Most people glance in the mirror and see how their physique is made. They sometimes believe their body is larger than it is, and no matter how much weight they shed, they continue to consider themselves overweight. That is what happens with anorexia nervosa. People with this illness are always concerned about gaining weight, so they eat little and may exercise excessively. It’s as if their thoughts play tricks on them, causing them to see themselves differently than they actually are. In this article, we will explain anorexia nervosa and what you should know about it.
What is Anorexia Nervosa?
Severe weight restriction, a strong fear of gaining weight, and a distorted sense of one’s body image or shape are characteristics of anorexia nervosa (AN), a severe eating disorder. In essence, even if anorexics are slim, they perceive themselves as overweight. They exercise excessively and eat a diet devoid of nutrients because they are afraid of gaining weight.
Symptoms and Behavior
Patients with anorexia nervosa exhibit a variety of symptoms as a result of their restrictive and anxious behaviors.
Behavior 1: Restrictive eating habits
- Eating very little food.
- Skipping meals or eating tiny amounts.
- Always thinking about food and how many calories they eat.
Behavior 2: Fear of weight gain and body image distortion
- Constantly worrying about getting fat, even if they’re already very thin.
- Refusing to believe they are thin.
- Seeing themselves as fat, even though they’re not.
Behavior 3: Potential Purging Behaviors
- Making themselves vomit after eating.
- Using laxatives to try to lose weight.
- Exercising too much to burn off calories.
What Are The Underlying Causes and Risk Factors of Anorexia Nervosa?
Anorexia has multiple causes, including biological, physical, and social. Eating disorders can be passed down genetically. This implies that there could be genetic predispositions that make some people more likely to develop the illness. According to research, people who have a first-degree relative (such as a parent or sibling) who has anorexia are more likely to develop the illness themselves.
Anorexia can also result from a neurotransmitter imbalance in the brain, such as serotonin and dopamine levels. Serotonin, the ‘feel good’ neurotransmitter, helps regulate mood and emotions. While dopamine is the ‘reward processing’ neurotransmitter that drives any behavior that brings pleasure rather than pain. However, when these transmitters are dysregulated, serotonin can contribute to the development and maintenance of anorexia by influencing characteristics such as body image dissatisfaction, obsessive thoughts, and compulsive eating and weight-related behaviors.
While altered perceptions of motivation and reward can result from a dysregulation of dopamine. Restricting food intake and losing weight might cause reward pathways in the brain to activate, giving rise to feelings of control or accomplishment. A vicious cycle of reward-seeking and weight-gain avoidance can develop when this encouragement of restricted eating habits develops over time.
Anorexia can be caused more likely by social pressures, relationships within families, and media representations of thinness as success and beauty, as well as peer and familial pressures.
Summary
Anorexia nervosa is a severe eating disorder in which patients are afraid of gaining weight, perceive themselves differently, and eat infrequently. It is caused by a combination of factors such as genetics, social pressure, and how someone feels. Knowing the signs of anorexia and why it happens is really important for helping people get better.
