Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa

Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that is common among young women, mostly teenage girls 80-90% of people with the condition are females. People suffering from this condition hugely value their body shape and weight. They tend to over exercise and restrict the food they take. They engage in purging by inducing vomiting; they also use laxatives, diuretics, and slimming medicines. They also like to reassure themselves by doing body checks, like gazing at the mirror, weighing, and measuring themselves repeatedly. The condition does not have a single cause but is seen as a coping mechanism towards family conflicts, academic pressure, developmental challenges, and transitions. Patients suffering from the conditions have symptoms such as depression, infertility, obsessive behavior, amenorrhea, or infertility. The diagnosis is mostly first suspected by the family members (Mehler & Brown, 2015).

The diagnosis for anorexia nervosa is made when a patient exhibits weight loss due to psychological problems. There are no drugs that can effectively treat the condition; however, therapies that employ techniques to enhance motivation can be used.  Such therapies may include counseling of the patients and their families to address the underlying psychological issues. As for the physical risks, compulsory treatment can be used where patients are detained in hospitals and fed until they attain healthier weight though voluntary treatment is encouraged. Death rates are lower for patients on voluntary treatment for patients on compulsory treatment. Patients can be refed to the hospital, or they can take on the responsibility of refeeding themselves by receiving dietary advice from the clinician. Family work is a treatment intervention that can be used on the patients where their family members encourage them to eat and avoid situations of anger fighting and fury that might create a frustrating environment for the patient. Drug treatment on the condition is not sufficient and might cause dangerous side effects in patients, such as cardiac dysrhythmias (Mehler & Brown, 2015).

Like anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa is also common in adolescents and young adults. Patients suffering from bulimia nervosa eat plenty of food due to a lack of control of the amount of food they eat. This behavior is different from anorexia, where patients on types and amounts of food they eat. After over-indulging, they then induce vomiting; they also use laxatives or diuretics and exercise as is common in anorexia. Bulimia patients are also obsessed with their shape and weight just like anorexia patients though bulimia patients have normal weights for their age and height. In order to make a diagnosis the patient should willingly and fully describe their symptoms while in anorexia symptoms are easily identified by family members. Purging leads to electrical imbalance which often leads to arrhythmia or death, dental decay, gastric disruption and fertility problems in patients (Hail & Le Grange, 2018).

Cognitive behavioral therapy is the best treatment approach for the condition interpersonal therapy and integrative cognitive-affective therapy are also used. This treatment approach is different from anorexia where psychotherapy is based on motivation elevation other than cognitive approaches which are ineffective. Drugs such as fluoxetine can be used in conjunction with psychotherapy in treatment. Study reveals that after the use of the drug, there is a decrease in weekly binges by 67% and purging by 56%. The drug has no side effects on the patients. The treatment of bulimia is different from that of anorexia which uses no drugs because use of drugs is ineffective and has dangerous side effects (Hail & Le Grange, 2018).

Conclusion

Both anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are eating disorders common in the young generation caused by concerns about body weight and shape. This may be due to misguided perception of beauty on TV and social media. Patients exhibit poor health that may lead to death. Health education should be done in schools where children are taught proper eating habits to maintain healthier lifestyles.

References

Hail, L., & Le Grange, D. (2018). Bulimia Nervosa in Adolescents: Prevalence and Treatment Challenges. Adolescent Health, Medicine and Therapeutics, 11-16. doi:10.2147/AHMT.S135326

Mehler, P., & Brown, C. (2015). Anorexia Nervosa- Medical Coplications. Journal of Eating Disorders . Retrieved from htts://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-015-0040-8