Teenage years are crucial years. What you eat as a teen, lays the foundation for the state of your health when you are 60. Today, peer pressure, the desire to look like super models, easily available junk food and an obsession for being the perfect 10 is driving more teens towards eating disorders. Is healthy eating a thing of the past? What happens when you don’t eat healthy? We’d like to emphasize the importance of healthy eating for teens, and make them aware of what wrong eating can do to their bodies.

An eating disorder is a complete obsession with weight that can eventually harm one’s well-being and health. Yes, we are all concerned with weight, and would hate to gain more pounds than we can handle. The alarm bells ring when this fear of gaining weight becomes a complete obsession, and one starts going to extremes, in order to keep the weight down or avoid gaining weight.

Of all the people who have eating disorders, 90% are known to be women. What is even more alarming, is the fact that eating disorders usually start in the teens, the most common one being Anorexia, which can be the result of stress, depression, substance abuse, social or peer pressure etc. and may begin innocently, only as a dieting behaviour pattern.

Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia is best described as

• A form of self-starvation
• A complete obsession with being thin.
• Anorexics count calories, worry about the fat in their food, avoid imaginary â€"fatty” foods, overdo their exercise regime and view themselves as â€"fat” even if they are thin.
• They take laxatives, diuretics, pop weight loss pills and will go to any extreme they can, to avoid gaining weight.
• Sometimes Anorexics get so thin that they look sickly.
• Anorexia finally results in malnutrition, and eventually every organ in the body can get affected.

And sometimes, it may be too late…..

What are the Symptoms?

• It is characterized by low body weight ( less than 85% of the normal prescribed weight based on age and height)
• Unusual eating behaviour / pattern.
• Obsessive exercise regime
• Ignoring hunger pangs
• Absence of 3 or more menstrual cycles, without any medical reason, in females.
• Chronic constipation
• Dehydration
• Chronic abdominal pain
• Lethargy and fatigue

What can be done about it?

• People suffering from Anorexia, tend to keep it very private, and sometimes may not even know they are suffering from it.
• It is important for friends, parents, teachers etc to keep vigil if any symptoms persist.
• If you notice change in behaviour patterns of your teen that match the symptoms of Anorexia, consult a good counselor / psychiatrist.
• Anti depressants and other medication can definitely help in reversing this disorder.

The family forms an immediate support system to combat Anorexia. Early detection and interventional treatment are critical. It is very important to be vigilant, and inculcate healthy eating habits amongst teens.

Post Comment

Name : Email : Password : Comments :