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So-called "clean eating" is as hugely popular with MSers as it is with everyone else. But is it necessary, or even helpful? “We’re living in this era of viral misinformation, where it is difficult to discern the evidence base, and even fringe ideas can seem mainstream,” says a researcher in this Washington Post article.
There are so many MS diets, and other than modest drops in fatigue (due to weight loss?), none have been shown to meaningfully influence the disease—no change in relapses, lesions, or disability—in any clinical study. None. Yet elimination diets (dairy free, gluten free, grain free, meat free, salt free, processed-food free, etc.) are more popular than ever.
While not specific to MS, this article is a great read. And if you recognize yourself, getting out of the diet rabbit hole is far trickier than one might imagine. -D
There are so many MS diets, and other than modest drops in fatigue (due to weight loss?), none have been shown to meaningfully influence the disease—no change in relapses, lesions, or disability—in any clinical study. None. Yet elimination diets (dairy free, gluten free, grain free, meat free, salt free, processed-food free, etc.) are more popular than ever.
While not specific to MS, this article is a great read. And if you recognize yourself, getting out of the diet rabbit hole is far trickier than one might imagine. -D
Could social media and diet trends be contributing to a little-known eating disorder?
By Jenna Birch July 24
No one who ventures online can escape today’s incarnation of wellness culture. The Internet helps amplify every new diet and fitness trend — paleo, keto, detoxing, SoulCycle, infrared spas, celery juice — and so on. Social media is dominated by celebrities and other influencers sharing how they obtained their flawless (read: filtered and Photoshopped) bodies.
Some of the latest diet trends focusing on locally sourced, organic whole foods — which wear the halo of “clean eating” and attract approval in the form of Instagram likes — can seem all-consuming. It’s not surprising, then, that there is growing concern among dietitians about a little-known eating disorder called orthorexia nervosa. “I’ve heard from a lot of clinicians in the field who are seeing more of it,” said Claire Mysko, chief executive of the National Eating Disorders Association.
Mysko describes orthorexia — a term coined in 1998 and not yet an official diagnosis in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) — as “an eating disorder concerned with an obsession with health, wellness and clean eating.” It’s similar to anorexia nervosa, in which the obsession is weight loss. Like anorexia, orthorexia involves food and nutrient restriction; this can lead to lowered metabolism, lowered sex hormones and loss of menstruation, brittle hair and dry skin, bone loss, and cardiovascular issues.
FULL ARTICLE:
https://wapo.st/2JVPXt1
By Jenna Birch July 24
No one who ventures online can escape today’s incarnation of wellness culture. The Internet helps amplify every new diet and fitness trend — paleo, keto, detoxing, SoulCycle, infrared spas, celery juice — and so on. Social media is dominated by celebrities and other influencers sharing how they obtained their flawless (read: filtered and Photoshopped) bodies.
Some of the latest diet trends focusing on locally sourced, organic whole foods — which wear the halo of “clean eating” and attract approval in the form of Instagram likes — can seem all-consuming. It’s not surprising, then, that there is growing concern among dietitians about a little-known eating disorder called orthorexia nervosa. “I’ve heard from a lot of clinicians in the field who are seeing more of it,” said Claire Mysko, chief executive of the National Eating Disorders Association.
Mysko describes orthorexia — a term coined in 1998 and not yet an official diagnosis in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) — as “an eating disorder concerned with an obsession with health, wellness and clean eating.” It’s similar to anorexia nervosa, in which the obsession is weight loss. Like anorexia, orthorexia involves food and nutrient restriction; this can lead to lowered metabolism, lowered sex hormones and loss of menstruation, brittle hair and dry skin, bone loss, and cardiovascular issues.
FULL ARTICLE:
https://wapo.st/2JVPXt1
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