$Unique_ID{BRK01598}
$Pretitle{Mental and Emotional Conditions}
$Title{Anorexia Nervosa:  The Deadliest of All Psychiatric Disorders}
$Subject{anorexia hazards heart}
$Volume{E-26, E-3}
$Log{}

Copyright (c) 1991   Tribune Media Services, Inc.


Anorexia Nervosa:  The Deadliest of All Psychiatric Disorders


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QUESTION:  Please write something about the eating sickness that is causing my
daughter to shrink away before my eyes.  Tell her it could affect her heart.
Please help an anxious mother deal with this problem.

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ANSWER:  Anorexia nervosa is a serious illness.  Fifteen percent of all
anorexia sufferers die, which makes it the deadliest of all psychiatric
disorders.  Sudden deaths among anorectics are often due to the serious damage
that the disorder causes to the heart.
     Researchers have known for a long time that anorectics have abnormal
heart rhythms, including heart rates that are too fast or slow or the lack the
proper rhythm.  Their hearts are also shrunken in size.  It had always been
thought that when the body is starved, the heart and the brain are spared at
the expense of other parts of the body, but an anorectic's heart appears to
lose more weight and size proportionately than the rest of the body.  The size
of the left ventricle, one of the chambers of the heart, in anorectics is
especially reduced.  Bulimia--eating and then vomiting--can also cause heart
problems due to chemical imbalances in the body.
     Because of these heart changes, anorectics cannot exercise as long as
normal during exercise stress tests.  Their heart rates and blood pressures do
not respond normally to the extra effort of exercise, as a healthy person's
would.  It is still not known whether the heart returns to normal after the
patient regains her weight or whether these changes are permanent.  Some
studies have shown that the heart does increase in size as weight is gained.
     Your daughter needs professional treatment, and even the concern of a
Mother may not be enough to get her on the right path.  This warning should be
clear enough to help make her seek medical care.
ÿ
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The material contained here is "FOR INFORMATION ONLY" and should not replace 
the counsel and advice of your personal physician.  Promptly consulting your 
doctor is the best path to a quick and successful resolution of any medical 
problem.
