I’m taking a one-week break from The Flexitarian Pantry to call your attention to an increasingly diagnosed eating disorder - Orthorexia.
Orthorexia is an extreme preoccupation or obsession with avoiding foods deemed to be unhealthy. Orthorexia can become so extreme that eventually almost all foods are deemed unhealthy. It can lead to malnutrition and death. In other words, you start out trying to eat healthy. Pretty soon you’re eliminating all sorts of food groups from your diet because you imagine they cause some weird symptom or physical reaction. Eventually you’re eating iceberg lettuce and drinking water.
Because you know, it’s not as if we women have enough problems already.
Take my middle sister, the uber pure foods nut. At last I have my diagnosis - Orthorexia. Instead of including healthy fresh foods in her diet, she eliminates. She thinks she’s reactive to entire food groups therefore she’s on a quest to find the perfect healthy way of eating, a way which will heal everything that ails her and perhaps bestow upon her immortality. Instead she’s always sick.
Almost every dish she prepares and eats is some nasty tasting, weird-ass substitute for a real food.
For instance, she claims a single kernel of sweet corn will cause the production of copious amounts of green snot within seconds of its ingestion.
Unfortunately because I am unworthy I’m not blessed enough to witness the magical mystical miracle known as the fountain of green snot.
I’m not minimizing true food allergies. They can be deadly. I have several good friends who suffer severe food allergies. My younger daughter is deathly allergic to crab and mussels. My father is deathly allergic to kiwis, for my mother it’s shrimp. I’m allergic to yellow jacket stings, of course. We may be allergic to different things, but what we have in common is the need to carry an epipen with us at all times.
Food allergies are not the same as Orthorexia.
From the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics - Orthorexia: An Obsession with Pure Eating.
“Orthorexia starts out with a true intention of wanting to be healthier, but it’s taken to an extreme,” says Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Spokesperson Marjorie Nolan, MS, RDN, CDN, ACSM-HFS, who specializes in working with eating disorder clients. “If someone is orthorexic, they typically avoid anything processed, like white flour or sugar. A food is virtually untouchable unless it’s certified organic or a whole food. Even something like whole-grain bread – which is a very healthy, high-fiber food – is off limits because it’s been processed in some way.”
Orthorexics typically don’t fear being fat in the way that an anorexic would, but the obsessive and progressive nature of the disorder is similar. Orthorexics may eliminate entire groups of food – such as dairy or grains – from their diets, later eliminating another group of food, and another, all in the quest for a “perfect” clean, healthy diet. In severe cases, orthorexia eventually leads to malnourishment when critical nutrients are eliminated from the diet.
From the Mayo Clinic: Orthorexia- When healthy eating goes awry.
Everyone can benefit by paying more attention to choosing healthy foods, right?
For the most part, yes. However, a small number of people seem to become obsessed with the “perfect diet.” These individuals fixate on eating foods that make them feel pure and healthy…
A great article from Fox News: Orthorexia: Taking healthy eating to a whole new level.
Can healthy eating actually harm your health? Caring about what you eat is a great thing, but when it turns into an obsession and a hunt for perfection, you can do permanent damage to your body on several levels. A very restrictive diet means you may miss out on nutrients your body needs.
Here are some of the foods orthorexics tend to restrict, or completely remove from their diets:
Dairy, meats, and eggs: Cutting out these foods could mean you’re not getting B12, needed for proper brain function and red blood cell production. Strict vegans should consult their doctors on how to get this vital vitamin into their diets.
Gluten and grains: Gluten-free diets are all the rage these a days, but experts estimate only 6 percent of the population may be be affected by gluten sensitivity or celiac disease. Whole grains contain high levels of minerals that we need (like magnesium, which is needed for healthy bones and nerves; and manganese, which is needed for healthy heart function). Eating whole grains may provide the balance your body needs to stay fit. If you suspect you have issues with gluten, it’s better to get a medical test instead of missing out on this nourishing ‘food group.’
Fat: Good quality fats, found in foods like olive oil, avocado, nuts and seeds, grass-fed beef, grass-fed dairy and pasture-raised eggs are a must for the body. They keep skin healthy, cushion and protect vital organs, insulate the body against heat loss, protect nerve tissue, and help regulate women’s menstrual cycles. Getting enough fat in your diet also means you feel full longer and have a better absorption rate of fat-soluble vitamins like A and D.
I apologize for the quality of the following video - if you can’t see it well, just listen. It’s a good description of the lifestyle of an orthorexic.
Next week - The Flexitarian Pantry. Three. Fats Are Our Friends.
Thanks for sharing. It seems food can be such a deadly thing on so many levels for women. I’m sure men suffer from food disorders too.
So very true Julia. It’s a damn shame when the media, various health bodies, and society give so many conflicting information on what constitutes ‘healthy living and eating’. Take the recent ‘this amount of water per day is good for you’ (8 glasses or about 2 litres for women). Recently, one scientific journal published a paper saying ‘noooo, it’s actually bad for you OR does nothing Or don’t bother!’ A couple of acquaintances were quick to jump on that new band wagon. I told them ‘It was ONE freakin’ paper. Do your research, dumbass!’
Or pregnancy. Don’t even get me started on pregnancy! So much conflicting advice!
In medicine and research, we’re taught to ‘analyse’ scientific papers. Basically, it’s a polite way of saying, ‘Don’t believe all the shit you read, dude, and learn to sort out the gems from the muck.’ Just because the Lancet or the BMJ or any other renowned journal out there publishes a single paper that says, ‘Actually, the moon is really made of cheese,’ doesn’t mean it’s true! It’s amazing how often one scientific publication can cause so much controversy. The current measles outbreak in Wales kinda demonstrates this rather well.
And yes, food allergies are on the rise and celiac disease is being diagnosed with increasing (and alarming!) frequency in this country, meaning people will have to modify their diets. But for God’s sake, be sensible about it all! DO YOUR RESEARCH!
I have several friends who I feel have a mild case of Orthorexia. The urge to tell them ‘Here, have a goddamn burger. It ain’t gonna kill you,’ is strong to resist at times!
This is just one example. The gluten free industry is projected to hit 4.2 million this year, with most of the people eating this way not celiacs. The media has once again convinced them that it’s a healthier way to eat. People don’t seem to understand that eating a healthy diet with lots of fruits and veggies is the best way, and most things are all right in moderation.
Myself, I haven’t met a food I don’t like, especially if it has chocolate in it.
Thank you very much for posting this…never heard of it. Very interesting! I try to eliminate things that adversely affect me and substitute something equivalent.
The other, often unmentioned “health” issue is the huge amount of stress extreme eaters place on themselves and their loved ones. Every meal or special event becomes a misery. There is no joy, gratitude or pleasure at the table. Food becomes a weapon of control. Every item on the table has to be investigated or condemned. I’ve been lectured by extreme eaters on the cruelty of eating any animal products, impure foods, mucus producing foods-I’ve heard irrational fears about gluten that mysteriously hovers in every cell of the body for years after its been consumed like a time bomb waiting to bloat… In their quest for purity extreme eaters don’t see how rude and cruel they are to their fellow humans.
I try to eat healthy in season, in moderation. I try to avoid poisons and GMOs. I take joy in food and the company I keep.
Beautiful and perfect, Kat. Yes. Every meal I eat or prepare with or prepare for my sister is the definition of stress and aggravation. Every ingredient has to be scrutinized and judged and discarded. Makes me want to scream. She lives near my parents so my mother goes insane trying to cook for her. Last time I was there I made it clear she should bring her own food rather than drive everyone else crazy. Also the conversation around the table revolves around good and evil foods - gluten, mucus producing foods, acid/alkaline… Also drives me crazy.
I agree with everything you’ve said. I don’t eat GMOs but I think those foods have their place in the fight against the use of pesticides and to provide improved nutrition for hungry children - like the Vitamin A rice that has since been banned - it worked.
Ah, but Anny, that’s what normal people do when we want to eat healthy. You’ve nailed it.
I’ll take chocolate any day, Stephanie! Yeah, it takes a little blood test to rule out celiac disease. No big deal. The theory behind silent gluten intolerance is basically that humans are not adapted to grains. I disagree, so do many geneticists. Our digestive system changes far more rapidly than we think. Yes - quality proteins, lots of fruits and veggies, whole grains, healthy fats. All good!
Hi AD. I know! Every single day some pundit somewhere tells us what we should eat today instead of what we ate yesterday. It’s like we’re bombarded by a perfect storm of misinformation and partial information.
It’s too bad, Amber, because food = life. I used to be anorexic so I have some perspective. I think a bunch of us were anorexics.
Ohhhhh, that is sad. We eat a little bit of everything at our house. Sometimes we’re guilty of talking too much about food at the table, but it’s a more joyful talk. “Remember those ribs we ate that time? How about the salad at that one place?” stuff like that.
Any talk of green snot would get a child-or adult-banned from the table. We have rules about saying icky things while eating and green snot is icky!
Oh, Julia, this one post hit a nerve.
During my teaching career, I had many students in class who were anorexic or bulemic, or who thought they were being healthy by eating only proteins or only vegan, or some who concocted their diets of wine coolers and nuts and olives, etc. It was never ending. Often, though, the craze wore itself out after awhile.
Then I had one Orthorexic, the authority who told everyone what to eat, what not to eat, how and when to eat it. At first it was minimally balanced, kind of like a portion control balance for Weight Watchers, but then it got more and more extreme, and quickly. We met with her mother, a yoga instructor who totally supported whatever her daughter did-until it came to the point that the girl was chewing her fingernails until they bled and swallowing because it was “naturally returned” food, and the same with strands of her hair. I’m not always thrilled when family services steps in, but this was one time I think they saved her life by getting her some help.
Oh Marylin - that is so heartbreaking! Yes - I had anorexia, my daughters have flirted with it, my cousin had it… but fortunately I got better and was able to recognize the signs early in my own kids. Wow. Your story blows me away.
I think I might have that. I do have a gluten intolerance, but I have eliminated almost all fat from my diet using olive oil about once a week to cook. I do eat other things though and I just don’t want the points in fat. But wait, I still drink like a fish so I can’t be too much in that camp right? I know I need some - my theory is that my body has a fat bank in my butt that it can make withdrawals from.
The blood test for celieac is still - with my docs not as highly regarded as the biopsy. Before diagnosis I came up as borderline celiaec, was in the ER several times in one summer and lived on immodium. Now, my antibodies are next to nil and I haven’t taken an immodium that didn’t involve a virus.
I was also anorexic in my teens, and then I was told I was bulemic because I took so many laxatives. At the same time I have a hard time keeping weight off.
Ta Dahling. Steph
A friend of mine is a Dr. Oz fanatic (mercifully she has many other qualities that outweigh this particular shortcoming!). One day, based on his ‘expertise’, she literally threw out all food in her fridge/freezer and bought all sorts of weird things that were going to change her life. She was able to stick to the crazy regime for less than a week!
She also went on and on about how Dr. Oz said smokers (I am one) should be eating copious amounts of pomegranite seeds every day. She said he acknowledged it has potentially dangerous side affects on the colon but it decreases one’s odds for getting lung cancer. I asked, “Did the great and powerful Oz mention quiting as the best option?” She said, “I’m not sure, he was focused on discussing the food info in his book.” Really!!??
Making people crazy over food is big, big business!!!
Tessie - genius! Genius! Yes, big business, big money. Insane.
Steph, you’re skinny as shit. Yeah, you probably have it. Olive oil will not kill you nor will butter. Don’t worry about your butt. It’s skinnier than mine and I’m in a size six now. If you had any antibodies to gluten you are probably gluten intolerant. Or borderline. I had the test because I’m anemic and celiac can cause anemia- totally negative.
All things in moderation….except meat of course. heh heh
Good info, Julia.
LOL Sandra! Know what you mean but I feel better as an omnivore. Took me by surprise!
They won’t kill me oil and butter - although butter does make me sick. I actually don’t really like the feel of fats. And, I am skinny as shit because I don’t eat fat or sugar or much of anything except one day a week then all bets are off. I have never been good at moderation.
You know what’s weird - even with my diet and exercise my cholesterol is ridiculously high - good ratio - but without that I would be a heart attack.
here’s an idea, send your wee sis to that whole foods place where you bought the asparagus that tasted like pee, that should cure her
just saying
xxxx