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Show rilliEliiiiiisiii J llitriailiiiiiiiiiillliaiiaiiiitiiiiiaiilliiiiiiiiiiiJiiiEiiilEiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiijjjiiiiiiiilllillJxirtrtliiiilliliiiiiiiiitLiiiiiiiiiiiirjiiiiJitrriirFtiiii I Health and Beauty I By - j gimiii!iiiii!ijiilNliimmMillilliiiinlillll DR. SOPHIA BRUNSON liiiiiiiiimiiminiiiiiiiiliililliiliiMiiiimig. ANOREXIA NERVOSA Anorexia means want of, or loss of, appetite due to disordered nerves, usually caused by a mental men-tal conflict disturbance. The Bible says that "A merry heart doeth good like a medicine." Macbeth had no desire for food because of an accusing conscience on account of his crimes. Shakespeare Shakes-peare makes him exclaim: "Now, good digestion waits on appetite. And health on both." Pavlov, the distinguished Russian Rus-sian savant, in studying the diges-iton, diges-iton, kept a number of dogs for the purpose of observation. He arranged little windows in their stomachs through which he could observe the process of digestion. When these dogs were well and happy, they ate with relish and the digestive juices were poured out normally. Thus the process of digesting the food went on properly. prop-erly. The same is true of human beings. be-ings. God's word tells us that "Grief drieth up the very marrow of the bones." It also dries up the digestive juices and takes away the appetite. I saw a patient recently who had lost 17 pounds. She explained that she had no appetite. Questioning Ques-tioning brought out the reason. She was greatly disturbed over financial fi-nancial difficulties and a drunken husband. This patient was de pressed and suffering from insom-nia. insom-nia. She dreaded to see night come and looked forward with apprehension to the next morning. morn-ing. She was seen six months later. She then looked well and happy. Her appetite had returned and she also slept well. Her husband had reformed and had secured a remunerative position so they got along well financially. Happiness had completely cured anorexia nervosa. Sometimes when a growing boy or girl does not eat, the parents btecome uneasy and consult a physician. In discussing eight cases of loss of appetite due to emotion anorexia anor-exia nerviosa two doctors outlined out-lined the differences in the symptoms symp-toms of patients suffering with wasting diseases and those with lack of appetite due to emotional disturbances. Patients suffering from wasting diseases such as tuberculosis are usually quite ill. They complain of weakness and fatigue and have other visible signs long before they reach the degree of thinness seen in patients with anorexia nervosa. ner-vosa. On the other hand, patients with anorexia nervosa are restless rest-less and active, and remain quick, alert and active, denying illness. These patients recover speedily I when the causes of their mental - conflicts are removed. |