One of my friends has orthorexia. The undiagnosed kind, of course. And undiagnosed by me (i.e. not a doctor). Orthorexia is a relatively new term (circa 1996-97), and is the latest, trendiest eating disorder out there on the health and wellness spectrum. (But it’s important to note that it’s technically not a medical term.) Orthorexia Nervosa is essentially an obsession with healthy eating. How could an obsession with something as good-for-you as healthy eating ever be considered a problem or a disorder, you may ask? I’ll tell you.
My friend, who could be described as an orthorexic in major denial, lives on and runs an organic farm. She only eats organic foods, preferably local. (That’s cool; I do that, too, whenever I can.) But my friend gets fewer than 10% of any food she puts into her body (and the bodies of her family members, who go along with it) from a supermarket. (Whoa. Okay, I can’t compete with that one.) And my friend takes these health- and environmentally-conscious practices a few steps further: Essentially, she only eats foods that come from her farm or the organic farms of people she knows personally. (That’s nice; we like to meet the farmers at our local farmers’ market, too.) No wait, let me clarify: This means that my friend doesn’t eat any foods that come from farms that may well be certified organic, produce delicious produce or meats, and have an excellent and nationally-recognized reputation — unless she has actually visited the farm herself and has physically shaken the farmer’s hand. More »
