Signs of Anorexia to Watch for in Teens

Anorexia is a serious, and sometimes deadly, eating disorder. It is said that 0.5 to 1% of women in the United States have anorexia. Because the disease often starts in the teen years and can be fatal up to 20% of the time if not treated, it's important for parents to know the signs of anorexia in teens.

Overview

Anorexia is an eating disorder that causes the person to severely restrict what he or she eats or drinks. A person with anorexia is often underweight, but continues to feel overweight or “fat.” There is often a great fear of gaining any weight, despite the fact that the person is underweight.

Problems Caused by Anorexia

Symptoms of the disease include the physical consequences of not eating enough calories or nutrients. These symptoms include:

• Amenorrhea. If the anorexic is female, she may never get her first period or her periods stop or become less frequent
• Muscle weakness and loss of muscle
• Brittle bones (osteoporosis)
• Dry skin
• Hair loss
• A fine layer of hair grows over the body
• Weakness and tiredness
• Fainting
• Irritability, depression, withdrawal from friends and family
• Low blood pressure or low pulse

People who have anorexia are often hard-driving perfectionists. Despite the fact that they usually get good grades and excel in after-school activities, they often have low self-esteem and a need to control the people and things around them. These personality traits might be obvious or they might be subtle, but they can point towards a tendency to anorexia.

Because of the complicated nature of the disease, enlisting the help of those who have experience with eating disorders is key to help get your teen on the road to recovery.