Morphofunctional alterations caused by anorexia and bulimia in adolescents: educational aspects

Eating disorders (EDs) are complex, multi-causal psychiatric illnesses that primarily affect adolescents and young women. The most frequent diagnosis during adolescence is unspecified ED, followed by anorexia and bulimia nervosa. All these disorders share cardinal symptoms such as excessive concern with food, weight, and/or body shape, and the use of unhealthy measures to control or reduce body weight. EDs are often accompanied by medical and psychological complications that can potentially leave irreversible sequelae for adolescent development. The objective was to analyze the disorders caused by anorexia and bulimia in the bodies of adolescents and young people. The methodological study used for the development of this research focused on documentary research, where a bibliographic review related to the topic was conducted in databases such as Scopus, Latindex, SciELO, MedlinePlus, Elsevier, PubMed, and Google Scholar. To prevent the chronicity of the disorder, early treatment is recommended, which requires timely diagnosis and referral to a specialized team. This team needs to be interdisciplinary with experience in both EDs and adolescence to address the various facets of the disorder, as well as the particularities and challenges that its onset during adolescence entails.