Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 2: Developing a positive attitude towards your body
• Method 2 of 2: Developing a Healthy Attitude to Food
• Warnings

People with anorexia have a distorted perception of their body. Despite undernourishment and painful thinness, they feel as though they are overweight. A person at risk of developing this eating disorder can prevent it. The person at risk may have a close relative who is also susceptible to this disorder. It is typical for people striving for excellence. A more rational view of your body and a healthier attitude towards food will help prevent anorexia.

Steps

Method 1 of 2: Developing a positive attitude towards your body

1. 1 Treat yourself as a whole person. In modern society, too much attention is often paid to appearance, to the detriment of other personality traits. One way to boost your self-esteem is to take into account all their dignity. List your positive qualities. Think about the traits you were praised for earlier. List these qualities and traits.
   • Hang the list on the bathroom mirror so that every time you look at yourself in the mirror, you remember your positive qualities.
2. 2 Remember the positive traits of your body. This method does not involve protruding specific parts of the body, such as a straight nose or slender thighs. Instead, think often about how awful our life would be if we had no external appearance at all. For example, you may think about the pleasant possibilities and functions provided to you by your body.
   • Every time you catch yourself berating yourself for a flaw in your appearance, try to stop by switching to more positive thoughts, such as “Thanks to my arms and legs, I can do a gymnastic wheel”, “My heart is so strong that drives blood all over the body "or" My nose gives me a great opportunity to smell these beautiful flowers. "
   • You can often think badly about your body if you constantly imagine what it lacks for perfection. Instead, boost your self-esteem by thinking about a variety of things that you can do solely with your body.
3. 3 Be critical of how the human body is portrayed in the media. Be aware of socio-cultural factors and stereotypes that in the Western world thinness is considered a sign of beauty, while in many other societies and cultures, excessive thinness in young people can be seen as a sign of ill health and illness.
   • Be independent and do not follow the lead of television, the Internet and glossy magazines, skeptical about the images of very thin women and lean men with perfect muscular bodies. Remember that these are just characters, not real people.
4. 4 Correct friends and family when they criticize their body. If you hear your mother, sister, brother, or friends criticize a particular part of their body, complaining that it is too big or not good enough, stop them. Point out to them that criticizing your body constitutes unhealthy behavior, and immediately compliment something unrelated to appearance (for example, the other person plays football well or is the first student in class).
   • Dissatisfaction with one's appearance is one of the main prerequisites for anorexia and other eating disorders. By reminding your interlocutor of this, you will warn him by refraining from negative thoughts about your body.
5. 5 Remember that this or that body weight is not capable of bringing happiness. By idealizing a certain body weight for an extended period of time, you begin to mistakenly perceive it as a source of happiness. Such a deeply incorrect point of view can lead to the development of anorexia.
   • Despite the opinion imposed by the media, there is no ideal body. The bodies of healthy people vary greatly in proportion and size. In addition, no amount of weight loss can lead to the fact that your life will immediately become richer and more colorful.
   • If you have a strong association between looks and a happy life, you may need to see a cognitive behavioral therapy therapist. This method, which allows people to identify and get rid of irrational thoughts and opinions, helps those who develop an eating disorder.
6. 6 Say goodbye to perfectionism. Researchers have found a clear link between perfectionism and body dissatisfaction. This is a common problem in people with eating disorders. Thus, if you do not want to develop anorexia, try to give up perfectionism and the desire to control any situation.
   • Perfectionism manifests itself in those cases when you often think about the need to meet your own established standards. At the same time, you are very critical of yourself and your capabilities. You can also put off completing tasks or come back to them again and again, striving to achieve the ideal.
   • Talk to a psychologist about how to overcome perfectionism. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy allows you to identify such a fixation on the ideal and eliminate it, replacing it with healthier expectations and requirements in relation to oneself / oneself.

Method 2 of 2: Developing a Healthy Attitude to Food

1. 1 Stop demonizing certain types of food. It may sound strange, but does not exist bad food. Yes, there are healthy foods that provide your body with essential vitamins and minerals. Conversely, some foods contain only empty calories. In particular, the latter include foods rich in carbohydrates, fats and sugar. However, claims of such food as bad cause some young people to completely abandon it for a long time, and then consume it in excessive quantities.
   • Contrary to many questionable diets, not all carbohydrates are bad. The human body needs carbohydrates. In fact, the complex carbohydrates found in vegetables, fruits and whole grains provide the body with energy and fiber without overloading it with extra calories. At the same time, simple carbohydrates, which are part of white bread, rice and potatoes, are processed faster in the body, causing sugar cravings a little later. These foods should be consumed in moderation.
   • By denying yourself anything, you weaken your willpower. Willpower is a limited resource, and over time, it will become increasingly difficult for you to abstain from forbidden things. The secret is that, while adhering to a healthy diet, do not completely abandon the use of certain products, from time to time indulge yourself with them in limited quantities. Thus, you will avoid an excessive desire for these products, which in the future can lead to excessive consumption of them.
   • A less common type of anorexia is overeating followed by getting rid of the food eaten. Sufferers of this form of anorexia can also deny themselves many foods, eating tiny portions. After prolonged abstinence from food, they can eat a small piece of cake, a regular lunch, or overeat. After such overeating, they punish themselves with exhausting physical exercises or cleanse the body, getting rid of what they ate by vomiting. Most often, this form of the disorder is reduced to strict dietary restrictions, without overeating and vomiting.
2. 2 Refrain from various “diets”. Among those who suffer from eating disorders, men account for only 10-15%. That is, eating disorders are observed mainly in women. Mainly the female half of humanity is also fond of diets. Diets can be dangerous, affecting mental health and ultimately leading to eating disorders such as anorexia. Therefore, try not to get carried away with diets.
   • Here's the bad news: diets are often ineffective. Avoiding certain foods and not eating enough can lead to a variety of health problems. According to statistics, 95% of those who followed various diets regain the lost weight within the next 1-5 years.
   • As noted above, the two main reasons for the low effectiveness of diets are that when following the diet, people reduce their calorie intake too much and then restore it, or they deny themselves their favorite foods (and after the diet they pounce on them). Thus, at the end of the diet, they gain weight again.
   • Those who are more or less consistently on a diet risk a decrease in muscle mass, weakened bones, the development of heart disease and negative changes in metabolism.
3. 3 Consult a professional nutritionist for a healthy, balanced diet. Is it difficult for you to imagine how you can maintain a normal body weight without dieting? Visit a specialist and he will tell you about proper and healthy eating, in which you will not gain weight.
   • Your dietitian will determine the diet you need based on your health, medical history and possible food allergies. For most people, a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins found in poultry and fish, eggs, legumes, nuts, and low-fat or low-fat dairy products are fine.
   • Your dietitian may suggest that you talk to your family doctor to help you plan for regular exercise. In addition to a balanced diet, exercise will also help you maintain optimal body weight, improve your mood, and prolong your life.
4. 4 Think about your childhood experiences that may have influenced your eating habits. Oftentimes, unhealthy eating habits are caused by persistent but misconceptions about food. Think back to your childhood years and think about what might have influenced you. For example, you could receive sweets as a reward, and over time they began to be associated with a good mood. Such associations and impressions, received in childhood, could lead to the development of inappropriate eating habits.
   • Discuss your misconceptions about food, which may be rooted in your childhood, with your psychologist.

Warnings

• None of the advice in this article is medical advice.
• If you notice that you are repulsed by any food, or your diet has decreased dramatically, see your doctor immediately.