permarexia

Permarexia.....Little is know , most articles appear in Spanish and hail from South America. In tracking the beginnings it seems that the word was used in the USA by doctors studying eating disorders. The location was in the Florida region about 2003-04.

What is permarexia Its a word with no definition yet has been used in major publications (Cleo Malaysia sept 06) spoken on television (aca Australia sept 2006, Elle UK October2006)

Permarexia is the condition if I may call it that, that one( usually female) finds herself trying to maintain a wieght level what she considers to enhance her acceptable body image.

Unlike anorexia permarexia is a permanent state of diet that in extreme cases maintains just enough sustenance to the human body to maintain a waif like appearance.

Recently wrongly or rightly Victoria Beckam has be labeled permarexic.

This condition also applies to those whom binge during certain times and then diet to remove what is considered body fat and condition caused by this binge eating.

It all relates to ones body image and how one sees one self .

In articles written it gives figures of 95 per cent of females in some way mild or severe are permarexic.

The reference here is to those who constantly diet to maintain their body image. This behavior is not necessarily deemed to be abnormal in fact in western society dieting is a multi billion dollar industry and we must not over look the fact the obesity and excessive weight can be and has been proved to be a danger to ones health.

The media will pick up on this as time progresses and we must consider that permarexia is more a condition that effects those who diet to excess where as there appearance and health may seem to be slightly abnormal. Also it may appear that these persons may have more a obsession to diet than an obsession for body image.

Picture are conjured in our mind of the waif type models seen in abundance in the 1990's or even today. That body image and the influence it has on others is another issue into itself.

Permarexia in the extreme sees perfectly healthy human beings maintaining their body mass to such a point where as just to maintain ones existence.
That waif like all ribs no chest model comes into my mind ,what health issues this may lead to can only be described in case histories of these individuals and that type of information can be very difficult to acquire

There is a fine line between anorexia and Permarexia I am in no way trying to take the importance from what is a severe and very real problem, however for some permarexia could be confused in some minor cases.
Eating disorders also are relevant to men, Yes in a recent article reproduced below it claims Men have other yet similar issues if that make sense e.g what has been referred to in the article as Reverse anorexia. I would almost think this to be reverse permarexia It is a obsession with ones body image and to achieve this body image drastic health threatening regimes are undertaken. Like the female catwalk model there is also the male body builder and athlete or male model, rock star etc etc..

A MOTHER of five died after drinking too much water three weeks after she had begun a water-based diet in an attempt to lose weight, an inquest was told.

Jacqueline Henson, 40, was determined to slim down from 89kg and was "over the moon" after losing nearly 5.4kg in one week after starting the LighterLife diet plan, Huddersfield Coroners' Court was told yesterday.

The LighterLife diet, which has been linked with water poisoning, hair loss and disrupting the menstrual cycle, suggests that only 530 calories should be consumed a day - a quarter of a woman's recommended daily intake - for a period of 12 weeks, and drinking four litres of water per day.

Mrs Henson drank four litres of water in less than two hours on November 14, which caused her brain to swell. She collapsed in the bathroom of her home in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, and was pronounced dead the next day

Her husband, Brian, 40, said that he was devastated, and told the inquest how she had been "over the moon at losing weight". He said: "The more water she drank, the more weight she would lose."

Mrs Henson had arrived home at 5pm and had drunk two large bottles of water before settling in front of the television, drinking from a pint glass of water she had poured herself.

Mr Henson said: "At 11pm she stood up and said her stomach was solid. She was walking across the room and was sick.

"At 11.15pm she said she had a headache and went upstairs to the toilet. My 18-year-old daughter Chantelle went upstairs and I heard her saying 'mum, mum'. I knew something was wrong. Her eyes were closed and she didn't appear to be breathing."

Joanna Neville, of LighterLife, was asked by the coroner, Roger Whittaker, about the potentially dangerous regime, but she explained that the diet, which is aimed at people who are 19kg or more overweight, recommended drinking four litres of water over the course of a day in small amounts.

Asked if the company conveyed that message to dieters, Ms Neville said: "We are doing that quite clearly and will continue to do so."

The court was told that on October 18 Mrs Henson had visited her GP, who had given her a check-up before allowing her to go on the diet.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, the coroner said: "No one should drink water in the quantity that Mrs Henson did over that short a period. Little and often."

The National Institute for Clinical Excellence recommends that very low calorie-intake diets should be followed for a maximum of 12 weeks, and states that any diet of less than 600 calories should be used only under medical supervision.

LighterLife, which has an annual turnover of £18million ($40.9 million) and charges £66 per week for its specially tailored "food packs", claims to have helped 60,000 people to lose weight, despite the controversy surrounding its recommendations.

The diet sets a target of losing 19kg over 14 weeks. A spokesman for LighterLife said: "Our program gives clear guidance that water should be consumed regularly over the course of the day, and the coroner confirmed the events were a tragic accident."