Why does people become anorexic

You may find that support groups are useful. It can be comforting to talk to others who have had the same feelings and experiences. Anorexia youngminds. Anorexia nervosa - NHS www. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Eating Disorders verywellmind. What is an eating disorder? What is an eating problem?

Home A-to-z A Anorexia nervosa Anorexia nervosa People with anorexia try to keep their weight as low as possible by not eating enough, exercising too much, or both. What are the symptoms of anorexia? You can recover from anorexia, but it may take time and recovery will be different for everyone. Your treatment plan will be tailored to you and should consider any other support you might need, such as for depression or anxiety.

If you're over 18, you should be offered a type of talking therapy to help you manage your feelings about food and eating so that you are able to eat enough to be healthy. Talking therapies that are commonly used to treat anorexia in adults include:. If you're under 18, you should be offered family therapy. You may also be offered another type of talking therapy, such as CBT or adolescent-focused psychotherapy. Long-term anorexia can lead to severe health problems associated with not getting the right nutrients malnutrition.

But these will usually start to improve once your eating habits return to normal. Anorexia can also put your life at risk. It's likely that some people are more vulnerable to anorexia because of particular personality traits. Psychological factors , such as a high level of perfectionism or obsessive-compulsive personality traits, feeling limited control in life and low self-esteem , a tendency towards depression and anxiety and a poor reaction to stress.

Environmental factors , including the onset of puberty , stressful life events and relationship problems. Cultural pressures to be thin stemming from media and pop culture such as magazines, TV shows and movies. Occupations that demand a thin physique may increase the risk of anorexia nervosa, such as certain sports, ballet, or the television and fashion industries.

Brain chemistry , because extreme dieting can affect the balance of hormones in the body, affecting how the brain functions.

Genetic predisposition , which arises from the genes inherited from parents. Anorexia nervosa often runs in families, suggesting there may be a genetic cause. But seriously restricting calorie intake is dangerous and can have a serious impact on health. If you have anorexia nervosa, the earlier you seek help, the better your chances of recovery. Your doctor is a good place to start, or you could talk to someone you trust like a friend, family member or teacher. They will help you take the first steps towards treatment and recovery.

Use our Question Builder for general tips on what to ask your GP or specialist. After ruling out that weight loss is caused by another condition, your doctor may refer you to a mental health professional. This health professional will diagnose anorexia nervosa based on your thoughts, feelings and eating behaviours. They will also check for any other mental or physical complications.

The first step to recovery is restoring good nutrition and a healthy weight. This allows treatments to work effectively.

If the person has life threatening medical complications or is extremely low weight, they may need to spend time in hospital. A psychologist can help a person with anorexia nervosa learn behaviours that will help them to return to and maintain a healthy weight.

Someone with anorexia nervosa may also see a dietitian, family therapist, psychiatrist or other members of a healthcare team. Antidepressants and other medicines are sometimes used to treat anorexia nervosa along with psychological therapy.

On average, people have anorexia nervosa for 5 to 7 years. It's common for people with the condition to relapse, so follow-up and treatment for anorexia nervosa is important. When people with anorexia nervosa enter a state of starvation, their brain stops functioning properly. They are at risk of self-harm , substance abuse , suicide attempts , depression and anxiety.

Unfortunately, around 1 in 5 people eventually die of the consequences of anorexia nervosa, and one in 5 will attempt suicide. Binge eating disorder or compulsive overeating : which can take the form of excessive overeating, people may feel out of control around food some or all of the time and feel unable to stop eating when they believe that they have eaten enough.

Mixed picture eating disorders exist where a person has features of all of these disorders above. For example they might purge without having binged. They might restrict food but not be excessively underweight. Arfid Avoidant and Restrictive Feeding Disorders is a category of eating disorder not connected to concerns about shape and weight. An Arfid sufferer might be an abnormally picky eater or have fears of eating, fears about choking or early childhood trauma.

An example is someone with bulimia who does not binge and purge often. Another example is someone who purges to control calories without having overeaten. Another example is someone with anorexia who is not very underweight. There is even a form of eating disorder called Night Eating Syndrome.

If your relationship with food is poor, you deserve to have help. All eating disorders carry serious health risks, with effects on digestion, hormones, heart, liver and brain function.

Dietary chaos also affects the brain chemicals associated mood and well-being, so it is normal for people with eating disturbance to be depressed, anxious, impulsive and obsessed. Anorexia has a high death rate and the rates of suicide among people with anorexia and bulimia are much higher than we would expect among age-matched normal eaters. For a full description of the effects of eating distress read the book Sick Enough by Dr Jennifer Gaudiani it is the best there is.

Eating disorders are complex mental-health problems which begin very simply, with a wish to be a little thinner and more attractive. However they morph over time into something more sinister. Many live normal lives, have normal relationships and do not have any other emotional problems. There is no single cause for any eating disorder. This may shock some people who look for causes in childhood experiences or traumas.

What we do know is that there are several known risk factors which make it more likely that a person will develop an eating disorder. And there are known risk factors for specific types of eating disorder.

Someone with any kind of eating disorder is more likely to be sensitive, prone to anxiety, has high standards yet poor self-confidence. The reasons why these factors have come together in any one individual will be personal. Sometimes it is just an accident of birth and sometimes it is a build up of experiences.

Twin studies show a very high tendency for identical twins to develop anorexia, although this relationship is smaller in fraternal twins and for bulimia in siblings. Mothers who diet or have obvious weight issues; fathers who make comments about your weight or shape; tend to have girl children with body image problems.