Fixation with healthy eating can be sign of serious
psychological disorder
Orthorexia nervosa sufferers like to focus on
'righteous' eating and have rigid rules about avoiding certain
foods. Photograph: Getty
Eating disorder charities are reporting a rise in the number of
people suffering from a serious psychological condition
characterised by an obsession with healthy eating.
The condition, orthorexia nervosa, affects equal numbers of men and
women, but sufferers tend to be aged over 30, middle-class and
well-educated.
The condition was named by a Californian doctor, Steven Bratman, in
1997, and is described as a "fixation on righteous eating". Until a
few years ago, there were so few sufferers that doctors usually
included them under the catch-all label of "Ednos" – eating
disorders not otherwise recognised. Now, experts say, orthorexics
take up such a significant proportion of the Ednos group that they
should be treated separately.
"I am definitely seeing significantly more orthorexics than just a
few years ago," said Ursula Philpot, chair of the British Dietetic
Association's mental
health group. "Other eating disorders focus on quantity of
food but orthorexics can be overweight or look normal. They are
solely concerned with the quality of the food they put in their
bodies, refining and restricting their diets according to their
personal understanding of which foods are truly 'pure'."
Orthorexics commonly have rigid rules around eating. Refusing to
touch sugar, salt, caffeine, alcohol, wheat, gluten, yeast, soya,
corn and dairy foods is just the start of their diet restrictions.
Any foods that have come into contact with pesticides, herbicides
or contain artificial additives are also out.
The obsession about which foods are "good" and which are "bad"
means orthorexics can end up malnourished. Their dietary
restrictions commonly cause sufferers to feel proud of their
"virtuous" behaviour even if it means that eating becomes so
stressful their personal relationships can come under pressure and
they become socially isolated.
"The issues underlying orthorexia are often the same as anorexia
and the two conditions can overlap but orthorexia is very
definitely a distinct disorder," said Philpot. "Those most
susceptible are middle-class, well-educated people who read about
food scares in the papers, research them on the internet, and have
the time and money to source what they believe to be purer
alternatives."
Deanne Jade, founder of the National Centre for Eating Disorders,
said: "There is a fine line between people who think they are
taking care of themselves by manipulating their diet and those who
have orthorexia. I see people around me who have no idea they have
this disorder. I see it in my practice and I see it among my
friends and colleagues."
Jade believes the condition is on the increase because "modern
society has lost its way with food". She said: "It's everywhere,
from the people who think it's normal if their friends stop eating
entire food groups, to the trainers in the gym who [promote]
certain foods to enhance performance, to the proliferation of
nutritionists, dieticians and naturopaths [who believe in curing
problems through entirely natural methods such as sunlight and
massage].
"And just look in the bookshops – all the diets that advise eating
according to your blood type or metabolic rate. This is all grist
for the mill to those looking for proof to confirm or encourage
their anxieties around food."