What Is Anorexia Nervosa

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Anorexia nervosa is a serious eating disorder characterized by restriction of food intake leading to significantly low body weight for a person's age and health, an intense fear of gaining weight or becoming fat, and a disturbance in how body weight or shape is experienced. It affects people of all genders, ages, and backgrounds. Anorexia has one of the highest mortality rates of any mental health condition, but recovery is possible, especially with early, specialized treatment.

What Anorexia Looks Like

• Strict limits on food, skipping meals, or cutting out whole food groups.
• Intense fear of weight gain, even when underweight.
• Seeing oneself as larger than one is, or basing self-worth heavily on weight or shape.
• Rigid food rituals, such as cutting food into tiny pieces or eating very slowly.
• Excessive exercise, or in some people, purging.
• Frequent weighing or body checking.
• Withdrawal from social events involving food.
• Physical signs such as feeling cold, fatigue, dizziness, and missed periods.

At home, families may notice changes in eating, mood, and secrecy. At school or work, concentration and energy often drop. People with anorexia may not see themselves as unwell, which can make seeking help difficult.

Why It Happens

Anorexia develops from a combination of factors. Genetics play a significant role. Temperament traits such as perfectionism, anxiety, and a need for control are common. Dieting, puberty, stress, trauma, or life transitions can act as triggers. Cultural pressures that equate thinness with worth, discussed on the page about diet culture and mental health, can contribute. Once restriction begins, starvation itself changes brain function and increases preoccupation with food and body, rigidity, and anxiety, which helps keep the disorder going.

Anorexia often gives a sense of control or achievement, which is part of why it can feel difficult to let go of. Restriction may soothe anxiety in the short term, while making life narrower over time. Friends and family commonly notice mood changes, irritability, and withdrawal before weight change becomes obvious. Early attention to these signs matters, since outcomes tend to be better the sooner treatment starts.

What It Is Not

• Not a choice or vanity. Anorexia is a serious illness with biological and psychological roots.
• Not defined by appearance. Atypical anorexia involves the same patterns without being underweight, and it carries similar medical risks.
• Not ARFID. Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder involves restriction for sensory reasons, fear of choking, or low interest in food, without body image concerns.
• Not bulimia or binge eating disorder, though people can move between eating disorder patterns over time.
• Not something that resolves with willpower. Recovery usually requires specialized support.

How It Is Assessed and Treated

Assessment involves both medical and psychological evaluation, because anorexia affects the heart, bones, hormones, and other systems. Treatment is usually provided by a team that may include a physician, dietitian, and therapist. For adolescents, family-based treatment has strong evidence. For adults, approaches such as enhanced cognitive behavioural therapy for eating disorders and other specialized therapies are used. Nutritional restoration is essential, and some people need day treatment or hospital care. Recovery is often gradual and may include setbacks, but many people recover fully.

Getting Support at Pacific Maple Psych Centre

If you or someone you love may be struggling with anorexia, please start with a doctor for medical assessment. Therapy can then be part of a coordinated recovery plan, supporting a healthier relationship with food, body, and self.