10 reasons to treat anorexia. Symptoms you need to know about

No! Never try this diet! Especially if you like coffee, oranges and chocolate, because after this diet, having lost up to 25 kg of excess weight in a month and a half, you definitely won’t be able to look at them.

• Reviews from those who have lost weight

Author: Kristina Lobanovskaya, doctor, practicing nutritionist Article updated: 11/10/2020

In pursuit of slimness, many girls know no limits, striving to achieve not optimal, but ultra-low weight, which will make their figure close to anorexic. Therefore, recently the DAN diet, the name of which stands for “beginner anorexic diet,” has become quite widespread, especially among young people. It is very tough, but despite this, it is very long-lasting - you need to sit on DAN for 50 days, during which you can lose 25 kg of weight, gain a model figure and slender legs “with four gaps”. However, in reality, during such a period, you can bring the body to exhaustion and actually develop anorexia - a neuropsychiatric disorder consisting of a complete absence of hunger and the inability to eat on one’s own.

The essence of the diet

The DAN diet is one of the most strict weight loss methods, which is equivalent to fasting, but differs from it in some rules and diet. Its essence lies in significantly limiting the amount of calories consumed, in which the body begins to use internal reserves for its life support. In the classic version of the anorexic diet, the entire weight loss course consists of different types of strict mono-diets, which alternate with each other and are interspersed with fasting days on one drink.

Important! At its core, the DAN menu is a long hunger strike, during which the body does not receive the substances and energy necessary for its functioning. But unlike therapeutic fasting, which is carried out with strict adherence to certain rules and benefits the body, the diet of anorexics works completely differently.

There are a lot of disadvantages to this method of losing weight:

1. The proposed diet is very difficult to tolerate, since for 50 days the daily calorie content is usually 500–700 kcal.
2. The technique can only be used by an absolutely healthy person, and it is not guaranteed that he will remain so upon completion of the course.
3. Too strict dietary restrictions can lead to gastrointestinal and other serious problems.

The only advantage of the DAN diet is really fast weight loss. However, even this fact is rather doubtful. The most unpleasant results of the DAN diet are manifested in the fact that with the proposed diet, muscle mass is lost first, and fat begins to disappear last. This is due to the fact that it is easier for the body to break down protein tissue than fat deposits. In addition, the predominance of carbohydrates in food contributes to the fact that the body, “frightened” by hunger, strives to turn them into fat and send them to reserves. A person begins to weaken, muscle tone decreases, weight gradually decreases, and volumes practically do not change for a long time. Therefore, to look like a typical anorexic, it will really take at least 50 days.

But the most dangerous thing is that the muscles of not only the body suffer, but also the internal organs, primarily the heart, which consists mainly of muscle tissue. In 50 days, changes can become irreversible, and they will affect not only the heart. A weakened heart muscle finds it difficult to pump blood, which leads to a deterioration in the supply of oxygen and nutrients to tissues. At the same time, due to lack of nutrition, all vital processes are disrupted. As a result, many serious diseases develop, primarily anorexia, which will have to be treated in a hospital. Fortunately, it is rare that anyone who wants to lose weight in such a radical way lasts the entire period for which the DAN diet is designed - reviews indicate that the majority spent no more than 3 weeks on an anorexic diet.

What drug treatment for anorexia abroad is most effective?

Treating anorexia at home is usually ineffective. If the stomach or intestines have been damaged by fasting, you need to determine the degree of pathology and begin the necessary treatment, which is prescribed by the attending physician or gastroenterologist. After prolonged fasting, severe dysbacteriosis can develop, because of this it is necessary to restore the natural microflora, which is achieved through the use of bacteriological agents (bifidumbacterin, bificol, etc.).

Due to insufficient production of enzymes and their low activity, for better digestion it is necessary to prescribe drugs with enzymes (mezim, pancreatin, etc.). They speed up digestion due to the fact that they contain the required complex of enzymes. To stimulate appetite, widely used techniques can be used, including the safest means, for example, bitters, which irritate the mucous membranes of organs and reflexively increase appetite.

In addition, periactin can be used during treatment, which improves appetite by blocking the effects of serotonin and histamine, which suppress the functioning of the hunger center.

Rules and recommendations

For those who are not afraid of the anorexic diet and who want to risk trying this method of losing weight on themselves, you need to know and strictly adhere to several rules:

1. Drink at least 1.5 liters of still drinking water daily.
2. Count the number of calories you eat during the day so as not to go beyond the specified limits and distribute them evenly.
3. Divide the product for a specific mono-diet into 5–7 servings in order to eat as often as possible.
4. Chew food slowly and for a long time - make at least 30 chewing movements for each piece.
5. Minimize physical activity, but spend more time outdoors.
6. Take vitamin and mineral complexes.

In addition, an integral requirement of the DAN diet is strict adherence to the recommended menu and consumption of only approved foods . The list of such products in each diet option is different, but the following are practically unchanged for all:

• milk tea (green tea with milk or infused with milk);
• dark chocolate (not lower than 70% cocoa);
• buckwheat and rice groats;
• low-fat lactic drinks;
• vegetables, herbs, berries, fruits;
• chicken fillet without fat and skin;
• low-fat varieties of fish.

All high-calorie foods, especially those with a lot of fat, are prohibited for anorexics.

Important! On those days of the DAN diet, when all restrictions are reduced only to reducing the daily calorie intake, it is necessary to use low-calorie healthy foods from the list of permitted ones. The lower their calorie content, the greater the amount you can consume.

Certain types of DAN

In addition to the classic versions of the DAN diet, which differ mainly in duration, there are two varieties with a special diet. One is completely drinkable, the other is chocolate and drink based.

Drinking

In this option for losing weight until you become anorexic, you are allowed to consume only liquid food. These can be any drinks, the choice of which determines the duration of the course:

1. On the water - you can only drink clean water, at least 1.5 liters per day. In fact, this is a regular fast, which can be observed for no longer than 3 days, so as not to harm your health.
2. Vegetable broth - It is recommended to use homemade broths cooked with one or more different vegetables. The duration of this technique can be 1 week.
3. For dairy products - most often 1% fat kefir or milk tea (tea brewed with milk) is used. You need to choose one of the indicated products and drink only it during the day. The weight loss course can also last up to 7 days.
4. For fresh juices, you can only use natural, self-prepared fruit, vegetable or fruit and vegetable juices. On this DAN diet you are allowed to lose weight for 2 weeks.
5. Mixed option - you can drink any of the above drinks, which will make your diet a little more varied and the weight loss process a little more comfortable. Therefore, the duration of weight loss can be 30 days.

The mixed drinking diet DAN is even considered useful. This method of nutrition allows you not only to lose weight to the point of anorexia, but also to cleanse the body:

• during the first 10 days, the hollow organs are cleansed;
• in the next 10 days, the tissues are cleaned;
• at the final stage, the entire body is cleansed at the cellular level.

For the process to be as effective as possible, in addition to nutritious drinks, you need to drink at least 1.5 liters of water daily. In the early stages, hunger can be unbearable due to the constant urge to chew food. But after a week, the body and psyche are rebuilt, so the feeling of hunger dulls.

Choco-drinking

The prefix “shoko” can be confidently used for any type of the DAN diet, since each of them is a shock to the body. However, in this version, the name “choco-drinking” means a weight loss technique based on alternating a chocolate and drinking mono-diet. The difference between this type of menu for anorexics is that chocolate should be consumed together with cocoa - 6 cups a day without sugar, cold or hot. The shock-drinking weight loss course is designed for 1 week and the loss of 6 kg of excess weight.

The advantage of this technique is due to the presence of substances in chocolate that promote the release of the “happiness hormone” serotonin. But this does not make the diet less strict and stressful for the body, since it lacks protein, fiber and other nutrients.

For each day of the DAN chocolate diet, only 100 g of dark dark chocolate is allocated, which must be divided into 5-6 pieces and consumed together or alternately with the indicated six cups of cocoa.

There are also several other options for the DAN chocolate-drinking diet menu. Each of them necessarily contains the same 100 g of chocolate (72–80% cocoa), which can be washed down with other drinks:

• coffee without any additives;
• green tea (unsweetened);
• still mineral water.

The amount of liquid you drink per day is unlimited, since these drinks have zero calorie content and do not at all prevent you from “turning” into an anorexic. In any variant, chocolate can be washed down or consumed separately from drinking. You also need to drink plenty of clean water to prevent dehydration.

All of the DAN diets reviewed provide very rapid weight loss, but at the same time significantly reduce the intake of nutrients. Therefore, taking vitamin and mineral complexes is a mandatory addition to any menu option.

Contraindications

Consuming a small amount of calories forces the body to work harder, consuming nutrients. Therefore, the Dan diet is not recommended for everyone. It should be followed by healthy people who are overweight by more than 10-15 kg, and those who are obese. What are the contraindications to the anorexic diet?

• chronic diseases;
• problems with the gastrointestinal tract;
• diseases of the kidneys, liver, thyroid gland;
• poor functioning of the cardiovascular system;
• tendency to iron deficiency anemia;
• weak immunity.

Quitting the diet

Just like the DAN diet itself, exiting it must be done with strict adherence to all the rules. With such strict dietary restrictions, an incorrect transition to a normal diet can lead not only to a quick return of lost kilograms, but also to serious disorders of the digestive system. After completing the weight loss course, you need to expand the range of products very gradually. The most suitable power supply would be:

• during the first week - introduce natural juices with pulp, boiled fish and eggs into the menu;
• from the second week - supplement the diet with salads from fresh vegetables and cereals;
• in the third week, you can start eating your usual foods, returning to a nutritious diet.

Important! During the entire period of leaving the DAN diet, it is necessary to control the energy value of the daily diet. Every day you can add no more than 100 kcal. At the same time, for 3-4 weeks, the calorie content of the daily menu should not exceed 1500 kcal.

In addition, you cannot refuse fasting days. They will not allow the metabolism to slow down and will help maintain the achieved weight and appearance of an anorexic woman. Also, from the second week of release, you should introduce physical exercises that are necessary to keep the body in good shape.

Read reviews about anorexia treatment

“My daughter had weight problems and developed complexes. I did not immediately notice anorexia nervosa and changes in her behavior; at the slightest attempt to talk to her, she would avoid such a topic. When the symptoms of physical exhaustion became obvious, I insisted on talking and seeing a psychotherapist. Yes, the situation scared me very much at first, I didn’t know how the treatment was going, it seemed that it was no less scary than drug rehabilitation. The doctor assured us that everything would be fine, but, of course, we would need to undergo a course of treatment. Now everything is fine with my daughter, thanks to complex therapy she feels great, there are no problems with nutrition.”

Alina Semenova, Arkhangelsk

“I had previously heard a lot about the treatment of drug addiction in Israel, as well as about successful therapy for other disorders and pathologies. I didn’t think that I would have to face such a problem myself. A couple of years ago, my sister started developing anorexia. We didn't think much of her strange food-related behavior at first. We thought it would pass, because almost all teenagers try to watch their weight. However, then we realized that we couldn’t cope without the doctor’s help. She was rapidly losing weight and began to complain of pain in her head and stomach. My sister herself began to realize that this was not normal. We turned to the Renaissance RC, where they helped her.”

Ekaterina Chumakova, Zaraysk