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People suffering from anorexia are called anorexics.
Anorexics have a very distorted body image and have an irrational fear of gaining weight.
They are fixated on getting thin and believe they are heavier than they are. Worse still, some of them are in denial about their condition.
This leads them to take extreme measures to keep their weight under control.
Some of the weight control measures they employ include: vomiting, abusing laxatives and strict dietary restriction.
Anorexics appear gaunt and have a preference and admiration for thinner bodies. You may find them talking about or searching pro-ana (ana being a term for anorexia) or thinspo (thin inspiration) sites. These sites are filled with images of anorexics and offer tons of (dangerous) advice and tips on how to stay thin.
Anorexia has life threatening consequences ranging from constant fatigue, osteoporosis, fainting, bad skin, irregular periods, weakened immunity to death - including suicide.
Now, I'm not here to tell you of the effects of anorexia rather identify what may lead to anorexia in young women in the first place.
Why young women specifically?
Well, statistics show that young women across ages and disciplines are more likely to be anorexic compared to their male counterparts.
The main causes of anorexia in young women include:
Environment
Environment here refers to the immediate surroundings. The family, teachers, media and society that can have the greatest influence on a young woman.
Growing up in an environment where thinness is preferred already predisposes one to anorexia. In this kind of environment, there's only one body type that matters and it's thin.
Environment is the primary cause of anorexia as a result. When all she sees is "thin is right", it's hard to fight such messaging.
From family members constantly checking your weight to school crowning the thin girls as the most beautiful. Then guys blatantly expressing their preference for thin ladies to clothing stores stocking up for only smaller sizes.
As this goes on, even the purest mind will get filled with the imagery of thinness being the ideal body shape and from trying to fit in, it descends into the rabbit hole of anorexia.
Social Media
It's easy to get your reality distorted with social media. For many visual sites such as Instagram, it's all about putting your best foot forward.
This could also mean putting your best weight forward or what is most acceptable on social media. The vastness of social media means that it's easy to accept even foreign ideals as yours.
The danger therefore is, even if you come from a society where a fit body or even chubbiness is revered, one mean comment can have a young lady questioning herself.
With social media sadly, it's never one comment. Everything is amplified. From one comment pointing out a (sometimes non-existent) roll, to an online store restricting their clothing sizes, then watching the adulation - likes, comments - given to the thinner girl, you start trying to be like her.
Previous weight gain
A previous struggle with weight gain can lead to anorexia. If you have struggled with your weight before, you can acknowledge the obsession that comes with trying to lose it.
The disturbance also comes from others constantly nitpicking and telling you all the ways you can lose weight.
Avoiding another round of weight gain can lead to an unhealthy fixation on body weight and if not controlled, anorexia.
Trauma
Loss of a loved one, separation, an accident, divorce. The thing is, there is no way to know how one might react to a tragedy. For some they withdraw from others, for others they binge eat, yet another set finds it difficult to eat and hold anything down.
For this set, the effects of whatever the incident was makes them lose interest in anything including food. For some who were anorexics in recovery, loss of a loved one could make them relapse.
Without therapy, trauma can definitely lead to anorexia.
Low self esteem
It's easy to accept harmful messages and ideas if you are not confident in your own skin or have a low sense of self worth.
Already, anorexia is characterized by a distorted body image. Consider how easy it will be for a young lady with low self esteem to begin to believe something is wrong with her body.
In a way, low self esteem is a precursor to anorexia. The higher your self-esteem, the better the image you have of yourself and vice versa.
Even when peer pressure comes calling and you're surrounded by peers who believe in a certain body weight as the perfect one, self confidence and high self-esteem is a great defense against it. Low self esteem however, accepts all forms of wrong messaging as correct including unattainable bodies which can lead to anorexia.
Career
Anorexia can be seen in career paths where a certain body type is preferred. Modelling, ballet, gymnastics are some of the career paths that may encourage anorexia.
Young ladies that find themselves in these paths know that their work will be a lot harder or they can even be shown the door if they're on the bigger side. This knowledge coupled with the strain of training, advice from management/coaches and criticism from fans can easily send them over the edge trying to stay thin.
Because a thin body type is preferred, earns more and enjoys career longevity there's no telling how they'll choose to maintain their weight. For many, they resort to strict dietary restrictions. Some others combine this with laxatives and purging. Before you know it, an anorexic emerges.
While there are other factors, these count as the main causes of anorexia in young women.
You see, knowing the causes of anorexia is the first step to preventing it. When we identify the triggers, we can easily look out for young ladies and know how to get them help if anorexia is identified.
Even better, knowing these causes will help us keep ourselves in check that in one way or the other we are not actively encouraging anorexia in young women.
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