After more thought and discussion, I realize that pronouncing dieting as the most important risk factor for a child to develop an eating disorder is both confusing and terrifying. To imagine that something so ubiquitous and considered fairly harmless could trigger an eating disorder can be quite alarming for parents. I thought it was worth writing more on the topic.
Dieting is basically a self-imposed type of starvation. Originally, starvation started from a person's inability to find food, likely famine. Now starvation is often a choice; however, the body can't distinguish between dieting and famine so the lack of food triggers an innate biological reaction to survive lean times.
The initial reaction is universal and includes slowed metabolism, conscious focus on finding food and energy conservation. However, the long term effect of starvation is dependent on one's genetic predetermined response.
A small percentage of people are programmed to respond to starvation in a way that can precipitate an eating disorder. They can thrive on restricted food intake for long stretches, a boon for the species in the distant past but a clear hindrance in today's world. The eating disorder symptoms begin as an adaptation to a harsh environment, but, over time, the survival instinct goes awry and hijacks a person's life. Eventually, the obsessive thoughts about food combined with constant starvation become a way of life.
The idea that such a basic mechanism of our body, namely hunger and fullness, can go so wrong is terrifying. Parents spend years feeding their children, assuring them their basic needs to live in the world. It doesn't seem possible that all that work can disappear suddenly and turn into a horrible illness.
What's more confusing is that a diet, something so banal and innocuous, can be the catalyst. Most people take for granted that dieting or cutting back certain foods on and off throughout the year is a staple of modern life, a natural response to our world of plenty. For better or for worse, focusing on weight has become a right of passage into adulthood. No one expects dieting to last but instead comes and goes over the years. Having a scale in the bathroom is like having your toothbrush there. This is just part of normal adulthood, right?
The juxtaposition between the universality of dieting and the rise in eating disorders makes it clear that we are all ignoring an enormous risk. Adolescents are ripe for new experiences and change. The draw of a diet to transform their lives and help them create a new identity is very strong. The positive feedback from weight loss is addictive to vulnerable children. But if this step is so easy to make without any supervision, then all children seem to be exposed to the risk of an eating disorder.
Food restriction triggers a body's adaptation to lean times. There is no way to know how a child will react to the change. A teenager's first diet can be the start of a long and harrowing illness. The answer to this problem is education: parents, adults and schools can counter the power of dieting by making clear the risks. I'll elaborate in the next post.
No comments:
Post a Comment