Anorexia Nervosa (AN)
Symptoms/Signs
- Refusal to maintain a normal bodyweight (less than 85% of appropriate weight for height).
- Intense fear of gaining weight or becoming fat, even though underweight.
- Body weight heavily influences one’s self-evaluation.
- Absence of at least 3 consecutive menstrual cycles (amenorrhea). Prescribed hormones (i.e., birth control pills) can mask this.
- RESTRICTING TYPE — The person does not engage in binge eating or purging (self-induced vomiting or misuse of laxatives). Starvation is the primary behavior.
- BINGE/PURGE TYPE — In addition to periods of starvation, the person has regularly engaged in binge eating or purging behaviors (self-induced vomiting and/or misuse of laxatives). This is often misunderstood as a person having both anorexia and bulimia.
American Psychiatric Association Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (2000).
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