and is it possible to restore it after?
In: 0
People can become hypermetabolic (burning calories faster than normal) when anorexic. This can last for up to 6 mths after beginning refeeding sometimes requiring 5-6000 cals for weight gain. It eventually goes back to a normal metabolic rate with continued refeeding.
Absolutely it does. Any time the body is starved of calories the metabolism will slow down. People will feel full and somewhat functional on an unhealthy amount of calories. This is simply a survival mechanism. the body is still not getting the calories it needs which places stress on the whole system.
Now once recovery is started some patients will find that their metabolism skyrockets. They will need an amount of calories to feel full well over what they thought they would need. The body is attempting to consume more calories to repair and rebuild from the time when it didn’t have enough. This can make many people dealing with anorexia Nervosa relapse as they feel like gluttons since they are eating 4-5x as much as they expected.
Eventually the body does even out and the patient’s metabolism will level out to a more average rate.
Latest Answers