THE SILENT KILLER: ANOREXIA NERVOSA

Anorexia Nervosa is one of the leading causes of death by mental illness. Despite all of the information that is available people still do not understand the nature or seriousness of someone suffering with Anorexia. People are prone to make jokes about it and brush it off. Partially because issues like this are hard to talk about and also because every one seems to be acknowledging obesity.

Being too heavy is a serious issue, but losing too much weight can be just as dangerous. The problem with Anorexia is that the individual suffering from it generally does not acknowledge that they have the disease. They may be skinny, but they manage to cover it up behind bulky clothing and always avoid places that serve food in public. Some people believe that a person with Anorexia should be able to look into the mirror or at a picture of themselves and recognize that they are lacking body fat, but unfortunately this technique works the opposite. If you give them a mirror and ask them what they see, if they are being honest, they will probably say someone twice their actual size.

There are also speculations that our media is changing the way young women view their bodies. The typical model on television is generally tall and underweight. The media constantly covers magazines with super skinny women and tell the world that that is what beauty is. This kind of feed back is extremely difficult for a young adult or teen to handle, especially because their bodies are already changing.

SIDE NOTE: Anorexia generally begins around early teens/twenties and men can be affect by this disease as well.

MEN WITH ANOREXIA!

If you are concerned that you or another person within your family may be suffering from this traumatic disease, here are some common characteristics of an individual who may be anorexic.