Thanks to many of your blog posts, I learned that last week was National Eating Disorder Awareness Week. You had some great, insightful posts on intuitive eating and on celebrating our bodies for the amazing things they enable us to do.
When one thinks of eating disorders, anorexia, bulimia, and compulsive overeating come to mind. But in this post, I want to highlight another eating disorder, because I feel it’s the one to which we healthy-living bloggers and readers can probably most relate:
Orthorexia Nervosa
Orthorexia Nervosa is characterized by an excessive focus on eating healthy foods. Basically, its sufferers start out with a simple desire to live a healthy lifestyle, but they become so preoccupied with eating healthily that it becomes an unhealthy obsession.
Unlike with anorexia, orthorexics don’t necessarily think they’re fat. Their underlying motivation, therefore, is not to be thin or lose weight, but to be “pure.” However, with such restrictive diets, they can become just as malnourished as anorexics. People suffering might avoid certain foods, such as non-organic foods, cooked foods, or processed foods. (Feel free to click over to the following post for more about my thoughts on processed foods.)
This doesn’t mean that every vegan, raw foodist, or person who strives to eat a healthy diet has orthorexia. It’s only when the healthy diet becomes an obsession; when a person spends hours planning out his/her “perfect” diet, calculating nutrients, preparing everything in a very specific way (and not letting anyone else prepare his/her food), that one can be seen to have a problem.
People suffering from orthorexia may display some of the following signs:
- Feeling virtuous about what they eat, but not enjoying their food much
- Continually cutting foods from their diet
- Experiencing a reduced quality of life or social isolation because their diet makes it difficult for them to eat anywhere but at home
- Feeling critical of, or superior to, others who do not eat as healthily they do
- Skipping foods they once enjoyed in order to eat the “right” foods
- Choosing to eat foods based solely on nutritional value, instead of eating what they’re craving
- Feeling guilt or self-loathing when they stray from their diet
- Feeling in total control when they eat the “correct” diet
I can definitely see myself, if not careful, displaying some of the other orthorexic tendencies, like feeling critical or looking down on certain foods, such as white bread, white pasta, and white rice, deeming them “valueless.” Does having one of the characteristics mean I have orthorexia?
No, of course not.
But I do have to remind myself that just because it’s white bread does not mean it’s worthless. After all, a food is so much more than its numerical nutritional value. The French have been eating white bread for years, the Japanese eat white rice, the Italians enjoy white pasta… and so on.
Sure, it’s great to eat a healthy diet 90% of the time, mostly choosing whole-grains over white ones. But honestly, a little nutritionally valueless piece of white-flour-white-sugar cake every now and then is not going to hurt you. It’s not something you should feel guilty about, but something to be enjoyed! And the enjoyment you can get out of eating it will boost your mental (and thus physical) health! My great-grandma ate processed foods, drank coffee, and—as an Italian—loved her daily servings of white pasta. But one thing my great-grandma did NOT invite into her life was stress. She lived well into her 90s.
There’s a lesson to be learned here: Stress and guilt are much more detrimental to one’s health than eating a few refined grains every now and then. In the end, “Orthorexia Nervosa” is just a label. Whether you fit that label or not, we can all probably benefit from the reminder that food is only one component to a healthy life. Eat what your body truly craves, exercise (but not excessively), feed your soul, and–above all–try to stress as little as possible. Such is the way to a healthy life. (Sounds like something Confucius would say!)
What are your thoughts on all of this?
This is amazing! Thank you:)!
just came acorss this, lined through one of your other posts.
This post is spot on!!
I had never heard of this disorder but i can see how it could easily take grip in today’s society. It’s a delicate balance to achieve! I felt i indulged too much over Christmas and now feel sluggish, but i’m careful not too feel guilty and depressed….after all i enjoyed the christmas indulgencies so it would be crazy to berate myself over it, however now in Janurary my mindset is naturally one of wantinng to get back on track.
I ran across your recipes the other day and they are AWESOME. I was looking you back up to print some of them out and “chocolate covered katie anorexic” popped up. There is some lady with a whole blog entry dedicated to bashing you, and accusing you of having an eating disorder. If I could have commented on her pathetic blog, I would have (and it would have been really mean, ans immature.. lol). There is nothing wrong with wanting to eat a healthy “less-guilt” versions of dessert & food. Hate to say this, but she is probably over weight and hates herself. only a miserable person would spend so much energy on hating someone who writes healthy recipes. jesus… anyway. i love your site and im so glad that I found it! Keep up the good work!!!
Thanks so so much, Kristy!
Yeah, I know the site you’re talking about. It’s a forum where they bash a lot of bloggers (not just me). It’s horrible and disgusting, but I just try to never read it and pretend it doesn’t exist!
Katie, some butthole claimed that you were anorexic because at one point you were starving yourself, and you like to run 8 mi a day, and you don’t stuff your face with high cal foods. But I believed you said only that you weren’t aware that you were starving yourself, you didn’t know that runners burn a lot of calories and therefore you didn’t eat as much as you should’ve, not because you thought you were fat.
You run becaus you like to run, not because you think you’re fat.
You’ve said that it’s hard for you to gain weight, and I wouldn’t believe for a second that you’re anorexic.
I know, so many have accused Katie and her readers of being too much of a pussy to eat real desserts. Sure a “real dessert” is okay every weekend or so, but for people who want to eat decadent yet nutritious snacks every day, like me, I would highly recommend trying some of the recipes on here. I love the fudge babies, they are so chewy and rich without a drop of corn syrup. My skeptical family members enjoyed them too! They’re like healthy fruit snacks. And your desserts can have as many calories as a pie laden with butter and sugar, but they’re much more nutritious. All I can say is, i’m not a pansy for eating larabars.
You are wise for a young woman. I am 62 and have been working my way to heathly eating for a couple of years. I must have reached my goal because my granddaughter told me this weekend that I have become the health nut she never wanted me to be (as I told her she couldn’t have some type of junk). I’ve not jumped off the bridge yet but I can see how it happens!
I totally agree! Also, thanks for the education. I didn’t know this disorder existed and it’s important to not let myself go there (though I don’t think it will be a problem–I’m pretty good at eating what I like and not feeling bad about occasionally eating something I don’t think is ideal).
I recently found your blog Katie, and I must say I love it.
What’s more you’re a great face to put on veganism.
I can totally get on board with vegetarianism. I do still eat meat sometimes, but I always aspire eat vegetarian meals as often as I can. Veganism, however, I admit to a prejudice against. Not because of what’s it consists of, but rather the people who call themselves vegan because many people I’ve met were the holier-than-thou types.
So I sort of started feeling automatically defensive if someone told me they were vegan. I’ve even known people who were vegan in that they didn’t eat any animal products, but they called themselves just vegetarian instead and it somehow didn’t produce the same reaction.
I know it’s a prejudice I need to work on myself, and I will. But at the same time I appreciate you bringing up the point that feeling superior to someone based on diet is not necessarily a healthy way of thinking.
Hi, I found your blog mentioned on MyFitnessPal when I was looking for healthy guilt-free dessert recipes.
I can certainly tick off quite a few of those symptons. I’ve recently been obsessed with eating the “right” foods when my weight-loss based on calorie counting has stalled after 4 months. So I’ve been buying only organic, avoiding processed, deciphering ingredients lists etc etc. I thought maybe the quality of food was not clean enough since I was still eating cookies, biscuits, white pasta! (But the idea that clean eating will break my plateau came from the Bodyism Clean & Lean book that suggested this was the best way to get a flat tummy.)
Anyway I just wanted to thank you and say I’m glad I stumbled upon this article cos I may have been heading down that road, it has been a real eye opener for me!
Idk if anyone is still reading the comments on here, but I think that I have this eating disorder and/or anorexia… I know I need to seek help but I am having trouble making myself do so. I’ve lost a lot of weight and I barely ever eat foods without knowing the caloric content, and I track my food/calories online, and I’ve avoided having a meal over 300 calories for the past few weeks. I felt guilty eating a pretzel today. I think I’m unhealthy and I don’t know how to stop myself from hurting myself. If anyone has any tips that would be great. I know that this is seriously unhealthy and I need to tell someone but I don’t know how.
How are you doing Heather? I just read this post for the first time and noticed your comment. I think its great of you to put yourself out there, and I hope you are doing well! My thought is just to go see your regular doctor, who then refer you to a specialist or something. It is so important to take care of our bodies, and even more so to enjoy life!
Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. 1 Peter 5:7
A verse that encourages me 🙂
Katie, this is a wonderful post.
I know how it must feel to be orthorexic. Though, I never considered myself to have full-out orthorexia, I showed some orthorexic tendencies.
I would spend much time planning out what I would eat and when.
I would always self-loathe after eating too much food or something unhealthy
I would rather not eat than eat something unhealthyish
I would feel guilty if I didn’t feel i ate enough vegetables
I would devote numerous hours to finding out which foods/which diets are best.
I still exhibit some of these behaviors, but I think I’ve decreased my risk for orthorexia. I think my orthorexic habits were caused by that I would be exposed to so much information about which food to eat for optimum health. But now, I just feel bombarded with contradictory facts. Saturated fat is bad, saturated fat is good. Too many fruits are bad, eat more fruits.
It’s really ridiculous, and I think I just need to enjoy everything. But I think it’s most helpful to eat plenty of veggies. I’m glad though, because I can eat some ground meat without suffering a fit of depression afterwards.
Hi, Katie!
As I was browsing your blog I came upon this older post, and even though it’s old, I just had to comment and tell you how much I appreciate it! Food is one of my greatest comforts. I love eating it, I love cooking about it, I love reading about it. (There’s this great book called “The Art of Eating” by M. F. K. Fisher: 784 pages all about food. It’s fantastic 🙂 ) However, food has also caused me a lot of stress in the past. I always feel like I could be eating healthier (although I know I eat a very nutrient-rich diet) and I used to always feel “guilty” when I strayed off of my typical eating pattern. It got to a point where I would get anxiety if I ate something different than what I had planned, or if I ate a little bit more than I should. I was miserable! I’m learning to listen to my body more. Whenever I’m craving something, I think about why I’m craving it, evaluate it, and if I still really want it, then I have it. No guilt. Thank you so much for your honest post!