Best of: Anorexia Endangers Teen Boys More Than Girls

From Feb 2024

Vidcast: https://www.instagram.com/p/DT5_p-MDf-o/

Boys as well as girls do starve themselves to death. In fact, the mortality rate of anorexia nervosa is 1.5 to 6 times higher for males than females.

The guys most at risk for developing anorexia are those engaged in so-called strength focused sports including cycling, running, and wrestling. The male groups who most often suffer anorexia include those that are racially diverse, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer. Those in these groups tend to fast, purge, excessively exercise, and use body building drugs such as anabolic steroids.

Anorexia is associated with significant disruptions in metabolism including electrolytes, lipids, and bone nutrition. It upsets both cardiovascular and. gastrointestinal functionality.

Of most importance, this disease is life-threatening. Karen Carpenter succumbed to it and her beautiful singing voice was silenced by a heart attack at age 32. Anorexia’s standardized mortality rate has been reported to be as high as 16%. The reported rate for females with anorexia is 5-fold higher than than for the general population. For males, it could be as much as 30-fold higher.

If your son or grandson is engaged in activities or is a member of a vulnerable group, do all you can to help him seek an evaluation and care. Don’t look back later and regret that you didn’t do more.

https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/196/6/E191.full.pdf

https://journals.lww.com/co-psychiatry/Fulltext/2021/11000/Incidence,_prevalence_and_mortality_of_anorexia.2.aspx

#anorexia #males #females #teens #death

anorexia, males, females, teens, death