Friends of Virtual “Ana”. Internet Community Promoting Anorexia

Abstract

This article describes the phenomenon of pro-anorexia, which exists in the virtual world but also leads to serious consequences in real life. The internet pro-ana community encourages its members to perceive anorexia as a lifestyle choice and to take up actions endangering their health and life. Educating and informing about this issue might be useful for the broad range of specialists in terms of prevention and early diagnosis of this illness.