In recent years, healthy eating has experienced a great boom. This is especially positive, as obesity continues to be a public health problem of most concern to the global healthcare community, being the second leading cause of premature death after tobacco. From time to time, the World Health Organization (WHO) warns of the risks we are exposed to if we have a high body mass index; among them, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer. On the other hand, from social networks, countless ‘influencers’ act as speakers of healthy eating habits, as well as movements such as el veganism, the ‘body positive’ or homemade food.
Therefore, we can say that there is more awareness than ever of the importance of eating a healthy diet that focuses on natural foods, especially vegetables, as opposed to processed food and ‘fast food’. From this same newspaper we advocate for a way of life the pillars are healthy eating and regular physical activity. However, no excess is good, Even one who is born to follow the right path and have good habits.
The exact number of cases is not known, but it is known that it is an increasingly common problem and that it is increasing over the years.
In 2000, ‘Health Food Junkies’ was published, a book that caused a great deal of controversy, shedding light on a mental disorder that over time has become more acute among the population and that it does not yet have official recognition by the WHO as a disease. Its author, Steve Bratman, He coined the term orthorexia (From the Greek ‘ortho’, ‘just’ and ‘exia’, ‘hunger’) to refer to eating behavior that crystallizes into an obsession with healthy eating and leads the individual to situations of isolation social and extreme guilt for ingesting not entirely healthy products.
“Unlike anorexia and bulimia, which monitor the amount of food, orthorexia ‘monitors’ the quality. “ asserts Eva Pérez, President of the Professional Association of Dietitians-Nutritionists of La Rioja, in the Confidential. “Although it has not been recognized in manuals for diagnosing mental disorders, it is taken into account, as it is still a behavioral disorder in the face of eating.”
Sandra Toribio
Like any eating disorder, it can have serious physical and mental consequences for those who suffer from it, although it is true that there is an invisibility of the problem and ignorance on the part of the medical and psychological community. “The exact number of existing cases is not known“But it is known that it is an increasingly common problem and that it is increasing over the years”, warns Pérez. In this sense, food is still a central aspect in a person’s health and social life. therefore, the short – and long – term effects are similar to those that produce poor nutrition such as “Malnutrition, Anemia, or Hypervitaminosis.” On a psychological level, “these obsessive-compulsive disorders can lead us to suffer episodes of anxiety or depression, leading the patient to not want to leave home, reducing their social life.”
A difficult diagnosis
What is the profile of a person suffering from orthorexia? “They tend to have a very strict, controlling and self-critical personality to the point of excess, Even with obsessive-compulsive behaviors, “explains the president of the College of Dietitians.”Women and adolescents who practice sports such as bodybuilding or athletics they are the groups most vulnerable to being most sensitive to the value of food and its impact on personal image. “On the other hand,” it does not usually affect people from marginal backgrounds, as it tends to look for more expensive and harder-to-get food, hence it is an urgent disorder especially in developed countries. ”
The first thing to ask the subject to diagnose orthorexia is whether his eating behavior socially isolates him.
To all this is added the difficulty of finding a diagnosis, because as with other mental illnesses, the patient does not want to recognize or realize that a simple fondness for something as positive as healthy eating can end up becoming a obsession, and with it, affect your personal and social life. According to Bratman, and in the words of Eva Pérez, the first thing to ask the subject is whether his eating behavior socially isolates him. And then, to conclude that this is indeed orthorexia, ask these other questions: “¿Are you more concerned about the quality of food than the pleasure of eating it ?; As the quality of your food increases, does the quality of life decrease? Do you feel guilty if you skip your diet? “.
In terms of treatment, Pérez believes that it should not be very different from other eating disorders. “It has to be treated by a multidisciplinary team where psychiatric therapy is combined with pharmacological therapy, a psychological treatment and an intervention of the dietitian-nutritionist to incorporate into the diet the possible nutrients of those who do not have and readjust their diet, “he emphasizes.
Social media and orthorexia
We live in a social and historical context in which social media has a huge influence on young people and adolescents, as well as in the whole population in general. Of course, there are good and bad ones; and in this case, Healthy eating will always be within the good, as it is essential to enjoy good health in an age like the one we are in. However, if, as Pérez said, there is a predisposition on the person to be too controlling and perfectionist in everything related to the food they eat, there is a risk that they may develop orthorexia. In this sense, this problem can be aggravated if you only consume content from ‘influencers’ who are committed to healthy eating and a perfect body.
“Everything influences, it ‘s true that since social media and media convey a perfect picture of food, of what we have to eat, and that makes it influence other people, “Perez explains.” Today, the food supply is very wide, but at the same time the excess of information received is very high and is not always information contrasted by the right professionals. It should also be differentiated that it is not the same to bring a good diet to be obsessed with it or to think that the food industry is poisoning the population. “
Enrique Zamorano
In short, we must bet on a healthy diet, a fundamental pillar in a person’s health. But also do not fall into the unhealthy obsession and go to the other extreme, as mental illnesses associated with eating behaviors have a very serious impact on the lives of those who suffer from them. At the end and at the head, comer is a core activity in our culture, And there are many traumas generated by this vital activity but so imbued with ideologies, values and attitudes.
Therefore, before opting for radical measures or changes, the most appropriate thing to do is to follow a balanced diet that includes all types of food, if possible fresh and non-industrial, giving more space to fruits and vegetables, inexhaustible source of vitamins and minerals and free of unhealthy fats. But let that not become an obsession that prevents us either enjoy succulent dishes that we can share with the people we want.