Anorexia nervosa is a serious medical disorder that is statistically most prevalent in the adolescent teenage years of young women. It is estimated that 7% of the population suffers from eating disorders and if left untreated over 20% of them will die from it. Anorexia takes the lives of children everyday in this world and there are things you can do as a parent to identify behaviors and intervene to protect your children.

Anorexia nervosa is a condition where one becomes obsessed with losing weight and practices self-starvation in an attempt to achieve significant weight loss or to maintain extremely unhealthy level of body weight. Anorexics are terrified of gaining weight, and often believe they are very fat even though they are already very thin.

Anorexia is not just a condition related to food and eating, but takes its roots from a deeper psychological level. Food and eating becomes a destructive tool that one uses to deal and cope with other emotional problems. Anorexics will often reach out to other anorexics on the internet in “pro-ana” sites whereby they encourage each other to continue their weight loss journey. Pro-ana sites argue that anorexia is a lifestyle choice and not an actual disorder, and offer dysfunctional support to other victims of the disease. The risk to our youth from eating disorders is significant and there are things you can do as a parent to intervene:

WATCH FOR WARNING SIGNS

1. Excessive weight loss: A person suffering from anorexia is skinny and may end up losing more that 15% of their ideal body.
   
2. Diet restrictions: a person with anorexia continues to restrict foods and diet even when they are not overweight.
   
3. Food Obsession: an excessive preoccupation with food, calories, nutrition, or cooking methods is also a sign of behavior.
   
4. Distorted body image: complaints of feeling bloated, nauseated, or fat even when the person is thin or underweight, and also
   
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