Dieting vs Eating Disorder
“A very fine line”
We live in a world led by an infinite number of social norms. Formal norms, are officially documented by governmental bodies and are there to help create an orderly and civilized community. Hence, they must be followed or otherwise a person who breaches them will be punished. On the contrary, informal norms are those which we learn and adopt by socially interacting, observing and mirroring behaviours and which help people know how to behave correctly in specific situations. In the context of eating, we follow social norms which shape our eating behaviours and food choices. Sometimes, in an attempt to conform to a set of (unrealistic) social expectations, e.g. standards of beauty.
Social media is flooded with diet-related and body-shaming messages directed to people, particularly women, aiming to persuade them to achieve the “idealized” body. As a consequence, this has led to many people developing an unhealthy or negative relationship with food. They have adopted disordered patterns of eating (e.g. restricting certain food groups) and dieting to achieve these expectations. Now, when that disordered behaviour becomes so entrenched and compulsive, a more serious problem may arise.
While the foundation of regular dieters focuses on weight and food, eating disorders (ED) go far beyond that. They are, first and foremost, mental health illnesses (NOT a lifestyle choice) which cause a significant disturbance in a person’s cognitions (way of thinking), emotions, and behaviours thereby portraying a psychological, physiological, and developmental dysfunction (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
The following are ED characteristics that differ from those of regular dieters:
Food rules of typical dieters are there for them to adhere to the diet plan whereas, in people with an ED, this rules are self-imposed and are founded based on self-worth, e.g. I can’t eat cake because I don’t deserve it or because if I do I won’t be good enough
Weight loss is perceived as progress in regular dieting whereas weight loss in an ED is a representation of their self-worth
Unlike regular dieters which openly talk about the new diet they’ve adopted, people with EDs will consistently deny they are restricting
Denying that they are hungry or craving certain foods they’ve labelled as “bad”
Adopting new and often extreme exercise regimes, e.g. in people with Bulimia or Anorexia binge/purge subtype, to compensate for the calories consumed during their binges
Eating significantly slower, e.g. tiny mouthfuls
Eating in isolation to prevent people from asking questions, from realizing they are not eating enough or because they feel embarrassed
Becoming more compulsive and rigid on what they eat
Becoming socially isolated and apathetic
I intentionally captioned this as “a very fine line”, to imply that although, dieting may begin as “an approach towards healthier eating”, it can also turn into a full-blown eating disorder very quickly. Please, If you are concerned or feel you or any of your relatives/friends may be at risk of developing an ED, do not think about it twice and seek professional help as soon as possible.
Bottom line: whereas for a regular dieter food is centred around an established meal plan or regime, for a person with an ED food is at the centre of every thought and decision they make, it is what ultimately defines who they are and their self-worth.