A recent Wall Street Journal article on “orthorexia” by Sumathi Reddy published on November 10, 2014 stirred up controversy discussing a disorder highlighted by an obsession with “healthy” eating.
“You have to put ‘healthy’ in quotes when you talk about orthorexia. There is nothing healthy about this disease,” says Jessica Setnick, Senior Fellow with The Meadows Ranch, a comprehensive treatment center specializing in eating and co-occurring disorders for women and girls in Wickenburg, AZ.
With food and feasting being the focus of this holiday, and in many cases overindulgence being encouraged, your conscience can become very heavy. If you ‘slip up’ by giving into the eating disorder on Thanksgiving, it can create a downward spiral effect for the entire holiday season. Because eating disorders aren’t really about food, but […]
Diabulimia is a non-technical term for the abuse of exogenous insulin in an effort to lose weight or prevent weight gain. Exogenous insulin is self-administered in the form of shots by individuals who have Type I (insulin-dependent) diabetes. Although Type I diabetes has multiple causes, they all disrupt the body’s ability to produce insulin (endogenous insulin), a chemical required for life.
Many people are under the impression that eating disorders only occur in adolescent girls and young women, but the truth is there is no age limitation to disordered eating.
In a study of women age 50 and over by the International Journal of Eating Disorders, 13% had symptoms of an eating disorder. Additionally, 70% were attempting to lose weight, and 62% felt their weight had a negative impact on their life. These percentages are strikingly close to the percentages of younger women and girls with eating disorders and poor body image.
Genetics largely determines a person’s shape and size, so the ideal body type for most is an impossible standard of beauty. His or her weight cannot determine their health. Unfortunately in our culture, weight and health go hand in hand. For people struggling with eating disorders, a huge factor contributing to the pain brought on by an eating disorder is the worry of being humiliated and rejected for their weight, no matter what it is.