetic Study of Anorexia.". Most patients treated for anorexia deny that they have an eating disorder. '“The thing about people with anorexia nervosa is that they can’t stop,”' "said Dr. Joanna E. Steinglass, an associate professor in clinical psychiatry at the New York State Psychiatric Institute at Columbia University Medical Center and a co-author of the new study, which appears in the journal Nature Neuroscience." …show more content…
Genetic studies have shown that genes have a big role in the growth and maintenance of an eating disorder (Ekern). Researchers have found that people with anorexia have high levels of serotonin. Serotonin genes have a lot to do with weight and appetite within the body. A group of researchers that had a discussion with E, Goode a writer in "Anorexia May Be Habit, Not Willpower" in a NewYork
Times article used a different study involving a brain scanning technique. With the scanning technique they tested twenty-one healthy women and twenty-one women with anorexia. The anorexic women showed the main activity coming from the brain. The study showed that anorexia is a disease that is very effective to the brain (Berger). As studies are being constantly worked on, to different treatments, symptoms and effects make anorexia a huge topic around the world today. Anorexia is effecting many people and their families in many more ways than we even know. Maybe with the help of studies and the studies still being done that we have today there will not be as many people looking in that mirror wishing they were
There are several bio-medical definitions of anorexia; The NHS refers to an anorexic as someone who tries to keep their weight as low as possible, by restricting diet, often over exercising and in some cases through the use of laxatives and diuretics (NHS, 2014). The DSM-V definition similarly suggests that anorexia is characterised by a refusal to maintain body weight at or above the minimally normal weight for age and height (DSM-V, 2014). Both definitions highlight an intense fear of gaining weight and a hugely distorted perception
For many the term “Anorexia” conjures up memories of bone thin, weight obsessed teenage girls, models, and actresses. However, as the spotlight has been shined on Anorexia bringing this secretive and quiet disorder to a wider public perception, many still suffer in silence: either too ashamed to seek treatment, or because of an improper diagnosis.
Anorexia is an eating disorder and a mental health condition which can be life-threatening. Anorexia is an irrational fear of gaining weight, it typically involves excessive weight loss and usually occurs more in females than in males.
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder and a mental health condition that could potentially be life-threatening. People with anorexia try to keep their weight as low as possible by restricting the amount of food they eat. They often have a distorted image of themselves, thinking that they're fat when they're not. Some people with the condition also exercise excessively, and some eat a lot of food in a short space of time (binge eating) and then make themselves sick. People affected by anorexia often go to great attempts to hide their behaviour from their family and friends by lying about eating and what they have eaten. Anorexia is linked to
Anorexia is a serious mental health condition. It is an eating disorder where people try to keep their body weight as low as possible. DSM5 outlines the key diagnostic features for anorexia. Firstly, people with anorexia will restrict behaviours that promote healthy body weight. This could mean that they are consequentially underweight and this can be due to dieting, exercising and purging. There will also be a significant fear of weight gain, but this fear will not be relieved by weight loss. There will be a persistent fear that interferes with weight gain. Lastly, there will be a disturbed perception of ones weight and/or shape and denial of underweight status and its seriousness. Anorexia accounts for 10% of eating disorders in the UK and has
It was very interesting to find that those with anorexia nervosa find more positives about their disorder rather than more negatives. Serpell (1999) states that, “One of the most interesting features of anorexia nervosas which sets it apart from many other conditions is the highly valued nature of anorexic symptoms. This is expressed in patients’ generally positive beliefs about their condition and contributes to their ambivalence about treatment (pg. 177). I think that with this article, it makes it more difficult for researchers to really find an effective treatment plan for those with anorexia nervosa partly because they find so many positive beliefs about their disorder and partly because maybe those with the disorder may not take treatment seriously or it may be more difficult to treat because they think so highly of their
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 scientific research anorexia nervosa has a genetic factor, is not just a disorder of teenage girls, and that recovery is not simply gaining weight.
Anorexia Nervosa is the condition when an individual abstains from food in order to lose weight or prevent more weight gain. In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV(DSM-IV) there are four aspects of criteria to be diagnosed with anorexia: a refusal to maintain weight above what is minimally normal for one’s age and height, and extreme fear of weight gain, distorted body image, and (in females) having amenorrhea(missing three or more consecutive menstrual cycles.)(DSM-IV, 2000:589) Anorexia not only affects weight, but also alters bone growth, neurotransmitters and hormones in the brain, and electrolytes.
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that consists of self-regulated food restriction in which the person strives for thinness and also involves distortion of the way the person sees his or her own body. An anorexic person weighs less than 85% of their ideal body weight. The prevalence of eating disorders is between .5-1% of women aged 15-40 and about 1/20 of this number occurs in men. Anorexia affects all aspects of an affected person's life including emotional health, physical health, and relationships with others (Shekter-Wolfson et al 5-6). A study completed in 1996 showed that anorexics also tend to possess traits that are obsessive in nature and carry heavy emotional
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder driven mainly by the fear of gaining weight. People with Anorexia severely limit the amount of food they eat and can become extremely skinny.
Eating disorders rank among the 10 leading causes of disability among woman (Stiegel-Moore and Bulik, 2007, page 181), and is seen as a serve mental disorder (Garner and Garfinkel, 1980). Anorexia is the extreme fear of gaining weight or being fat, therefore leading to a period of starvation, and a particularly low body weight. There is significant research into anorexia nervosa that heavily focuses on its biological causes, and how an individual may be susceptible due to genetic predispositions or specific neurotransmitters in their bodies. Although this is simplifying the complex phenomena, such a reductionist approach is useful in terms of treating a patient, and takes the blame off the individual. However, social issues are disregarded
Eating disorders are severe disturbances in eating behaviors, such as eating too little or eating too much. “Anorexia nervosa affects nearly one in 200 Americans in their lives (three-quarters of them female)” (Treating anorexia nervosa). Anorexia, when translated into Greek means “without appetite” which is not true for all suffering from anorexia most people with this disorder have not lost their appetite they simply have to ignore it. People with anorexia have an intense fear of gaining weight and have convinced themselves that they are overweight even if they are the opposite of overweight. Since the way that they view themselves is in a negative light they starve themselves and put their lives at risk. “In the most severe
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manuel of Mental Disorders 5th edition defines anorexia nervosa as an eating disorder characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss; it is a serious and potentially life-threatening disorder. According to the DSM 5, the typical diagnostic symptoms of anorexia nervosa are: dramatic weight loss leading to significant low body weight for the individuals age, sex, and health; preoccupation with weight; restriction of food, calories and fat; constant dieting; feeling “fat” or overweight despite weight loss and fear about gaining weight or being “fat.” Many individuals with anorexia nervosa deny feeling hungry and often avoid eating meals with others, resulting in withdrawal from usual friends and activities
How many of you have ever battled an eating disorder or known someone with an eating disorder? One or two of every 100 students will struggle or have struggled with an eating disorder. An anonymous quote from someone who struggled an eating disorder once said “Nothing matters when I’m thin”. Anyone of us in this room is at risk of an eating disorder. Females have to maintain that ‘normal’ look to fit in with society. More guys are seeking help for eating disorders as well. Guys with eating disorders tend to focus more on athletic appearance or success than just on looking thin. I’m going to inform you today about anorexia; what it is, signs, causes, effects, and possible treatments to help it.
There are multiple ways to be guided to an eating disorder other than the media. “Eating behavior is a complex process controlled by the neuroendocrine system of which the Hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal-axis (HPA axis) is a major component” (News Medical). Psychological research is very important to patients who have an eating disorder. Throughout the research in the paper, researchers have come to a conclusion that some of the qualities in the brain a person has a certain level