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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Are The Symptoms Of Anorexia?

Hello, I m a middle school girl and I have a big concern. I think my friend is anorexic, but I m not quite sure. My reasons are first of he is EXTREMELY THIN, he looks just like the starving children in third world countries. And he barely eats and when I asked him he says he not hungry and I m pretty sure he s telling the truth. Thirdly, he has hair all over his body and he s also anemic if that helps. He also looks at pictures of food online all the time. But the reason I am very concerned right now is because even though he was always very thin guy with a low appetite he lost even more weight. All our friends noticed the changed and are worried. His nails turned this weird pale almost bluish color and you can see the hollows of his cheeks. Not to mention he eats less than what he used to than a couple months ago. He also exercises ALOT and has changed personality wise to. He used to be very cheerful and a generally fun person to be around. But now he is 60 percent of the time very isolated and irritable. He complains a lot about being cold when I feel fine; btw I m a perfectly healthy weight. I straight up asked him if he s anorexic a few times but like I said he just says he s not hungry. And I have also tried going to a private area and telling him I am worried about him and told him he can tell me anytime but he still told me nothing s wrong only that he s not hungry. I m not sure if he s physically sick or anorexic. I m 80% sure he s anorexic but I m not sure what to do I tried everything and I m not sure his parents will do anything. Can I force him to eat?
Wed, 19 Sep 2018
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Anesthesiologist 's  Response
Hi,

Some signs and symptoms of an eating disorder:

1. Sudden or rapid weight loss, frequent weight changes
2. Constant dieting, possible binge eating
3. Compulsive or excessive exercising
4. Fatigue, fainting, weakness
5. Preoccupation with weight, shape and appearance
6. Extreme unhappiness with body image
7. Intense fear of weight gain
8. Feeling of loss of control around food
9. Change in food preferences, having lists of good/bad foods
10. Avoiding social events that involve food
11. Withdrawal from social interaction or even isolation
12. Highly sensitive about comments about food, body size and shape.

Please don't force him to eat, such patients don't listen and understand, they need family support and counseling by an expert.

Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further.

Regards,
Dr. Sonali Tripathi
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What Are The Symptoms Of Anorexia?

Hi, Some signs and symptoms of an eating disorder: 1. Sudden or rapid weight loss, frequent weight changes 2. Constant dieting, possible binge eating 3. Compulsive or excessive exercising 4. Fatigue, fainting, weakness 5. Preoccupation with weight, shape and appearance 6. Extreme unhappiness with body image 7. Intense fear of weight gain 8. Feeling of loss of control around food 9. Change in food preferences, having lists of good/bad foods 10. Avoiding social events that involve food 11. Withdrawal from social interaction or even isolation 12. Highly sensitive about comments about food, body size and shape. Please don t force him to eat, such patients don t listen and understand, they need family support and counseling by an expert. Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further. Regards, Dr. Sonali Tripathi