What is Anorexia nervosa?
[[File:Gull - Anorexia Miss A.jpg|thumb|250px|Miss 'A' before and after treatment]] [[File:Louis Bataille, 'Deux cas d'anorexie hysterique' Wellcome L0020548 (backcropped).jpg|thumb|The back of a person with anorexia]] '''Anorexia nervosa''' (usually just called '''anorexia''') is an [[eating disorder]]. People with anorexia think that they are [[overweight|fat]], or desperately fear becoming fat even if they are very skinny. It is also a mental disorder. To try to lose [[weight]], anorexics do not eat enough. When they do eat, they do not eat the amount of [[food]] their body needs, in an effort to avoid gaining weight. This causes them to lose too much weight too quickly. This is very harmful to a person's body. There are various treatments for anorexia. One example is the [[Maudsley Method]]. This type of treatment is for patients who are 18 or younger. Two thirds of adolescent anorexia patients are 'recovered' at the end of this treatment. People with anorexia are more likely to die than people with any other mental illness. ==Diagnosis== [[Medical doctor|Doctors]] use the ''[[DSM IV|Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders]]'' to make a [[medical diagnosis]] and decide if a person has anorexia or not. Four signs of anorexia are listed in the manual. People do not have to show all four signs for the doctor to decide that they have anorexia. ;Signs of anorexia #People with anorexia do not want to keep a body weight and BMI that is normal for their age and height. #People with anorexia think that they are overweight. They are afraid of gaining more. #People with anorexia have [[self-esteem|low self-esteem]] because of the shape or weight of their body. However, they do not think that low body weight is a problem. #A woman with anorexia might not have their period multiple months in a row (one period is sometimes called a menstrual cycle). They also must make sure the woman is not [[pregnant]] and has not had their periods stop permanently due to their age, which is called [[menopause]]. ==S