What is orthorexia?
Sure, you want to eat well, and who can dispute the benefits of a healthy diet? But if your interest in nutrition is an obsession, you could be struggling with an eating disorder, says the author of a new book on the subject.
Orthorexia is defined as the fixation on eating healthy food, and according to Esther Kane, an eating disorders therapist based in Courtenay, B.C., it is on the rise. "People want to be thin and they want to be younger. These are the obsessions we have as a society, and food companies have caught on and are marketing to our hopes and dreams," she explains.There are no stats for the prevalence of orthorexia, which is still considered a sub-clinical diagnosis. People with other eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia make up about five per cent of the general population.
How orthorexia creeps up on you
With orthorexia, you might start out by making certain changes in your diet, like becoming vegetarian, then you begin eliminating more and more foods until you're become obsessed with what you're eating and when. "People start from a good place; they are generally trying to feel better," Kane explains. "But then they think food is the answer to their health concerns."
Kane, who struggled with orthorexia herself, reveals how someone can go from prioritizing healthy eating to obsessing about it. Kane's eating disorder began when she was a teen who turned to vegetarianism. From there she went vegan, then started eating only raw foods, then applied rules about food combinations to the point where she spent almost her entire day thinking about food. "It eclipsed the rest of my life."
Signs of orthorexia
Kane turns to Dr. Steven Bratman and his 2001 book Health Food Junkies, for signs of symptoms of the eating disorder:
-Being heavily into health foods
-Becoming obsessed with what you eat
-Reading a lot of books about health and diet
-Wanting to be healthy above all else
-Refusing to eat socially with others
Click to continue for more signs of orthorexia...
