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Definition
By Mayo Clinic staffAnorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that causes people to obsess about their weight and the food they eat. People with anorexia nervosa attempt to maintain a weight that's far below normal for their age and height. To prevent weight gain or to continue losing weight, people with anorexia nervosa may starve themselves or exercise excessively.
Anorexia (an-oh-REK-see-uh) nervosa isn't really about food. It's an unhealthy way to try to cope with emotional problems. When you have anorexia nervosa, you often equate thinness with self-worth.
Anorexia nervosa can be difficult to overcome. But with treatment, you can gain a better sense of who you are, return to healthier eating habits and reverse some of anorexia's serious complications.
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- Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, DSM IV-TR. Arlington, Va.; American Psychiatric Association: 2000. http://psychiatryonline.com/content.aspx?aID=3610. Accessed Nov. 2, 2009.
- Forman SF. Eating disorders: Epidemiology, pathogenesis and clinical features. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Nov. 2, 2009.
- Walsh BT. Eating disorders. In: Fauci AS, et al. Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine. 17th ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Medical; 2008. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=2865564. Accessed Nov. 1, 2009.
- Williams PM, et al. Treating eating disorders in primary care. American Family Physician. 2008;77:187.
- Gwirtsman HE, et al. Eating disorders. In: Ebert MH, et al. Current Diagnosis & Treatment: Psychiatry. 2nd ed. New York, N.Y.; McGraw-Hill Co.: 2008. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=3288493. Accessed Nov. 1, 2009.
- Steffen KJ, et al. A survey of herbal and alternative medication use among participants with eating disorder symptoms. International Journal of Eating Disorders. 2006:39;741.
- Forman, SF. Treatment and outcome. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Nov. 2, 2009.
- Douglass L. Yoga as an intervention in the treatment of eating disorders: Does it help? Eating Disorders. 2009;17:126.
- Sim LA (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic. Rochester, Minn. Nov. 3, 2009.
- Sim LA, et al. Family-based therapy for adolescents with anorexia nervosa. Mayo Clinic Proceedings. 2004;79:1305.
