| Research About Anorexia Nervosa |
| Anorexia, or the excessive pursuit of thinness, appears as a condition that is mostly female adolescants in advanced industrial societes across the world. Even allowing for higher detection rate, surveys suggest that the number has increased over the past 20 years. Clinically recorded over a 100 years ago, the cause is still little understood, although some personal and social features are agreed. The most susceptable people appear to be in the 15-23 age group from middle-class and in particular, professional families which are extremely close and mutually over-protective. Parental relationships tend to be unstable, with one parent consistantly weaker. Symptoms The major symptom is a morbid fear of fatness, leading to such peculiar and restricted eating that weight loss may even be as much as 50%. The body image is so distorted that even when emaciated, the anorexic believes herself overweight. Menstruation ceases (amenorrhea) amd there may be intestinal pain and trasitory swelling of the legs, as well as low body temperature with very cold hands and feet, and secondary metabolic disturbances. The sufferer may be polite and quiet, but is more often hyper-active in contrast to the lassitude and apathy normally resulting from chronic malnutrition. The intense preoccupation with food and weight is sometimes displaced on to the preparation of elaborate meals for the family. There are no symptoms of mental disturbances such as paranoia but she feels extremely inadequate and helpless, and depression may deepen to the point of suicide as the illness proceeds. The hostile response to her dieting confirms her poor self-image, and she denies she is ill and may lie and manipulate family and friends to hide the extent of her fasting. Incidence Because girls usually deny they are anorexic, referrals to doctors may be for isolated symptoms such as amenorrhea, periodic odema, diarrhoea or depression, and so incidence studies from hospitals usually relate only to the desperately ill admitted for in-patient treatment. Studies show that 15 out of every 100 anorexics die of starvation or exhaustion. A Swedish survey of the early `70's found that one in every 150 adolescant girls were severely anorexic. A later UK survey of over 12,000 schoolgirls found an overall figure of one in every 200 so anorexic as to have lost at least 30% weight and to eb suffering from amenorrhea. A social class bias noted in earlier work was underlined by this studys figure of one in every 100 anorexics aged 16 years and over in independant schools as againts one in every 250 in girls comprehensives. A 1981 study claims that 5% of all teenage girld develop sub-clinical anorexia after puberty. It is unusal in boys, one specialist in the field came across only 9 cases in 25 years and otehr experts have found boys form only one-twentieth of comparatively small anorexic popluations. Anorexia in maes appears to be associated with symptoms of mental illness, as wel as with problems of gender identification. Prognosis Recovery rates of 35-80% have been reported - this variation is probably due to methodological and definition differences. A number of recent follow-up studies claim that despite a recovery rate of approx 50% when measured by a "healthy" weight regained without relapse after three years, 80% continue to have pyschological problems, including poor social and sexual adjustment. Although a number of self-help groups have started up to alleviate the recovering anorexics sense of isolation, full recovery seems practically imposible. The physical complications can be crippling, depression and shame are severe, but co-operation with doctos and therapist is low. Theories Various causes have ben put forward. Psychological explanations suggest that the anorexic is unable to face the challenge of adulthood and the female sexual role; she is engaged in a power struggle with her parents, employing a form of passive resistance against their demands for complient behavious; she feels unable to control her world and so seeks control for at least her own body; she has taken on teh burden of her familys emotional malfunctioning. A phyical explanation suggests the appetite in some dieting females are blocked so that hunger is never felt. Socialogists point to the cultural stress on the desirabilty of slimness. It is estimated that 70% of 17-18 year olds diet. the feminist approach links anorexia with the social and sexual staus of women, with todays uncertain and insecure concepts of the female role, and the confusion from increased expectations which cannot yet be met. These claims may well be interwoven - the overwhelming preponderance of female anorexics, together with the increased incidence, srongly suggest anorexia is to do with growing up female in todays society. |
| This study I have found to be focusing on women only, but I just want to remind you that men can and do suffer from eating disorders. |
| References 1. Nylander, I (19710 "The feeling of being fat and dieting in a school population." 2. Crisp, A.H. and others (1976) "How commong is anorexia nervosa? A prevelance study." 3. Button, E.J. and Whitehouse, A. (1981) "Subclinical anorexia nervosa." 4. Bruch, H. (1974) "Eating disorders; obesity, anorexia nervosa and the person within." 5. U.S. Nat. Inst of Mental Health, quoted by Melville, J. (1983) "The ABC of eating." |
|
 |
 |