Food and Weight Preoccupation

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celebrating our natural sizesThoughts, feelings and behaviours related to managing food and weight can begin to interfere with our everyday activities. When we focus too much attention on our bodies and our eating, these preoccupations can quickly lead to missed opportunities in other parts of our lives. Our personal, school or professional lives, not to mention our overall well-being, can be drastically affected. Food and weight preoccupation can also lead to severe physical and emotional problems.

Take a few minutes right now to read about the myths of dieting, how these issues affect males and females, cross ethnic, racial and economic lines, and much more.


How Does Someone Develop An Eating Disorder?

There are many societal, familial and individual factors that can influence the development of an eating disorder. Individuals who are struggling with their identity and self-image can be at risk, as well as those who have experienced a traumatic event. Eating disorders can also be a product of how one has been raised and taught to behave. Usually, an eating disorder signals that the person has deep emotional difficulties that they are unable to face or resolve.

What's It Like to Have an Eating Disorder?

People with eating disorders often describe a feeling of powerlessness. By manipulating their eating, they then blunt their emotions or get a false sense of control in their lives. In this way, an eating disorder develops out of a method of coping with the world. This coping, however, is merely a mask, as it does not solve the life problems that the person is experiencing.

How Do I Know If I Have An Eating Disorder?

If the way you eat and think about food interferes with your life and keeps you from enjoying life and moving forward, then that is disordered eating. Take it seriously and talk to someone who can help. You don't need to wait for a diagnosis by a doctor.

> Take the Eating Disorder Self-Check


Clinical Eating Disorders

What exactly are clinical eating disorders? Clinical eating disorders include:

Anorexia nervosa - When you lose a lot of weight because you're hardly eating anything, and might over-exercise. You probably can't or don't admit how underweight you are. You may not initially look very thin, but may be far too thin to support your health. You can be so thin that every bone in your body shows, but still feel "fat". When you feel fat it makes it hard to ask for help or hear advice from others because, to you, "fat" has come to mean "being bad". You could also know that you are much too thin but don't make changes because you're so afraid of food and gaining weight. To you, this would represent losing control over yourself.

Bulimia nervosa - When you binge and purge. You eat out of control and then try to get rid of the calories. You fast, make yourself vomit, abuse laxatives, or exercise too much. These ways of purging harm your body and don't help you accomplish what you want. Your weight may go up and down a lot.

Binge-eating disorder (BED) - When you eat so much you're uncomfortable, eat to comfort yourself, eat in secret, or keep eating as part of a meal or between meals. You feel a lot of shame or guilt about your eating. Binge eating is also called compulsive eating. It is not the same as bulimia because you do not usually try to get rid of the food you've eaten.

Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (ED-NOS) - Individuals who experience a mix of anorexia, and/or bulimia, and/or binge-eating symptoms, but who don't fall neatly into one of the medical categories, are said to have an Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (ED-NOS). These individuals should also receive the help and resources provided to individuals who have a "neat" clinical diagnosis.

For additional information, see Definitions.

Please keep in mind...
Any food and weight issues that limit your ability to live a full and pleasurable life are of concern. It doesn't matter if you don't clearly fit one of the clinical categories above - you still can and should seek help.

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Frequently Asked Questions

The following are frequently asked questions relating to eating disorders, dieting and weight issues. You may find answers to some of your own or similar questions below:


Q. I'm always going on a diet but can't keep the weight off. What's the best way to lose weight?

A. Diets always work, for a little while. If we eat less and stop eating certain foods we will lose weight. But the weight we lose is mainly water or lean tissue, not just fat. Research consistently shows that only about five percent of us will keep off the lost weight.

Our weight and our body shape and size depend on our genes, our body's metabolism, and the way we live. If we live a generally healthy lifestyle, our body stays within a stable weight range. This is called our "set point", and it is the weight range at which we are healthiest.

Our set point can be changed if we constantly lose and gain weight. If this happens, our bodies could raise their normal set point weights and slow our metabolism to keep it there. This is because our body is trying to protect itself. It doesn't know the difference between a famine and a diet.

Diets set us up to fail. This "failure" makes us feel guilty and adds to bad feelings we may already have, like low self-esteem, or dislike of our bodies. We are surrounded by messages that anyone can lose weight as long as we have the right attitude and will power.

This makes it hard to remember just how unhelpful diets really are. Diets are difficult to follow. They restrict what we need or enjoy. So, we start to crave or obsess about the foods we're trying to avoid.

At this point we tend to 'break' our diet. And then we feel we have failed rather than recognizing that it is the diet that has failed.

We diet for many different reasons. We may think that being thinner will make us happier. Diets or some other strict routine can also make us feel like we're accomplishing something. By sticking to the rules we are rewarded, at first, by losing weight and by people complimenting us. But, this won't last and nothing else really changes.

So ask, "Why do I want to lose weight?" Are your hopes for a smaller body realistic? How would your life change?

There are realistic ways to get to a healthy weight:

If you do these things you are likely to find that, after a while, your body will settle at its natural "set weight". Feelings of frustration, tiredness, mood swings and binge eating that you might have experienced while on a diet will lessen, and may go away completely.

Links on nutrition and healthy eating:

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Q. What's wrong with dieting?

A. A diet means we eat less to lose weight. It can make both our body and mind hungry. When we go on a diet we often:

The first problem is that when we think about food and weight all the time, we don't deal with the bigger issues we face, like feeling bad about ourselves, or feeling unhappy, or tackling some problem that we have.

A second problem is that a diet can be the first step in developing an eating disorder. By dieting we support the myth that we are only good, attractive and valuable if we look a certain way. We ignore the research, which shows that healthy, happy and successful people come in all shapes and sizes.

We might think that we can change our body with a diet. But research shows that:

Diets don't work because our size and shape are largely decided by our genes. Yet, when our diet doesn't work we think it is our fault and that we have failed. This makes us feel even worse about ourselves.

Our body wants to stay at its natural, healthy weight. If we try to go below our natural weight by dieting, our body then starts to burn calories more slowly. We could, therefore, stop losing weight or gain more when we diet. When we stop a diet our body may put on fat to make up for the weight we lost. If we stop and start a diet several times, our body may gain more weight than we lost. This happens because our body doesn't know whether we are dieting or in the middle of a famine, so it tries to protect us.

Links on nutrition and healthy eating:

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Q. Can I be addicted to food?

A. "Bingeing" is a word used to describe eating food uncontrollably. Some people believe they binge because they are addicted to food. Others believe they binge because they are "emotional" eaters. In other words, they eat because the ritual of eating is comforting or they want the numbness that comes with being too full.

Typically, however, it is starvation or deprivation that causes people to binge. If we are already nutritionally deprived, or eat to comfort ourselves, something as simple as a bad mood or stress can trigger a binge.

In other words, food isn't addictive.

However, disordered eating can become a habit. When we begin to relate to food and eating in particular ways, these habits can be hard to change. So, it is the process (behaviour), not the substance (food) that becomes "addictive". Our behaviours meet a need. We may lose control of our eating because we are physically or emotionally deprived, not because we are addicted to food. Once we begin eating in a normal, healthy way again, we won't have the same desire to eat as much high-calorie, high-carbohydrate food, or foods we think are "bad".

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Q. I feel fat and unhappy. What can I do?

A. A lot of people feel this way, especially women. It doesn't matter if we are at a healthy weight or not, we still feel this way. In Western culture, we are taught that fat is bad and that being fat is a sign of poor character. We are expected to feel shame and unhappiness about being fat. As a result, many people who are unhappy about other things - but who don't deal with them - begin to feel bad about themselves more generally, and then they "feel fat".

So, what can you do?

Try to separate what you believe about being fat and other things happening in your life.

Think of it. When do you "feel fat"? Does this feeling come and go or is it always there? Do you feel bad about yourself when certain things happen or when you are around certain people?

Other people, television and the media more generally tell us what the "perfect" body looks like. They tell us we really need to look that way in order to be happy and successful. Yet the only way in which they are able to portray the ideal body without a blemish is by computer-modifying images or air-brushing out all "imperfections"!

The truth is that there is no one perfect body for everyone. We come in all shapes and sizes. Our weight, shape and size - like our height - are determined by a mix of genetics, metabolism and lifestyle. People are naturally thin, average or fat, and everything in between.

Because we are healthiest at our natural weight, we will also tend to be at our most vibrant, energetic and attractive.

"Feeling fat" is really saying, "I don't like myself." After all, "fat" is not a feeling. If you are able to let go of these ideas about your body, you will be able treat yourself better and value your strengths. Learn to love and treasure your body. because it is your body.

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Q. Can men and boys develop eating disorders?

A. Yes. Men and boys can have unhealthy eating patterns and eating disorders. An eating disorder is the same illness whether it shows up in a man or woman, although many more women than men have eating disorders. It is estimated that there is one man for every 20 women with anorexia. The estimate is that there is one man for every 10 women with bulimia.

Research has shown that men who endure social pressure in relation to their personal identity or bodies, such as athletes, men in the entertainment and vanity industries, and gay or trans-gendered men, are more vulnerable to the development of disordered eating. Boys and men who over-exercise or diet are also at increased risk for an eating disorder.

Boys and men have many of the same problems as girls and women:

A lot of people think that only women and girls have eating disorders, so boys and men could be misdiagnosed or might not want come forward for help. In addition, most support groups and treatment programs are targeted at women and are accessed almost exclusively by women. Males may be uncomfortable being included in such groups. However, treatment providers are increasingly finding ways to ensure that men and boys feel welcome in mixed groups, and also provide programs just for men.

The lower number of men with eating disorders is a good reason to examine what helps them avoid developing eating disorders. Understanding what helps males avoid eating disorders can help keep their numbers low as well as help to prevent eating disorders in women.

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Q. I am a student doing a school project on eating disorders. Do you have any suggestions?

A. If you already know what you want to write about, then browse through NEDIC's website. You can use any of the information on this website for free.

If you are not sure about your project focus, here are some ideas for a project more creative than one that simply looks at statistics and the common signs of an eating disorder:

NEDIC also has printed materials available for a nominal fee. You will find a complete list of our resources, and information on how to order them in our Online Store.

Good luck in your work and remember to acknowledge your sources!

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Ideas for Yourself

Encourage positive body image and healthy attitudes towards food in yourself and those around you. This is part of a healthy lifestyle, which includes working towards physical, emotional, spiritual and mental well-being.

Criticize the culture that promotes unhealthy body image, not your self.

Look at how encouraging people to dislike their bodies helps to sell products. Even young children can understand this. Encourage children to question, evaluate and respond to the messages that promote unhealthy body image and low self-esteem.

Do not encourage or laugh at jokes that make fun of a person's size or body.

Find a direct and gentle way to say that a person's worth and morality are not related to how they look.

Avoid labelling food "bad," "sinful," or "junk food."

Labels like this can make you feel guilty or ashamed for eating "bad food". If we think this way, we can restrict, and then binge, on certain foods. Remember that a healthy diet includes both regularly eating nutritious food and occasionally eating less nutritious, high calorie food. Use different labels for food like "sometimes food" and "everyday food".

Get rid of your diet!

Fight against the main cause of eating disorders - dieting. All you need is a trash can. Put one in your office, school or home. Get rid of all those negative products in your life. Fill it with dieting how-to guides, calorie counters, bathroom scales, diet pills, laxatives and other diet products. Be real. Free your body and your mind. Spend your money and your passion on something that matters.

Get rid of your scale!

Numbers can be deceiving. Listen to your body. Let it tell you how healthy you are. Remember that your weight is not a measurement of your health or self-worth. Make health and vitality your goal, not a specific weight. Read about DIETING FACTS & FICTION and how diets can be harmful to your emotional and physical health.

Tell the media what you think: they do listen.

Write a letter to the editor of a newspaper, call a TV station, radio station or newspaper. Let them know what you think of their advertisements, articles, stories, etc. Organize a shredding table at a local community centre and invite the public to bring and shred their most despised adverts and articles. Provide a paper shredder or scissors and a wastepaper basket. Invite the media. Work within your community to gather petitions through schools, community health centres and youth organizations. Help raise awareness of harmful images and messages by contacting local media activism organizations, such as Adbusters. Send copies of the petitions to the offending company and to your provincial or federal standards association. The Advertising Standards Canada is one such association responsible for all print and television advertisements in Canada. Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) also deals with any radio, televised or Internet complaints.

Tell advertisers how much you appreciate positive advertisements. This increases the likelihood of them using more inclusive and real images.

For examples of positive examples, visit the About Face website at http://www.about-face.org.

Celebrate Eating Disorder Awareness Week (EDAW) and International No Diet Day in your community.

For ideas and information see our Events.

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