Anorexia nervosa is different than anorexia. Anorexia means a loss of appetite or the inability to eat, and it can be a symptom of various diseases.Anorexianervosa:WhatyouneedtoknowMedicallyreviewedbyMarneyA.White,PhD,MS—WrittenbyYvetteBrazier—UpdatedonJanuary17,2021Whatisit?SymptomsCausesDiagnosisTreatmentandrecoveryComplicationsLivingwithanorexianervosaSummaryAnorexianervosaisaseriousmentalhealthconditionandapotentiallylifethreateningeatingdisorder.However,withtherighttreatment,recoveryispossible.Anorexianervosaofteninvolvesemotionalchallenges,anunrealisticbodyimage,andanexaggeratedfearofgainingweight.However,itcanaffectpeopledifferently.Insomecases,anindividualmayloseasignificantamountofweightanddemonstratethecharacteristicbehaviorsofanorexiabutnothaveaverylowbodyweightorbodymassindex(BMI).Researchersrefertothisasatypicalanorexianervosa.Anorexianervosaoftenappearsduringaperson’steenageyearsorearlyadulthood,butitcansometimesbegininthepreteenyearsorlaterinlife.Peopleoftenthinkofanorexianervosainconnectionwithfemales,butitcanaffectpeopleofanysexorgender.Researchsuggeststhattheriskofeatingdisordersmaybehigheramongtransgenderpeoplethancisgenderpeople.Statisticsshowthatmalesrepresentabout25%ofpeoplewithanorexiaandthattheeffectsaremorelikelytobelifethreateningamongmalesthanfemales.Thereasonforthisisthatmalesoftenreceivealaterdiagnosisduetothemistakenbeliefthatitdoesnotaffectthem.Anorexianervosaisdifferentthananorexia.Anorexiameansalossofappetiteortheinabilitytoeat,anditcanbeasymptomofvariousdiseases.Whatisanorexianervosa?ShareonPinterestKongBui/EyeEm/GettyImagesApersonwithanorexianervosawillintentionallyrestricttheirfoodintakeasawaytohelpthemmanageemotionalchallenges.Theseofteninvolveafearofgainingweightoradesiretoloseweight.Dietaryrestrictionscanleadtonutritionaldeficiencies,whichcanseverelyaffectoverallhealthandresultinpotentiallylifethreateningcomplications.Theemotionalandpsychologicalchallengesofanorexianervosacanbehardforapersontoovercome.Therapyincludescounseling,