Unhealthy obsession with healthy eating

Experts on health warn that excessive enthusiasm of the "proper nutrition" may be hiding a dangerous eating disorder known as "ortoreksiya".

Currently under ortoreksii understand "unhealthy obsession with healthy eating". According to the National Association of eating disorders, nervous orthorexia not yet distinguished as a separate disorder is included in the fifth edition of the "Handbook for diagnosis and statistics of mental disorders", but increasingly there is an opinion that needs to change.

It is believed that the term "ortoreksiya" coined by Steven Bratman (Steven Bratman) in 1996, when I was trying to convey to their patients, many of whom had a fixation on healthy eating that their food habits are not healthy. According to Bratman, he soon understood that this term covers a wider scope of problems and probably indicates some key characteristics that distinguish those problems with the food he encountered in their patients, the classic symptoms of anorexia and bulimia, which are usually observed.

 





 

According to some experts, the problem is that ortoreksiya similar to the normal diet of people who care about health. They study labels to check the sugar and salt, weigh portions, do not buy food treated, prefer fruits and vegetables, which are considered a healthier alternative. A fitness program that actively promote sports clubs and the Internet, definitely encourage such behavior, moreover, go even further. Men who pursue body models from the cover, pushing to count the macronutrients (proteins, fats and carbohydrates) in the diet to build muscle mass or lose weight, the same applies to women, which encourage "making the body", ready for the beach season.

Again, it may not be bad in itself, but the boundary beyond which such behavior becomes a disorder, it may be practically invisible, and clinical descriptions of the symptoms of such disorders as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, it is likely not attract the attention of doctors.

Dr. Thomas Dunne (Thomas Dunn), Professor of psychology at the University of Northern Colorado, said in an interview with the Guardian newspaper that orthorexia should make separate diagnosis, especially due to the fact that between anorexia and orthorexia there is one key difference: "People with anorexia restrict food, following the fashion of a diet based on healthy food to be skinny. People with orthorexia restricted diet, a diet based on healthy foods to be healthy."

Although all eating disorders seem to stem from feelings of inferiority, guilt, shame, and the need for more control, they can manifest themselves differently depending on the culture and the dominant trends. The members of the charity Beat, which deals with the problems of eating disorders, I believe that ortoreksiya may be closely related to the increasing desire for so-called physical perfection. "On the occurrence orthorexia can affect the growing attention to the musculature and body tone, which are considered more important than the size and body type, as well as a large number of relevant images in social networks and increase the number of products for people in "good shape," says Executive Director Lorna garner (Lorna Garner).

In the press a lot of fresh publications about people who think they ortoreksiya and ready to talk about how their healthy eating habits out of control, and as they were gradually excluded from the diet new products in the pursuit of health. It should be noted that not all practitioners recognize the need to allocate ortoreksii in self-diagnosis, but the medical community is unanimous that there is a need to review the principles of diagnosis of eating disorders to respond adequately to new trends.

Fortunately, orthorexia can be cured in the same way as other eating disorders: to help patients come to terms with the fact that their attitude to food is not healthy, and develop new habits associated with food, while trying to deal with deep emotions that can be the root cause of the disorder.

Regardless of whether there is a need to allocate orthorexia as self-diagnosis or not, attracting the attention of the public to this potential problem by assigning official status is justified, if it can help those affected by this problem, be aware of its existence and the need to solve it before the situation gets out of control. published

 

P. S. And remember, only by changing their consumption — together we change the world! ©

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Source: intueat.ru/journal/ortoreksiya-nezdorovoe-pristrastie-k-zdorovomu-pitaniyu/