ABSTRACT
Inadequate food intake contributes to weight loss associated with illnesses.1,2 Anorexia is observed in sufferers of HIV/AIDS, end-stage renal disease, chronic pulmonary disease, cardiac disease, and in ammatory bowel diseases. Chronic conditions such as aging, depression, pain, anxiety, and nausea also depress food intake.3-5 There may be overt physical causes of anorexia, such as vomiting, obstruction of the gastrointestinal system, delayed digestion, malabsorption, gastric stasis and delayed emptying, and/or atrophic changes of the mucosa. Another important factor is stress, which is thought to activate the hypothalamus and pituitary glands to produce appetite-suppressing neuropeptides.
