Psychopathological disorders contribute to the development of anorexia. With this disease, the appetite persists, but the person completely refuses food. The patient perceives himself in a distorted form. He is dissatisfied with his appearance and therefore seeks to lose weight. Despite the fact that the weight most often corresponds to age standards, the patient considers himself full or insufficiently slim. Anorexia is more a mental illness that contributes to the development of diseases of the internal organs.
Neurogenic anorexia is caused by several factors. Most often these are psychological aspects, inconsistency with one’s inner world, low self-esteem. Disease is accompanied by fear of gaining weight, so the patient seeks to get rid of food by any means. For example, he simply refuses, explaining that he is full, or feeds animals, puts a neighbor and the like on a plate.
Signs of anorexia are physical, mental, and behavioral. Changes occur not only in the patient’s appearance, but also in his inner world.
Mental signs of anorexia related to eating behavior are primarily manifested in the obsessive desire to lose weight, often unreasonable. There is a panic fear of gaining extra pounds or fatphobia. Obsessions about food appear, that is, an obsession with counting calories, a fanatical desire to lose weight, and concentrating all your interests around it. Chewing too hard or swallowing food without chewing is also characteristic; unwillingness to attend events related to meals, as well as poor health after eating.
Other behavioral signs of anorexia are manifested in the desire to overload your body physically and discomfort, frustration and even apathy, if that failed. Baggy clothes that hide the “full” body also indicate changes in the human psyche. Unreasonable asceticism, a desire for solitude and aggressive upholding of one’s interests in terms of a figure signal a developing disease.
The physiological signs of anorexia are visible to the naked eye. The body loses a third of its normal weight. Persistent dizziness, weakness, fainting, as well as poor blood circulation in the body indicate violations. In addition, sexual activity is reduced, and in women it sometimes comes to anovulation and amenorrhea. Soft fluffy hair appears on the body and the feeling of cold is constantly felt.
Anorexia in children is most often caused by fashion trends, professional motives, or a hereditary predisposition. Much less commonly, anorectics are boys, but this also happens.
Children, especially adolescents, are driven by the desire to be recognized by society. Sometimes, children neglect the parental advice and recommendations of doctors and bring themselves to exhaustion.
In half of all cases of anorectics, you can return to a normal lifestyle. One third of patients will always have health problems, as evidenced by diseases of the internal organs and various kinds of disorders. In other cases, patients simply cannot be saved. They either commit suicide or their body is so exhausted that it cannot be restored.
Anorexia, the signs of which are still mild, can be treated. The success of therapy depends largely on the time the problem is detected. It is very simple to disturb the vital metabolic processes of the body. It is enough to stop eating. But it will take years to restore proper functioning. In addition, numerous injuries of internal organs with an already developed disease, reduced immunity is another "trace" from anorexia, which will remain with the patient forever.