Anorexia from Excessive Dieting
Anorexia from excessive dieting
Among various kinds of side effects of excessive dieting, some people are suffering from anorexia. Nicole Richie is one of the victims of anorexia and many doctors are warning that she is at risk of ruining her health. She still says, though, she is in good shape. Is she really healthy? How can she recover from anorexia? Several questions like these can be raised from observing her experience. The three following articles from each of a web page, a book and a journal will answer to these questions by providing how anorexia affects people¡¯s body and which ways are used when treating anorexia.
When some one suffers from anorexia, how does it affect her body? Alexander R. Lucas, M.D. who is the author of Demystifying Anorexia Nervosa informs what physiological effects of starvation are and how fertility is affected by anorexia. Weight loss at first causes a depletion of body fat (Lucas, 83), and the loss of body fat decreases the body¡¯s insulation and contributes to anorexics¡¯ feeling cold (Lucas, 85). In addition to insulating the body, the normal layer of fat beneath the skin serves as protective padding and prevents injuries (Lucas, 85). Therefore, bones can become weakened and brittle without fat and finally this phenomenon leads to osteoporosis (Lucas, 85). Not only losing fat but also sleep disturbances due to changes in the levels of neurohormones, constipation due to little food to pass as waste, and swelling of ankles, face and abdomen due to excessive amounts of fluid followed by changes in sodium and potassium excretion can occur with anorexia. He also says that anorexia profoundly affects the sex hormones and the reproductive system. Starvation eventually causes reduction in estrogen levels and results in the sex life of a 9-year-old housed in the body of a 15-year-old (Lucas, 89). Therefore, some girls with anorexia lose their menstrual periods and finally their sex organs become degenerated. These degradations of
Among various kinds of side effects of excessive dieting, some people are suffering from anorexia. Nicole Richie is one of the victims of anorexia and many doctors are warning that she is at risk of ruining her health. She still says, though, she is in good shape. Is she really healthy? How can she recover from anorexia? Several questions like these can be raised from observing her experience. The three following articles from each of a web page, a book and a journal will answer to these questions by providing how anorexia affects people¡¯s body and which ways are used when treating anorexia.
When some one suffers from anorexia, how does it affect her body? Alexander R. Lucas, M.D. who is the author of Demystifying Anorexia Nervosa informs what physiological effects of starvation are and how fertility is affected by anorexia. Weight loss at first causes a depletion of body fat (Lucas, 83), and the loss of body fat decreases the body¡¯s insulation and contributes to anorexics¡¯ feeling cold (Lucas, 85). In addition to insulating the body, the normal layer of fat beneath the skin serves as protective padding and prevents injuries (Lucas, 85). Therefore, bones can become weakened and brittle without fat and finally this phenomenon leads to osteoporosis (Lucas, 85). Not only losing fat but also sleep disturbances due to changes in the levels of neurohormones, constipation due to little food to pass as waste, and swelling of ankles, face and abdomen due to excessive amounts of fluid followed by changes in sodium and potassium excretion can occur with anorexia. He also says that anorexia profoundly affects the sex hormones and the reproductive system. Starvation eventually causes reduction in estrogen levels and results in the sex life of a 9-year-old housed in the body of a 15-year-old (Lucas, 89). Therefore, some girls with anorexia lose their menstrual periods and finally their sex organs become degenerated. These degradations of
Cited: Alexander R. Lucas, M.D. Demystifying Anorexia Nervosa: an optimistic guide to understanding and healing. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004. Philip S. Mehler and Cynthia K Crews. ¡°Eating Disorders.¡± Refeeding the Patient With Anorexia Nervosa 9.2 (2001): 167-71. Patrick. M Conlon. ¡°Anorexia Nervosa quest for outer beauty.¡± Patrick Colon dot Name. 26 Mar. 2005. .