Orthorexia – obsession with healthy eating that harms health

Most nutritionists, doctors, and health professionals will tell you that completely eliminating certain foods from your diet, except in cases of intolerance, can harm health, writes Independent.

And despite the recent observed shift away from so-called “clean eating,” many people still strive to consume gluten-free products, unrefined sugar, avoid meat, dairy products, and all processed foods, regardless of whether they are allergic to them.

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However, when such a healthy eating pattern turns into an obsession, we call it orthorexia (orthorexia nervosa), an eating disorder characterized by an excessive preoccupation with healthy eating and avoiding foods considered unhealthy.

Just as anorexia is the fear of gaining weight, orthorexia is the fear of eating foods that will not keep a person healthy.

It is good to promote healthy eating, but one should not overdo it. Healthy eating implies moderation in food, not obsession with it.

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Professor of psychology at the University of Toulouse, Patrick Denoux, says that an individual suffering from orthorexia is “bound by a series of rules imposed on themselves.”

In doing so, they often socially isolate themselves, skipping social events where they risk being tempted to eat, for example, fried potatoes.

Parisian nutritionist Sophie Ortega warns that “clean eating” affects the lack of vitamin B12 in the body, which is found in eggs, dairy products, meat, and fish.

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Orthorexia is not yet a disease recognized in medicine like anorexia or bulimia, reminds psychiatrist Alain Perroud, explaining that it is “more of a phobia” than an eating disorder. Like other types of phobias, it can be treated with cognitive-behavioral therapy.