Anorexia Nervosa is a very serious mental illness which has a very high mortality rate.  It is mostly associated with females but certainly males can also succumb to it. Food is an unmanageable for those who suffer from this illness. The perception of what is healthy is totally unrealistic and the fear of weight gain is an obsession. The origins of anorexia can be initiated by experiencing stress in transitory phases, dieting to excess and as always there are genetic and environmental factors. Puberty is mostly the time (especially in females) when this illness can manifest. When individuals abstain from food it highly resembles starvation in no uncertain terms. Even when food consumption comes in to play the use of laxatives, enemas and whatever is helpful to rid the body of any form of nutrition is used.  A sufferer of anorexia will try to disguise their low body weight and associated problems which accompany this situation. Symptoms are many and depend on what stage a person is at on their downward spiralling journey. Obviously, there are noticeable physical abnormalities occurring.  However, the damage to organs can be irreversible even if the illness can be turned away or resolved.  With all this going on, behaviour to maintain this becomes more and more abrupt, irritable and basically non-negotiable. As the situation becomes worse, rational thinking about food slowly but surely disappears. Things like fatigue, insomnia, abnormal blood counts and absence of menstruation to name a few are symptoms that are testament to how powerful and destructive the condition can be.  For females to lose their period is a representation of how grim the physical state of the body is at.  Obviously, levels of estrogen and progesterone are minimal. In males testosterone is also depleted and its inability in females to be quickly converted to estrogen is limited because of its diminished levels. Estrogen, progesterone and testosterone either directly or indirectly, increase brain derived neurotrophic factor. BDNF is very important as a growth factor in the central nervous system and plays a critical role in neuroplasticity.  To lose healthy levels of BDNF is a major downside of this illness. However, the simplest way to increase BDNF is to take up physical exercise. Those that suffer from anorexia probably don’t consciously know why exercising becomes such an important part of their daily routine (to excess that is). Every action or behaviours in a human being comes about because it benefits or rewards in some way. BDNF enhances the survival of dopaminergic neurons.  A sufferer of anorexia therefore compensates in one area to fuel another. An excessive exercise regime does little for the wellbeing of maintaining a healthy weight. It compounds and adds to the problems that an individual experiences.