TeamFLEX Newsletter

Weight Loss Spotlight

Anorexia & Weight Loss

Anorexia Nervosa eating disorder is an endless pursuit to becoming thin through excessive weight loss.

A person suffering from anorexia nervosa is so afraid of gaining weight that this becomes their main focus in life, how to keep up the weight loss

This is very serious and dangerous eating disorder and it becomes a medical condition when the body becomes depleted on nutrients, vitamins and minerals. Younger girls do not get their menstruation when they should due to their malnutrition health.

Anorexia Nervosa often leads to a severe case of depression because of the deficiency of nutrients and their distorted view of themselves. Anorexia Nervosa does not only effect women but men as well however the percentage of women is higher. In both sexes the person totally denies that they are thin and more often then not keeps repeating that they feel fat even when they lost a significant amount of weight and are already considered thin.

A person suffering from this disorder often has a fear of growing up or taking on adult responsibilities in life. Compulsive rituals involving food and eating are also very common. The food is usually categorized into good, bad, safe and dangerous foods.

Teenagers leaving home for the first time to go to college are facing new responsibilities, new environment and new rules which can result in the onset of an eating disorder such as Anorexia Nervosa. If fitting in when starting college becomes a problem teenagers might think that the way they look is not accepted or ok and losing weight will make them more popular with their peers. Most teenagers gain between 10-15 lbs of weight their first year of college and this could be a depressing experience on top of being away from your family. What starts out as a desire to lose a little weight might become an obsession and get out of hand before they even realize it. Most of the anorectic people do not notice when it happens to them. They still see the chubby teenager when they look themselves in the mirror.

With media promoting thin models, pop-stars and actors it's very understandable if teenagers think weight loss means happy and correct.

Wrong.

Nothing could be more wrong. Feeling happy is a feeling that comes from within and has nothing to do with your appearance or your weight. When somebody weighs 85% less then normally expected for a persons age, can hardly move because of how weak they are and ends up in the intensive care fighting for their life it should send a warning bell to other women, men and teenagers that thin is not the way to happiness.

Working on developing a healthy relationship with yourself is a good way to learn to like yourself the way you are. Dieting is overrated when it comes to guaranteeing happiness and success if you lose the excess weight. Dieting should be first of all a health issue. It's not healthy to carry an excessive amount of weight. Another benefit that will come with you regaining control of your health and your life again should be a new self confidence and self esteem because you managed to reach your goal of getting healthy and not because you got thin and lost the weight to look good.

There is a major difference in what order you rate your benefits when dieting. Losing the weight is first of all improving your health and secondly your appearance. However losing too much weight is not making your health better. Your goal should be to obtain an expected weight for your age and height.