Bigorexia: Symptoms, Causes and How to cure it

The bigorexia is a behavioral disorder unknown to the vast majority. Not surprisingly, the term bigorexia recognized in 1993. Also known as Adonis Complex or athletic anorexia, young people are most likely to fall into the obsession of having a muscular and molded body. The problem lies not in the care of the body, but in turn it into an authentic obsession that even leads sufferers to have a distorted perception of their body, believing that they do not have sufficient muscle mass. This often leads to perform physical exercise in an exaggerated manner and modifying the diet, including more carbohydrates and proteins and eliminating fatty foods.

Symptoms

The bigorexia leads the sufferer to spend much of their time and energy to care for the physical. The aim is to increase, even without considering the proportions, volume and muscle tone. This can even lead to neglecting other daily activities, such as social relations, for the sake of the cult to the body.

There is another added risk, and the tendency of those who suffer from bigorexia to take anabolic and complex protein to improve muscle tone, which can have serious consequences for health. To distinguish between those who practice sport in a healthy way and who can suffer from bigorexia, the parameter is not only in the amount of physical exercise, but also in the degree of fixation by means of which a person lives through the sport.

Be obsessive, in these cases, it means to have a continuous and excessive preoccupation with the results obtained in the gym.

Causes

Those most likely to suffer from bigorexia are men, although women can also suffer from it. The most frequent age group between 25 and 35, followed by the group of 18 and 24, although this does not mean that the obsession with the body does not appear after 40. Indeed, awareness of the passage of time can lead us in sport a solution to aging. Even those who have low self-esteem may be attracted by the myth of perfect and muscular body.

Treatment

Bigorexia can have important consequences for the health, since it can cause physical problems due to the excess of training or a low-calorie diet. In addition, this disorder is usually accompanied by episodes of depression (by inadequate diet and overtraining), onset of cardiovascular problems and nervous system disorders. It is essential to consult a psychologist or psychiatrist to follow the most appropriate treatment in each case.