Too busy to eat, the working mothers with 'stressorexia'

Modern women pride themselves on being able to juggle a career and a family while still looking good.

But the drive to have it all has started to take its toll, according to experts.

They say that a new type of eating disorder is emerging among maturer women - "stressorexia".

The condition affects those in their late 20s to 40s who are unwilling or unable to reduce their workload.

As they become drained, anxious and stressed-out, they stop eating properly, and can experience dramatic weight loss.

Experts claim that "stressorexia" is different from the more common anorexia.

Most sufferers of anorexia are younger and have emotional problems, choosing not to eat as a way of keeping control over their bodies.

Many have negative feelings about themselves, such as low selfworth, extreme fear of rejection and a distorted self-image.

But "stressorexia" is occurring in older, motivated and intelligent women with high expectations.

It is believed that the disorder may often start with a skipped lunch due to work deadlines but can quickly worsen.

But these women, who live in a world where the lines between the sexes' traditional roles have been blurred, then begin to feel that food is the only thing they can control.

Dr Adrian Lord, consultant psychiatrist at the Cygnet Hospital in Harrow, a private psychiatric clinic, said: "Stressorexia is not a scientific diagnosis that a doctor would make but anecdotally its symptoms are very prevalent among women.

"They are trying to be sexy, fashionable and slim, have a career and be perfect mothers and wives.

"Some neglect to eat because they are too busy and others are just totally stressed-out - which suppresses the appetite.

"Fifty years ago, women just had to be a good mother. Now they have to do everything and they can't abdicate.

"As a result, they feel very anxious and this can cause them to try and keep control of their food, which can lead to drastic weight loss and cause them insidiously to slip into an anorexictype situation."

Dr Lord explained: "It is very much a modern-day phenomenon, compounded by the blurred roles of men and women.

"Although there are no studies or empirical evidence showing how many women are affected by this, these type of cases are the bread and butter of our clinic.

"Basically, this ailment is a combination of depression, anxiety and anorexic-type symptoms. Women with it need thorough assessment to get to the underlying issues."

The dramatic weight loss can arise from simply not eating enough due to time constraints. But another worrying dimension is that feeling anxious can actually cause loss of appetite. Stafford Lightman, professor of medicine at Bristol University, said: "When you feel anxious, your brain releases corticotropin-releasing hormone to regulate the nervous system's response to stress. One of the effects is loss of appetite.

"It also releases adrenaline - the reason you often feel shaky and hyper - which causes your metabolism to burn more calories."

Dr Claire Gerada of the Royal College of GPs said: "When you're experiencing intense anxiety, the adrenaline surging around your body can result in very noticeable symptoms, such as loss of appetite and being irritable.

"They are nothing to be concerned about so long as they occur in short periods."