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Anorexia Nervosa Prevention

Anorexia Nervosa: Prevention


Top Prevention

1. Employment of caretakers

Caretakers can be employed in order to take care of eating habits of individuals, especially children. They can be employed on a full time or part time basis. The caretakers can be provided with the specialized menus for individual family members. The diet menus should be so designed that nutritional and health requirements are completely fulfilled. Employment of caretakers will ensure that the eating habits of all the family members, especially children, are carefully monitored and the right kind of food is served at the right time. This will help in prevention of anorexia nervosa.

2. Developing a healthy relationship between body and food

This measure is very useful for mothers. A perfect tuning between body and food, once developed, lasts forever and lessens the chances of developing anorexia nervosa. A mother on a diet program is recognized as a risk factor.

3. Not criticizing the looks of family members

Elders, especially fathers, should never criticize their offspring on the basis of his/her weight or shape of the body. An environment should be created in home which facilitates size acceptance. Improper, disrespectful or foul language should never be used to describe the non-ideal parts of body of the family members that might have undesirable sizes and shapes. Parents must take steps which promote self esteem in children and help them develop a positive attitude. Each member should promote the physical activity level and must take part in sports and other activities.

4. Eating together

Family members should eat together. This measure has been known to avoid eating disorders (like anorexia nervosa) in many families as eating together develops ties and bonds within the family, and every family member develops a positive frame of mind.

5. Promotion of thinness

Promotion of thinness by media has been found to be one of the factors behind the growth of anorexia nervosa. This trend developed in Western countries but is slowly catching on in developing countries also. People with careers dependent on their body and looks (for example dancers, models, actors) are more likely to develop anorexia nervosa as they have to appear lean and thin, a basic requirement in their profession.

6. Employing control during early puberty

Anorexia nervosa affects the human body at an early age and is more common in girls. Studies have shown that girls in high school are 10 times more likely to be affected with anorexia nervosa than boys in the same school. This is because the teenage girls want a better and attractive physique for enhancing their popularity among peers. Therefore, they turn to weight control measures like diet pills, and low fat and low calorie food. This induces anorexia nervosa among many of them. Therefore, kids should be properly informed about side effects of weight control measures and should be discouraged from doing so by both parents and teachers.

7. Developing positive frame of mind among individuals

Anorexia has been linked directly to depressive thoughts and negative attitude towards life in individuals. People are also afraid of getting overweight and, therefore, eat less. People who refuse to maintain the proper body weight and body mass index or BMI ratio also suffer from obesity or anorexia. Therefore, people from all sections of society should be properly informed and taught about the various aspects of anorexia nervosa, and positive attitudes must be developed among all members of the society. This can be done by opening mental care and relief centers, using media and communication channels like television, radio, etc.ย 

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