No Comments
Anorexic patients drastically reduce their food intake and are often not capable of changing their behavior, which can lead to life-threatening weight loss. Using MRI technology, scientists at Heidelberg University Hospital have discovered for the first time processes in brain metabolism that explain this disordered eating behavior.
Posted in Anorexia
No Comments
Eating disorders are something that still seems to lurk along the sidelines of basic medicine. The stigma attached to a disorder, as well as the underlying psychological issues that could be present can often prevent an individual from seeking help for or even admitting to suffering from an eating disorder. (more…)
Posted in Anorexia
No Comments
More than 20 years ago, Maggie Baumann was struggling with anorexia while pregnant, a condition called “pregorexia.” Now 48 and living in Laguna Niguel, she’s a therapist who specializes in treating eating disorders.
When she was pregnant with her first daughter, Christine, she gained a healthy 33 pounds. But at the time, the weight felt foreign and unhealthy to her. “My first pregnancy I felt so out of control with my body changes…the stretching of my stomach, the increased size of my breasts…all those changes made me feel like I was losing myself and my identity of being ‘thin’ and in control of myself,” she said.
Posted in Anorexia
No Comments
Michael Jackson weighed a reported 112 pounds at his death. He was 5 feet 11 inches tall, which would make his body mass index a skeletal 15.6 at the time of his death. A healthy BMI is between 18.5 and 25, and according to the World Health Organization, a BMI of 16.0 is the weight at which one might die of starvation.
Mark Rubi, a writer for www.Examiner.com, poses the question of whether Jackson suffered from anorexia, an eating disorder characterized by an unwillingness to eat. Sources close to Jackson say that he admittedly ate very little, and many who saw him up close over the last few years said he looked very frail.
Posted in Anorexia
No Comments
While many people think that anorexia and other eating disorders are caused by perfectionist parents and the media’s idealization of wafer-thin models, a Time article reports that researchers at the Maudsley Hospital in London believe the root cause of anorexia is hereditary. In fact, it may even be explained by some of the same genes that are associated with autism.
Researchers at the Eating Disorders Unit at the Maudsley Hospital have long been studying the relationship between autism and anorexia. They may seem entirely different, but the London researchers point out that some of the most important characteristics of the illnesses are similar.
Posted in Anorexia
No Comments
Although eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa are usually associated with adolescent girls, the senior population is seeing an increase in cases, especially in elderly women.
According to a recent report from the Remuda Ranch Programs for Eating and Anxiety Disorders, eating disorders in elderly women have increased, and the majority of deaths from anorexia nervosa occur in people over the age of 65.
People with anorexia are up to 10 times more likely to die as a result of their illness, compared with those who don’t have the disorder. The most common complications that lead to death are cardiac arrest and imbalances in electrolytes and fluids. In many cases, health professionals are unaware of the disease’s prevalence among the elderly, sometimes with fatal results.
“Because few health professionals think of screening for eating disorders in the elderly, many elderly eating disorder patients have frequently been missed, with tragic consequences,” said Edward Cumella, Ph.D., executive director at Remuda Ranch. “Anorexia nervosa is a very serious illness in seniors, because many already have compromised health to begin with.”
Anorexia is most common among middle- to upper-class Caucasians, and people who suffer from it believe they are overweight even when they are extremely thin and malnourished. Anorexia is hard to diagnose in the older population, mainly because many elderly people living independently have limited contact with others. Those who live in assisted living situations or nursing homes simply refuse food, giving excuses such as feeling full or too sick to eat.
But researchers warn that these excuses should be challenged to determine whether there is an underlying eating disorder. “Eating disorder origins among the elderly are surprisingly similar to those identified for young women, but with a unique stage-of-life dimension,” Cumella said. “Refusing food is often an attempt to control the one thing the person still feels able to control—their food intake.”
Besides the control issue, refusing food can be a protest aimed at loved ones (perhaps the elderly person is upset about activity restrictions or not being visited enough), or even at attempt at suicide due to despair and depression.
“It’s important to evaluate why elderly people are restricting their food intake,” Cumella said. “As we age, taste buds grow less sensitive and appetite decreases. Certain medications blunt taste and sense of smell, and a variety of illnesses also reduce appetite. So food intake restriction may be due to psychological issues, medical issues or a combination of both.”
Treatment for anorexia involves restoring the patient to a healthy weight, treating the psychological issues that are causing the disorder, and reducing behaviors or thoughts that lead to the eating disorder to prevent relapse. Because of the medical issues that an elderly patient likely has, it’s important that the treatment program provide healthy meals, physical rehabilitation, environmental modifications, and appetite-stimulating medications.
No Comments
Anorexia nervosa can have devastating effects on a person and his or her family. It can cause other disorders, damage to the body and even death. Recovery is an option, but for many, the prognosis is generally not positive. (more…)
Posted in Anorexia
No Comments
Pregorexia arises when a pregnant woman starves herself in order to stay skinny during her pregnancy. Whether you choose to point the finger at celebrity moms or at women who devote themselves entirely to the gym just days after giving birth, this new trend reflects the growing belief in Western society that women should return to their pre-baby weight as quickly as possible. While many women rally against this disturbing belief, other pregnant moms are influenced by this thought; thus, they deprive themselves and their babies of the vital nutrients they both need. (more…)
Posted in Anorexia
No Comments
It’s no secret that anorexia nervosa is an epidemic that’s been sweeping the nation, especially among preteen and teen girls. As young girls and boys grow into their bodies and start to experience changes brought on by puberty, many start to starve themselves as a way of gaining control over these uncomfortable changes. Additionally, with the amount of stick-thin models that teens are exposed to on a daily basis, it’s no wonder that America’s youth are in a constant battle with their weight.
(more…)
Posted in Anorexia
