Orthorexia

Healthy eating is essential for good health, nutrition, and overall wellbeing. The World Health Organization (n.d) suggests that a healthy diet can act as a protective factor against many diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. However, what happens when this is taken too far? While a concern or curiosity of the nutritional content of one’s food is not a problem in and of itself, for some individuals in the pursuit of a healthy lifestyle find themselves obsessed and fixated on what they consume which can have adverse effects on one’s health and wellbeing. This is referred to as Orthorexia Nervosa. 

Orthorexia nervosa, while not currently recognized in the Diagnostic and Statistics Manual (DSM-5) is characterized by an obsession or fixation around healthy eating. This fixation centers on a rigid belief system about one’s diet that can involve emotional distress related to food choices that are deemed as unhealthy. Unlike other eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia that surround a fixation around the calories and quantity of food, orthorexia centers around the pursuit of clean and pure eating. 

So what are some signs, symptoms, and common behaviors of those with orthorexia nervosa? (Psychcom, n.d)

  • Compulsive checking of ingredient lists and nutritional labels

  • An increase in concern about the health of ingredients

  • Cutting out an increasing number of food groups (all sugar, all carbs, all dairy, all meat, all animal products)

  • An inability to eat anything but a narrow group of foods that are deemed ‘healthy’ or ‘pure’

  • Unusual interest in the health of what others are eating

  • Spending hours per day thinking about what food might be served at upcoming events

  • Showing high levels of distress when ‘safe’ or ‘healthy’ foods aren’t available

  • Obsessive following of food and ‘healthy lifestyle’ blogs on Twitter and Instagram

  • Body image concerns may or may not be present

The individual may also experience strong emotional reactions to food, such as: 

  • Feelings of satisfaction and happiness from clean, healthy, pure eating

  • Feelings of guilt when consuming foods that are not considered healthy and pure

  • Excessive time spent thinking about food and the consumption of food

  • Regular advanced meal planning, feelings of guilt and displeasure when meals are not planned in advance

  • Having critical, judgmental thoughts of others who do not follow healthy, pure eating plans

  • Avoidance of eating food away from home or not prepared in your home kitchen, because you will not be able to comply easily with your healthy eating plan

  • Avoiding food bought or prepared by others

  • Creating distance between friends and family who do not share the same beliefs you have about food

  • Depression 

  • Anxiety 

  • Mood swings

  • Feelings of shame

  • Self-loathing

  • Social isolation

Some treatment approaches to orthorexia include:

  1. Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT): CBT is helpful for individuals experiencing a variety of mental health diagnoses including eating disorders, aiming to restructure an individual’s current feelings, emotions, attitudes, and beliefs about food, thus helping to reduce negative thought patterns, behaviours, and rigidness around food (Shafran et al., 2016).

  2. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): ACT focuses on helping people with orthorexia nervosa understand their underlying desire to eat healthily as an appropriate feeling. They learn it is okay to eat healthily, but they may need to adopt new behaviors, so they don’t have compulsive thoughts and actions intruding on their daily activities to the point where their behavior impairs functioning or interferes with routines. ACT involves an acceptance of who we are and where we are in the moment. 

  3. Exposure Therapy: Exposure therapy is an effective approach for orthorexia nervosa aimed at exposing individuals to foods they’ve deemed as unhealthy. The goal of exposure is to help individuals understand that eating “unhealthy” foods will not result in negative consequences, helping to rewire negative beliefs.

Several of our therapists specialize in treating eating disorders such as our therapist, Radhika. We also have a 10 week eating disorder program designed to support clients through their recovery and remain committed to their care, with the additional support of Dr. Newry. Give us a call at (647)-267 9853 if you are interested in booking with us! 

References

Orthorexia nervosa: Signs, symptoms, and treatment - PSYCOM. (n.d.). https://www.psycom.net/eating-disorders/orthorexia 

Orthorexia. National Eating Disorders Association. (2019, December 13). https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/learn/by-eating-disorder/other/orthorexia 

Shafran, R., Coughtrey, A., & Kothari, R. (2016). New frontiers in the treatment of perfectionism. International Journal of Cognitive Therapy, 9(2), 156–170. https://doi.org/10.1521/ijct.2016.9.2.156


Vaughan Counselling and Psychotherapy