Fad or phobia? Food experts chew over eating obsession

PARIS — People, it seems, have never been so afraid of their food — and, say some experts, an obsession with healthy eating may paradoxically be endangering lives.

Frenchwoman Sabrina Debusquat, 29, recounts how, over 18 months, she became a vegetarian, then a vegan — eschewing eggs, dairy products and even honey — before becoming a “raw foodist” who avoided all cooked foods, and ultimately decided to eat just fruit.

It was only when her worried boyfriend found clumps of her hair in the bathroom sink and confronted her with the evidence that she realized that she was on a downward path.

“I thought I held the truth to food and health, which would allow me to live as long as possible,” said Debusquat.

“I wanted to get to some kind of pure state. In the end my body overruled my mind.”

For some specialists, the problem is a modern eating disorder called orthorexia nervosa.

Someone suffering from orthorexia is “imprisoned by a range of rules which they impose on themselves,” said Patrick Denoux, a professor in intercultural psychology at the University of Toulouse-Jean Jaures.

These self-enforced laws isolate the individual from social food gatherings and, in extreme cases, can also endanger health.

The term orthorexia nervosa was coined in the 1990s by Steven Bratman, a San Francisco-based physician.

But as is often the case in disorders that may have complex psychological causes,

I wanted to get to some kind of pure state. In the end my body overruled my mind.” Sabrina Debusquat, who became ill from “healthy” eating

there is a strong debate as to whether the condition exists.

The term is trending in Western societies, prompting some experts to wonder whether it is being fanned by “cyber-chondria” — self-diagnosis on the internet.

Alain Perroud, a psychiatrist who has worked in France and Switzerland over the course of a 30-year career, says orthorexia “is much closer to a phobia” than to a food disorder.

As with other phobias, the problem may be tackled by cognitive behavioral therapy — talking about incorrect or excessive beliefs, dealing with anxiety-provoking situations and using relaxation techniques and other methods to tackle anxiety, he said.

The disorder reflects a craving for control, suggested Denoux: Food is seen as a form of medicine to fix a Western lifestyle that may be seen as polluting or toxic.

“We are living through a time of change in our food culture, which has led us to fundamentally doubt what we are eating,” said Denoux.