Essay on Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia Nervosa Term Papers

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In America, girls are given the message at a very young age that in order to be

happy and successful, they must be thin. Given the value which society places on

being thin, it is not surprising that eating disorders are on the increase.

Every time you walk into a store, you are surrounded by the images of emaciated

models that appear on the covers of fashion magazines. Thousands of teenage

girls are starving themselves daily in an effort to attain what the fashion

industry considers to be the "ideal" figure. The average model weighs

23% less than the average woman. Maintaining a weight 20% below your expected

body weight fits the criteria for the emotional eating disorder known as

anorexia. Most models, according to medical standards, fit into the category of

being anorexic (Thompson, Colleen). Anorexia has been known and recognized by

doctors for at least 300 years. Most researchers agree that the number of

patients with this life threatening disease is increasing at an alarming rate.

The Rice Counseling Center defines anorexia as "an emotional disorder

characterized by an intense fear of becoming obese, lack of self-esteem and

distorted body image which results in self-induced starvation". In

accordance with information given by the Counseling Center at the University of

Lawson 2 Virginia, the development of this disease generally begins at the age

of 11 or 18. Significantly, these ages coincide with new phases of a girl's

life, the commencement and ending of adolescence. Recent estimates suggest that

out of every 200 American girls between this age span, one will develop anorexia

to some degree. The disease develops over a period of time during which the

sufferer changes her eating patterns from normal or near normal to a very

restricted diet (S.C.A.R.E.D. Website). This process can take anywhere from

months to years. Clinically, an anorexic is diagnosed by having a body weight

20% below the expected body weight of a healthy person at the same age and

height of the eating disorder patient. The anorexic often becomes frightened of

gaining weight and even of food itself. The patient may feel fat, even though

their body weight is well below the normal weight for their height. Some also

feel they do not deserve pleasure out of life and will deprive themselves of

situations offering pleasure, including eating. The fears of anorexics become so

difficult to manage that the sufferer will gradually isolate him/herself from

other people and social activities (S.C.A.R.E.D. Website). This happens so the

sufferer can continue the exhausting anorexic behaviors. Although 30% of

anorexics eventually die from the disorder, approximately one third overcome the

disease with psychiatric help. While the cause of anorexia is still unknown, a

combination of psychological, environmental, and physiological factors is

associated with the development of this disorder (Cove, Judy). The most common

cause of anorexia in a girl is perception of Lawson 3 her weight. Anorexics feel

as if they are heavier than the others around them, and believe the quickest way

to lose weight is to simply stop eating. "I became obsessed with body

image. I kept journals and in one pathetic passage I described how I went for

sixteen days on water, and only about two glasses a day" says former

anorexic Nanett Pearson, Miss Utah 1996. Ironically, when a person stops eating,

their body goes into starvation mode losing very small amounts of weight. When

the body receives food, it is then stored away until the next time food is

obtained. At first, this method may seem to work and the subject loses weight,

but as the body soon adjusts to the lack of food it learns to use the energy it

is given stingily. Another cause of anorexia...

Thompson, Colleen. "Society and Eating Disorders." Mirror Mirror
19, October 1998. Online. Available http://www.mirror-mirror.org/society.htm
Accessed 23, October 1998. Saunders, Janice. "Anorexia and Bulimia."
S.C.A.R.E.D. Online. Available http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/Spa/3901/index.html
Accessed 23, October 1998. Cove, Dr. Judy. "Anorexia Nervosa General
Information." Mental Health Net Online. Available http://www.cmhc.com
Accessed 23, October 1998. Pearson, Nanett. "A Personal Recovery Story:
Starving for Attention." Attention Online. Available http://www.laureate.com/attention.html
Accessed 31, October 1998. You should cite this paper as follows:

MLA Style
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