Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia (a-neh-RECK-see ah) nervosa is a type of eating disorder that mainly affects adolescent girls and young women. A person with this disease has an intense fear of gaining weight and limits the food she eats.

She:

• has a low body weight
• refuses to keep a normal body weight
• is extremely afraid of becoming fat
• believes she is fat even when she's very thin
• misses three (menstrual) periods in a row (for girls/women who have started having their periods)