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Health

Is It Possible to be Too Thin?

By Luke Arthur
Updated Feb 03, 2024
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Even though many people believe it is not possible to be too thin, it is possible to negatively affect an individual's health by losing too much weight. Many individuals who have eating disorders or other medical problems become dangerously thin. By becoming too thin, an individual can deprive herself of energy and nutrients essential to live. Another disadvantage of becoming too thin is that it puts the person at increased risk of injury.

Thanks to fashion models and other famous people, many people believe that getting extremely skinny is healthy. While one should not be overweight, there is definitely a level of weight loss that should not be pursued by healthy individuals. Many people have the wrong idea that they should try to get as skinny as possible. Even though this is a common point of view, it can lead to serious health problems.

There are a number of different disorders that lead to being too thin. For example, anorexia and bulimia are common eating disorders that lead to losing dangerous amounts of weight. In order to achieve a thin physique, individuals who suffer from these conditions will deprive themselves of nutrients essential to the body. Even though these individuals are able to lose large amounts of weight, they are risking their health in the process.

Other individuals suffer from other health conditions that lead to losing too much weight. People who have cancer, AIDS, or some other type of disease can lose large amounts of weight. Sometimes this cannot be avoided, but it does complicate their health issues.

When an individual does not have enough fat and muscle, the body does not function properly. The body needs some stored fat to produce energy. If the individual does not have any fat, it can negatively impact the energy production systems of the body.

Another potential problem with being too thin is that it makes the individual weak and susceptible to injury. When a person does not have any muscle or fat surrounding her joints and bones, she could easily be injured by the slightest unnatural movement. If one of these individuals attempt to play sports or engage in physical exercise, she could potentially break a bone or experience other injuries. By building up muscle, an individual can more effectively prevent injury and keep herself from getting seriously hurt.

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Discussion Comments

By Wisedly33 — On Nov 12, 2014

@Scrbblchick -- I know, isn't it strange that anorexia is so very difficult to treat? The addiction is the same as with alcoholism, but it just involves not eating. The mental symptoms are largely the same. Every drunk thinks they can put it down after "just one more drink," while every anorexic says she can start eating after losing "just one more pound."

I don't think the media helps one bit, either. I think girls are bombarded with these impossible, unattainable images that are usually photoshopped, and they start thinking that's the right way to be, so instead of looking for a healthy body, they strive for an extra thin body, which may hurt them badly in the long run.

By Scrbblchick — On Nov 11, 2014

I think sometimes, girls, especially, are so focused on being thin and perfect, that they are unable to see past the numbers on the scale. I think this is where anorexia begins.

I've heard a lot of girls say they think that being thin and controlling what they eat is actually a way for them to exercise control over their lives. They control what they eat so they can bring some order into their world. It's odd how that works. Then, something seems to "trip," and suddenly, no matter how pitifully skinny they are, they are still "fat." It's an iniquitous mindset, and hard to treat.

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