Orthorexia is a form of disordered eating characterized by an obsession with “healthy” or “clean” eating, often causing anxiety and extreme rigidity around food choices.
Warning signs can include:
- Preoccupation with ingredient quality
- Avoiding entire food groups
- Fear of eating out
- Anxiety when deviating from strict eating patterns
Clean eating is often praised, which can mask orthorexia and lead to malnutrition and social isolation. That’s why it’s essential to know the warning signs and that recovery is possible.
Excerpt from Eating Recovery Center:
Health care professionals often endorse and even praise “clean eating” efforts. The response can be similar among friends and family. For that reason, orthorexia and similar forms of disordered eating often fly under the radar. So how can you tell the difference between mindful dietary changes and the development of disordered eating?
Social media posts and advertisements push the idea of “clean eating” to help readers reach “peak” health and fitness. Harmful messages like these have become so commonplace in our society that it can be hard to see when dietary changes have become overly rigid and harmful.
With so many different health claims and social media influencers posting about their own efforts to “be healthy,” it can be hard to see when an unhealthy obsession with food is developing — or to even know what “healthy” really means.