Anorexia

Anorexia nervosa is a psychiatric illness leads to eating disorder characterized by extremely low body weight and body image distortion with an obsessive fear of gaining weight. Individuals with anorexia have extreme weight loss. Weight loss is usually 15% below the person's normal body weight.

The key factors associated with anorexia nervosa are:

• Refusal to sustain a minimally normal body weight

• Intense fear of gaining weight, despite being underweight

• Distorted view of one’s body or weight, or denial of the dangers of one’s low weight

Types:

Anorexia has been classified into two types include:

Restricting type: This is characterized by the patient adopting unhealthy habits, like fasting, to avoid weight gain.

Binge eating or Purging type: This type is characterized by the use of self-induced vomiting, or misuse of laxatives or diuretics to help in the prevention of weight gain.