Starling Fitness: Daily writings on Fitness, Diet, and Health

While I was watching yesterday’s Michael Pollan video, he mentioned a new eating disorder, Orthorexia. It was a term created by Steven Bratman, author of the book Health Food Junkies: Orthorexia Nervosa. Here is more information on it:

• Orthorexia nervosa – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Steven Bratman coined the term in 1997 from the Greek orthos, “correct or right”, and orexis for “appetite”. Literally “correct appetite”, the word is modeled on anorexia, “without appetite”, as used in definition of the condition anorexia nervosa. Bratman describes orthorexia as an unhealthy obsession (as in obsessive-compulsive disorder) with what the sufferer considers to be healthy eating. The subject may avoid certain foods, such as those containing fats, preservatives, or animal products, and suffer malnutrition. Bratman asserts that “emaciation is common among followers of health food diets.”

Michael Pollan described the perfect way of looking at unhealthy food when you are faced with it. Throughout history, cultures have had “banquet food,” which is food that is served only for special occasions. He said that it’s alright to eat banquet food as long as we don’t celebrate every day. Our food culture now has made all of our special occasion food available EVERY day. Eat healthy every day and save the banquet food for the banquets.