Eating Disorders
- What is an Eating Disorder?
- Warning Signs
- Types of Eating Disorders
- Risk Factors
- Classifying Eating Disorders
- Disordered Eating
- Dieting
- Eating Disorders and Children
- Eating Disorders and Adolescents
- Eating Disorders and Males
- Eating Disorders and Older People
- If You Think You May Have an Eating Disorder
- Treatment Information
- For Health Professionals
- Eating Disorders and Other Health Problems
What is Anorexia Nervosa?
What is Anorexia Nervosa?Physical effects of Anorexia Nervosa
Psychological Effects
Behavioural Effects
Anorexia Nervosa is a psychological illness with devastating physical consequences. Anorexia Nervosa is characterised by low body weight and body image distortion with an obsessive fear of gaining weight which manifests itself through depriving the body of food. It often coincides with increased levels of exercise.
Anorexia Nervosa is usually developed during adolescence and generally has an earlier age of onset than Bulimia Nervosa and Binge Eating Disorder (the latter are often developed during late adolescence or early adulthood). However like all eating disorders, Anorexia Nervosa can be developed at any age or stage of life for both males and females.
Anorexia Nervosa is the most fatal of all psychiatric illnesses. Extreme food restriction can lead to starvation, malnutrition and a dangerously low body weight – all of which are synonymous with a host of health problems, and in some cases death.
Types of Anorexia Nervosa
Two main sub-types of anorexia are recognised:
- Restricting type: this is the most commonly known type of Anorexia Nervosa whereby a person severely restricts their food intake. Restriction may take many forms (e.g. maintaining very low calorie count; restricting types of food eaten; eating only one meal a day) and may follow obsessive and rigid rules (e.g. only eating food of one colour).
- Binge-eating or purging type: less recognised; a person restricts their intake as above, but also during some bouts of restriction the person has regularly engaged in binge-eating OR purging behaviour (e.g. self induced vomiting, over-exercise, misuse of laxatives, diuretics or enemas).
Last Updated: March 2009