Anorexia???

Question

Im concerned about my teenage daughter. She seems to be worrying more about how many calories she eats everyday and she thinks she needs to lose weight even though she is already thin for her age. What symptoms are there that she is anorexic? Eg...What would her mass be?? And all that sort of thing...


Thanks x any answers appreciated because I'm really starting to worry about her. And before anyone says go to the doctors I've already got an appointment it's just I want some views off other people incase I'm just being silly.
Thanks again x

Well I looked at the BMI calculator and I worked it out as I already know about what weight and height she is and it says if the BMI is under 18 you are under weight and her BMI is only 14...is this really bad?
Help me please =( x

Answer 1

you might find her being secretive about food- she always tells you she's eaten, if you searched her room- not that I necessarily remend this as a course of action, you might find hidden food going mouldy- even chewed up and spat out food. She might be obsessive about exercising- do you hear her jogging on the spot in her room? Children with anorexia often are trying to control their food intake and weight as they feel that everything else in their life is out of their control- are there things going on in her life that she might be struggling to deal with? Anorexic children often have other obsessive and perfectionist tendancies- is she very careful over school work? Good luck, you are doing the right thing approaching the situation now, it's much easier to deal with in it's earlier stages than when a child has had years to get used to the routine of her anorexia, I hope they are able to work this out for you.
Check out this site if you want more info and suppot;
http://new.edauk.com/

Answer 2

Anorexia, as you know, is a DEADLY ilness. But you have to realize how strong the pressure is to be thin. Just do some research and look at today's models.

A young girl who is THIN and think she is fat is at high risk for Anorexia, if not anorexic allready. I would take this seriously, BUT NOT in front of your daughter. Play it cool in front of her for now, don't freak out to her. Nagging isn't the answer.

If you can find out exactly how much she weighs and how tall she is, go to www.google.com and search for BMI calculator. You can enter those numbers, and it will tell you if she's overweight, underweight, or healthy. If she is underweight allready, it's quite possible she is anorexic.

Symptoms of anorexia include obsessing about weight (does your daughter weigh herself every day or more), being thin, but still thinking she's fat, limiting calories to under 1000 a day. Obsessing about dieting or excessive exercise. Those are your first clues. Later on, she'd get way too thin, but still be determined to lose weight, she'd start wearing baggy clothes or layers to hide how thin she is.


If you think there's a good chance she may be anorexic, talk to a counselor or doctor first, without your daughter. They can help you determine if she is and if she needs help.

If you got an hour and a half to kill, you can watch the whole movie "Karen Carpenter Story" on youtube. It may give you some enlightenment into the progress of the disease, and what KC was thinking, what symptoms she exhibited.

Answer 3

Body mass index (BMI) calculators are only for adults - for teenagers, you should consult the appropriate height and weight growth charts for your daughter.

It sounds like you are very worried about your daughter and I believe rightly so. It is best to address these issues early on, before they potentially develop into something as serious as an eating disorder. Please keep in mind that eating disorders are not about weight, they are about other problems in a person's life. Often, someone with an eating disorder has low self-esteem. In a culture such as ours that places great emphasis on a certain ideal of appearance, people with low self-esteem may mistakenly believe that if they acheive such an appearance, their other problems will disappear and they will like themselves better.

The most important thing you can do is to express your concerns to her. Tell her that you have noticed her behavior and things she has said recently about calorie content and body image. Be specific and don't make interpretations, just tell her what you have observed. Tell her how these things affect you, that they make you feel worried about her. Ask what else is going on in her life and if you can help her with anything. She may be resistant, in which case emphasize your feelings again. Please try not to sound like you are accusing her or being judgmental.

Adolescence is a tough time and your daughter needs you to be supportive and a role model. Be caring, but persistent. There may be a lot beneath the surface of which you are unaware - the best you can do is to tell her that you care about her and that she is a valuable person for who she is.

Answer 4

I have had 1 friend who had been through this and is just recovering from it. she talks openly about it now and what she went through.
She told me that she had changes in mood she would be very short tempered and would be very irritated very quickly.
Physically her skin was very dull and became a yellowish colour, she didn't have any periods. So if your daughter has already started and has stopped her periods this could be a really good sign.
she also had hair loss and it wasn't shiny and healthy anymore and lacked life.
Her eating habits were very noticeable when she was younger she was fairly big and had a very good appetite she when she went through anarexia she would only eat tamato sanwhich and that was at dinner time and she wouldn't eat at the rest of the day and would drink loads of water through the day.
She went from a size 18 to a size 8 so plenty people noticed. she got help as one of her close friends went and asked for help from a teacher she trusted her parents were called in and she got help and she is a lot happier now.
you are doing the right thing going and seeing a doctor. hope that everything is sorted out.

Answer 5

I was kinda obsessed with my weight for awhile, too. I'm 16 now, and I know better. (I saw myself in the mirror one day and thought "Holy crap! Is that me?! I'm a skeleton!" Needless to say, I scared myself and started eating right, and I don't look so scary anymore.) Try telling her to look at some of the stars who aren't toothpick thin and compare herself to them. They don't have perfect bodies, but people still love them. Besides, the skinny ones are usually the fake ones. Kind of a cheesy way to set her straight, but it might work. Also tell her to think of swimsuit season. Does she really want to show off a skeleton? I, for one, would not. People will stare, and not 'cause they like the body; they'll stare 'cause it's scary (people do that. I don't know why...). Her concern about weight watching and calories probably are signs of anorexia, especially since she's already thin (ever noticed how it's always the thin people who are obsessed with their weight?) If she's not totally obsessed about her weight, then you should stop it before it happens. Some concern is good, like if you're just watching out for yourself, but constantly thinking you need to lose weight is not good.

Answer 6

First of all. I'm a teenager and my mom thought I was anorexic becuase I was dieting. She's been really annoying lately. But she finally stopped and took a different approach. She gets up early with me every morning and we exercise for and hour. She also buys more healthier foods and when I want to eat something bad she asks me if thats what I really want to eat.

You can't bug her with making her watch stuff about anorexia, with making her read stuff about anorexia. That just made me more rebellious. I absolutely hated ti when my mother did and she still does it some now.

You are not being silly, you're just being a mom.
:D

Answer 7

her mass for age depends on a few things
Age .....
Height ....
Weight ...

you should check this site out ...
http://www.bariatricedge.com/dtcf/pages/bmi_calculator.htm?WT.srch=1

some younger girls begin to worry about their figures a bit more this time of year ... Swim Suit Season is comming up ..
like me i have gut back on what i eat and drink more green tea and run 2 miles a day and do 200 sit ups and lift some weights until about the 2nd week in May

xoxo
Emily

Answer 8

All teenagers obsess about their weight...I did 2! It's very important that u talk 2 her. If that doesn't work you might wanna keep an eye on her. If u see symptoms of Anorexia nervosa or bulimia talk 2 a psychiatrist or doctor A.S.A.P!!!
♥ LOTS OF LOVE ♥

Answer 9

I used to have anorexia, and my BMI was like a 12 or something around that, it's really bad.
See how she's eating, ask her friends if she's eating in school, force her to eat...if you need any more help E-Mail me at [e-mail]

Answer 10

Find a psychologist right away who deals with these issues. Yahoo isn't the place for advice on things like this. Someones life is at stake.