Anorexia Nervosa - What Would Be Some Things To Try?

[tara]

Bumping this cause my sister has severe anorexia.

You could read here, and see what you think would be good to refer your parents and/or your sister to:
Patients and General Public

so I wonder if something along the lines of an anti-serotonin drug like cypro ...

I believe cyproheptadine may be prescribed specifically to increase appetite in anorexia in some countries.

 

[johnwester130]

I am still fascinated by this illness

Does this happen in the mind - for example you tell yourself you want to be skinny due to social pressure/beauty magazines etc ?

Is it happening in the body - for example certain functions/enzymes/transmitters in the body are turned off and organs have changed how they function. and you have activated some kind of survival mechanism ?

 

[Lollipop2]

I am still fascinated by this illness

Does this happen in the mind - for example you tell yourself you want to be skinny due to social pressure/beauty magazines etc ?

Is it happening in the body - for example certain functions/enzymes/transmitters in the body are turned off and organs have changed how they function. and you have activated some kind of survival mechanism ?

Hi @johnwester130 back when I was in high school, my debate partner was diagnosed with disease. It was a form of self hatred, a serious psychological disorder. She was down to 86 pounds. I stood her in front of a mirror naked and showed her how she was skin and bones. She honestly believed she was still fat. Then I went to college and roomed with her for a semester. She dropped out and I heard after I had moved to Europe that she tried to commit suicide. Her neighbor found her so she didn’t succeed. She finally got psychological help, healed, married and had a lovely daughter. This case was certainly not biochemical. Her mother had psychological problems as well. Though, I am not sure about all cases.

 

[Recoen]

Anorexia is tied to a B1 deficiency.

 

[Lollipop2]

Anorexia is tied to a B1 deficiency.

I have heard that - b vitamins in general. I would also think low thyroid, low metabolic energy. I also think there is a bit involved with the psychological aspect, otherwise why isn’t everyone with a B1 deficiency anorexic?

 

[Recoen]

I have heard that - b vitamins in general. I would also think low thyroid, low metabolic energy. I also think there is a bit involved with the psychological aspect, otherwise why isn’t everyone with a B1 deficiency anorexic?

I agree completely. The low B1 seems to trigger the body to not want to eat as much because it’s having a hard time getting the pyruvate through TCA. Obviously any deficiency in metabolism will cause similar issues down the line. Though from old research, B1 does seem crucial for restoring deficiencies.
The psychological aspect is also very important and probably leads to many deficiencies that further this. However, I think RP’s work shows that there are many psychological states brought about by physiology.

 

[gaze]

I am still fascinated by this illness

Does this happen in the mind - for example you tell yourself you want to be skinny due to social pressure/beauty magazines etc ?

Is it happening in the body - for example certain functions/enzymes/transmitters in the body are turned off and organs have changed how they function. and you have activated some kind of survival mechanism ?

I think a big part of it that not many people talk about is when someone has a very compromised digestive system, nearly every food brings feelings of serotonin. So the less someone eats, the "better" and more clear headed they feel. This is dangerous because its cortisol and adrenaline that's fueling them, not thyroid and sugar. This becomes a chronic issue and food becomes a known danger to them beccause it makes them feel bad. So the hardest part is getting them to eat more even though they will get serious bloating, hot flashes, and serotonin like feelings.

 

[n4mele$$]

I think a big part of it that not many people talk about is when someone has a very compromised digestive system, nearly every food brings feelings of serotonin. So the less someone eats, the "better" and more clear headed they feel. This is dangerous because its cortisol and adrenaline that's fueling them, not thyroid and sugar. This becomes a chronic issue and food becomes a known danger to them beccause it makes them feel bad. So the hardest part is getting them to eat more even though they will get serious bloating, hot flashes, and serotonin like feelings.

You are spot on. That's exactly how i feel and it's why i can't put on weight and restore mt metabolism. No matter what i do, which supplements i take i just can't seem to fix my digestion and i'm stuck in the serotonin cycle. It's been 7 years. I don't have energy to do anything, if my mom wasn't supporting me i would be dead.

 

[Luann]

Thiamine and chromium are essential for glucose metabolism.
Copper deficiency also gets worse if carbohydrates are increased.

 

[n4mele$$]

Thiamine and chromium are essential for glucose metabolism.
Copper deficiency also gets worse if

Thiamine and chromium are essential for glucose metabolism.
Copper deficiency also gets worse if carbohydrates are increased.

From what i've read glucose has many cofactors not just thiamine and chromium. Magnesium, k2..
Thiamine is tricky to supplement because it can cause unbalance with other B's, and
copper is very expensive to supplement in good form. I'm taking beef liver&pancreas desiccated capsules and they seem to be helping a little, could be the copper..

 

[Luann]

Definitely there are more, I didn't see chromium and copper mentioned on this thread yet so I mentioned them.
Thiamine has been taken successfully in appropriate doses for various metabolic issues.
I took this copper and I think it's reasonably priced :)