Dra. Yily De Los Santos recently explained what megarexia is and how it can be damaging to a person’s health.
At least one person dies due to the effects of an eating disorder every 62 minutes. Anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are some of the most commonly known eating disorders. However, an incredible number men and women suffer from another eating disorder that can be just as harmful, yet receives a lot less recognition. Dra. Yily De Los Santos recently discussed the major health issues that can be caused by the eating disorder known as megarexia.
According to Dra. Yily De Los Santos, megarexia is an eating disorder that is mostly psychological. The person suffering from megarexia is clearly obese and sees an unrealistically healthy image of his or her body when he looks in the mirror. Dra. Yily De Los Santos added that, because the person does not perceive their obesity, they do not take any action to improve their health.
“The person battling megarexia typically has a body mass index in excess of 25, which describes them as overweight,” Dra. Yily De Los Santos said. “However, they do not see this obesity when they look in the mirror. They see themselves as a person of healthy weight.”
Dra. Yily De Los Santos explained that 85 percent of people who are obese suffer from megarexia as well. For every one person has been diagnosed with anorexia, there are at least 10 megarexics. Dra. Yily De Los Santos stated that megarexia is a serious issue that does not receive publicity because it is deemed unpleasant or impolite to discuss a person’s obesity issues.
“We see these clients come into the office to discuss plastic surgery, yet they are expecting impossible results,” Dra. Yily De Los Santos said. “They do not know they are experiencing megarexia, so they expect to undergo the same procedures as people of a healthy weight.”
However, Dra. Yily De Los Santos explained that megarexia is not just an aesthetic issue. The disease can result in serious health issues, like cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, apnea, metabolic syndrome and more, because the obese person does not seek treatment or attempt to reach a healthier weight.
Dra. Yily De Los Santos added that, many times, people suffering from megarexia consume a diet high in saturated fats, sugars, carbohydrates, and other unhealthy foods. These unhealthy diet choices result in the person being malnourished in addition to obese.
“The biggest issue is that there are millions of megarexic people in the world who are unaware they have this disease,” says Dra. Yily De Los Santos. “It’s important that we talk about megarexia openly, so more people will become aware and start pursuing an overall healthier lifestyle.”