Orthorexia is obsessed with he althy eating. An orthorectic looks at food almost under a magnifying glass. He supplies himself almost exclusively from organic farms and he alth food stores. The life of a person suffering from orthorexia revolves almost exclusively around eating.
Orthorexiawas first described 10 years ago by Steven Bratman in the book "In the talonshe althy food ". The author experienced it himself. As a child, he was allergic. The radical anti-allergic diet made him more and more afraid of food. He systematically removed more and more products from his menu that seemed to him harmful or even toxic. He devoted most of his time to preparing meals and planned the menu even several days in advance. After some time, he noticed thatfoodfilled up with virtually all of his thoughts.
Victims of orthorexia are usually women
Ortoreksja is a pathological obsession with he althy eating. Women are most often its victims. It concerns rich societies, it does not happen in regions where there is hunger. Orthorectic life begins to revolve around food, all other matters lose their importance. Controlling his food compensates him for failures in other areas of his life. The awareness that he can fully control this sphere of life begins to give him more and more satisfaction. He imposes a strict dietary regime on himself, removing more and more products from his diet.
According to an expertBarbara Bartel, psychologist, psychotherapistOrthorexics are perfectionists. They focus too much on themselves. They make too much of themselves. They run away from the mediocrity of life, and at the same time cannot enjoy small pleasures. They have rules that they stick to rigidly. They analyze their mistakes, and when things go wrong, they have tremendous remorse. By obsessively controlling what and how they eat, they fill the void in life, they try to forget about everyday troubles.
Orthorexia, like other eating disorders, is a disease of the soul and the help of a specialist is highly recommended. Since this disease is in the head, psychotherapy (both individual and group) is often the only solution. A rational diet, prepared by a doctor or dietitian, is of coursebase.
The fine line between he althy eating and obsession with it
Orthorexics believe that if they follow a strict diet, they will not experience diseases that plague modern societies. They think they are better than people who pay less attention to what they eat. They feel that they are doing something important. They often try to convince the environment of their methods. When misunderstood, they break off contacts with family and friends. They drive themselves into sickness and even madness. Eating allowed products and avoiding "harmful" ones becomes their philosophy.
A person suffering from orthorexia eliminates new products from the diet
As for a person suffering from anorexia, the most important thing is the amount of food (or more precisely, the lack of it), for an orthorexic, its quality, the way it is prepared and consumed. First, he removes from his menu a few products that he considers unhe althy, e.g. yellow cheese because it is too fat, cooked carrots because it has a high glycemic index, honey because it causes allergies, and beef because it may contain dangerous prions. With time, it begins to eliminate other products, e.g. fruit yoghurt, because it contains dyes, watermelons, because it is just fresh water, fish because they have heavy metals in them, and sugar because it is simply white death. After all, he leaves behind only a few of the foods he considers the he althiest, such as birch sap, wholemeal pasta and spelled bran. Each bite is chewed many times. Ultimately, he can say that it is he althy to only drink water, of course specially selected. An orthorectic looks at food almost under a magnifying glass. Super- or hypermarkets are not for him. He supplies himself almost exclusively from organic farms and he alth food stores. With time, he even loses confidence in these places and begins to bake multigrain bread himself (because he thinks it is the he althiest one) or to grow various sprouts. Even if he is tempted to shop in a "normal" store, he carefully studies the labels, especially information on preservatives and artificial colors. Each meal is prepared with pharmacy precision, according to tables with calories and information on the nutritional value of a given product. She passionately reads literature and magazines on diets and he althy eating. When he eats something he shouldn't be, he feels tremendously guilty. Only the strict regime that he imposes on himself for the next few days may slightly alleviate the effects of eating unhe althy food. For someone else, cauliflower soup or carrots with peas are low-calorie and he althy dishes. An orthorectic will not eat it if he does not know the origin of the vegetables, and he does not know what water they were cooked on.
Ortorexia disturbs contacts with people
The orthorectic avoidssocial contacts. He doesn't go to cafes, pubs, restaurants, or even to parties with friends or acquaintances. Constantly thinking about food and preparing meals takes so long that he has no time for other activities. If he decides to go out, it should be with his provisions. Strawberry cake with whipped cream is not a source of delight for his palate, but only a mixture of unhe althy ingredients. While the composition of the dish is very important, its taste is almost irrelevant. The choice between chocolate ice cream and wheat bran for the Orthorectic is obvious.
There is nothing unhe althy about wanting to eat he althy. The problem begins when we attach too much importance to the quality of food and think that the most he althy meals will make us better, solve life's problems. After some time, the body, deprived of many micronutrients and vitamins, rebels. Mental and physical condition deteriorates. Untreated orthorexia, like anorexia, can even lead to death. Therefore, it is worth considering the motto of Steven Bratman, who believes that "it's better to eat pizza with friends than munch on sprouts alone." It is advisable to follow the rules of he althy eating, but it is also worth remembering about the pleasure of savoring the delicacies.