TW: Eating Disorders, Mental Health
The preoccupation with food is nothing new to contemporary society. Everywhere we turn there are advertisements for fast food, restaurants and the newest flavour that ‘you’ve got to try’. However, at the same time we are fed advertisements for new diets and gym memberships. Whilst many people can go about their day to day life practically unphased by these contrasting outputs, ‘up to half of the population show signs of problematic relationships with food and exercise’ (Gottlieb, 2014). ‘Disordered eating is used to describe a range of irregular eating behaviours that may or may not warrant a diagnosis of a specific eating disorder' (Anderson, 2018).
The obsession with calories, food restriction, and intense exercising are just some symptoms of disordered eating. It can be argued that disordered eating isn’t often talked about, not to be confused with eating disorders. ‘The most significant difference between an eating disorder and disordered eating is whether or not a person's symptoms and experiences align with the criteria defined by the American Psychiatric Association. The term "disordered eating" is a descriptive phrase, not a diagnosis. Thus, while many people who have disordered eating patterns may fit the criteria for EDNOS, it also is possible to have disordered eating patterns that do not fit within the current confines of an eating disorder diagnosis’ (Anderson, 2018).
As a result of these issues not being openly talked about, and somewhat presented as a cultural norms, many people may have a toxic relationship with food of which they are unaware of. We’re often led by society to believe that our self-worth is based upon body image (another sign of an unhealthy relationship with food). Accumulated together, these behaviours can be detrimental to mental health, ultimately causing upset, guilt, low self-esteem and feelings of unworthiness.
Who it effects and why it’s so common?
In England, up to 6.4% of adults display signs of an eating disorder (Statistics for Journalists, n.d.)(as determined by the DSM-V), however many people exhibit similar behaviours that are commonly associated with eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder. Many of these behaviours can go unnoticed due to the fact that most people remain within a healthy weight limit and tend to exhibit behaviours such as food restriction or purging less often than required by the DSM-V. As long as your weight and height remain at a complimentary level, medically there is nothing to necessarily worry about, as long as exercise is added into the mix. However, this doesn’t mean this attitude is sustainable or alright. Behaviours such as binging or purging, restriction and intense calorie counting (especially when you are a healthy weight) are just some signs of an unhealthy relationship. However, these behaviours are more common that you might think.
Disordered eating can affect anyone, but the behaviours previously mentioned are typically more likely to be shown by women and girls, whilst extreme exercise is a more common male behaviour (Lewinsohn, Seeley, Moerk, & Striegel-Moore, 2002). Sadly, the reason why these behaviours have become so common is due to social pressure and our increasing accessibility to media.
Our society and the media thrive upon the image of thinness and being ‘small’ (Cowden, 2019). From a young age, we are presented with images of small women and girls in the media and ultimately fed the idea that being thin equates to being desirable and attractive, whilst weight loss and fitness ads surround us. Due to us being at an impressionable age, we essentially get manipulated into believing that, that is the only acceptable body type, whereas the reality of it is, we are all different sizes.
Have you ever heard of the concept that CARBS = BAD? Being constantly surrounded by this external information can lead us to internalise thin ideals as a cultural norm, and create the view that self-worth is determined by body size/image. Even without intention, this can lead us to compare ourselves with the unrealistic images we see online. Overtime, this can alter how we view ourselves, and lead to a distorted perception of how we should look. Over a third of adults in the UK have felt anxious or depressed due to their body image,whilst one in five have said that social media has had a negative effect of how they perceive their body (Body Image: How we Think and Feel about Our Bodies, 2019).
A combination of social pressures with individualistic traits such as perfectionism promote disordered eating behaviours. It is often people that are very critical of themselves that are likely to develop eating problems (Eating problems, 2017). It’s impossible to completely stop comparing ourselves with others, its natural - but when we constantly compare ourselves with unrealistic standards of beauty, maladaptive thought processes take hold of our everyday lives. When experiencing negative thoughts about the way we look, the easiest perceived way for us to make a change is to change what we put into our bodies, and this is when we’re susceptible to disordered eating behaviours.
Recognising the signs
It’s often easy not to recognise the signs of eating problems when they don’t take the shape of usual symptoms that we recognise. Purging can often be as simple as an intense few days of exercise, or hardly eating anything the day after you think you’ve ate food that you perceive as bad (e.g. carbs or chocolate). You may feel shame if you eat between meals or have a few more fatty foods than you think you should have, but this is just your body telling you that you need the energy (and you deserve a treat).
Repeatedly skipping meals is another sign that you’re ignoring your body’s needs and developing an unhealthy relationship with food. Just because you may not be underweight doesn’t mean that the signs aren’t there. Acknowledge how food makes you feel, and if you often find yourself cutting out certain foods or frequently saying ‘no thank you’ to food that you think you’re not allowed, when you really want to say ‘yes please’, there may be an issue. Restrictive intake/dieting such as this can actually lead to binging (Neumark-Sztainer, Wall, Haines, Story, & Eisenberg, 2007), and so the cycle of disordered eating continues.
Thoughts, feelings and how to regain control
When experiencing a mindset of disordered eating, it’s common to feel worthless, not good enough, have a low self-esteem and compare yourself to others. Quite often you might want to shut yourself away from the world or hide parts of your body that you feel unhappy with. You may ignore signs of your body showing hunger, overeat or binge when you feel down in an attempt to make you feel better (increase serotonin) or avoid social interactions which may put you in a situation where you’ll have to deal with foods.
If you feel as though you may have an unhealthy relationship with food, the first thing you can do is open up and talk to people! Many people do not even realise they have an eating problem until they talk to others. This is especially difficult when you are within a healthy weight, and people do not realise you may be suffering. Disordered eating is linked very closely to body perception, therefore a good first step is to focus on how you perceive yourself. Evaluate the accounts you follow on social media and be aware of how they make you feel about yourself; if they present an idealised image that makes you question your own appearance, then this is possibly having a negative effect on your mental health. Focus on improving the way you perceive yourself and body image. Tell yourself an aspect that you like about yourself and aim to catch yourself in any negative thought processes about yourself. Improve your social media feed by following body positivity accounts and view things that bring you happiness; this will help to reduce comparisons with others than may set you in a negative mindset.
If you think you may be experiencing an unhealthy relationship with food and struggle with negative feelings brought about by this, the best thing you can do is talk to others. Websites such as mind.org and beateatingdisorders.org provide great information and support if you feel you may be struggling.
---- Becca Smith, Guest Blogger from Mind Aware
Works Cited
Anderson, M. (2018, October 26). What is Disordered Eating. Retrieved from Eat Right: https://www.eatright.org/health/diseases-and-conditions/eating-disorders/what-is-disordered-eating
Body Image: How we Think and Feel about Our Bodies. (2019, May 13). Retrieved from Mental Health Foundation: https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/publications/body-image-report
Cowden, S. (2019, August 27). The Media's Influence on Eating Disorders. Retrieved from Very Well Mind: https://www.verywellmind.com/media-influence-on-disordered-eating-1138266
Eating problems. (2017, June). Retrieved from Mind: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/eating-problems/about-eating-problems/
Gottlieb, C. (2014, Feburary 24). Disordered Eating or Eating Disorder: What’s the Difference? Retrieved from Psychology Today: https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/contemporary-psychoanalysis-in-action/201402/disordered-eating-or-eating-disorder-what-s-the
Lewinsohn, P., Seeley, J., Moerk, K., & Striegel-Moore, R. (2002). Gender Differences in Eating Disorder Symptoms in Young Adults. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 426-40.
Neumark-Sztainer, D., Wall, M., Haines, J., Story, M., & Eisenberg, M. (2007). Why Does Dieting Predict Weight Gain in Adolescents? Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 448-55.
Statistics for Journalists. (n.d.). Retrieved from Beat Eating Disorders: https://www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk/media-centre/eating-disorder-statistics
