[Selected endocrine abnormalities in eating disorders]

Abstract

Eating disorders belong to frequent health problems affecting people in developed countries. They are generally seen in young women and are particularly common in adolescence. Endocrine consequences of these disorders include: excessive activity of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, hypogonadotropic hypogonadism, growth hormone resistance, low T3 syndrome, osteopenia, and abnormal activities of the hypothamus and adipose tissue. The endocrine changes associated with eating disorders have been studied in depth and as suggest the results of so far carried out studies, their aetiology is usually multifactoral. Most of these abnormalities are reversed, or at least alleviated, by weight gain. This review discusses the most important changes in the endocrine system related to eating disorders in the light of recent developments in this field. This article also tries to give insights into diagnosis and putative therapeutic strategies.