Explore the link between social media and orthorexia with BALANCE, understanding the impact of digital platforms on healthy eating obsession and mental health.
“Having an eating disorder” can bring up ideas of many symptoms that seem to only fall into two categories of eating disorders: anorexia or bulimia. Due to this incomplete picture of these illnesses, other eating disorders, such as orthorexia, might go unnoticed, leaving many eating disorders inaccurately diagnosed or not diagnosed at all. It is important to bring awareness to eating disorders that can fly under the radar, such as orthorexia.
Returning to school after recovering from an eating disorder can be challenging. Potentially triggering situations like this one can be hard, especially after working to break disordered cycles and forge a new path in recovery.
Teachers provide generations of young people with the knowledge they will carry throughout their lifetime. They also hold a certain responsibility for the well-being of their students, which can be challenging. What can you do if you are a teacher or school staff member and you suspect that a student has an eating disorder?
The surge of enthusiasm for becoming "healthy" is a trend that resurfaces each summer. There's nothing inherently wrong with wanting to lead a healthier lifestyle, but problems arise when pursuing “health” becomes an obsession. Orthorexia nervosa is an eating disorder where individuals engage in "clean” or “health-focused” eating or movement, often resulting in disordered or restrictive behaviors and eating.
While eating disorders all share certain commonalities, it is essential to distinguish between each type of eating disorder to receive proper individualized care. Orthorexia has gained significant popularity over the past 10-20 years, and while it is not officially recognized as an eating disorder in the DSM-5, it is often confused with anorexia nervosa. Some aspects of these disorders overlap, but each presents differently, and it is crucial to distinguish between the two.
