Busting eating disorder myths (part dos)
This post is a follow-up to a previous post— so go check that one out if you haven’t already! In my previous post, I debunk 3 common myths about eating disorders. I unpack why eating disorders aren’t only about wanting to be skinny, how they affect diverse populations, and how they don’t have a “look.” I’m unpacking two more myths for you, so let’s get to it!
Myth #4
Eating disorders are a choice
Eating disorders are not a choice. Those who struggle with restrictive eating disorders are not merely vain, and those who struggle with binge eating do not lack ‘willpower’. Eating disorders are biopsychosocial illnesses, meaning that several genetic, biological, environmental, and social elements all play a part in their development and maintenance. They can be life-threatening mental illnesses and they have the second-highest mortality rate of all mental illness, surpassed only by the opioid epidemic. Every 62 minutes at least one person dies as a result of an eating disorder.
But wasn’t it a choice to restrict food in the first place? I hear that a lot. And a lack of education and awareness can often lead people to wonder this, and I understand that. So, let me explain. While some eating disorders may develop out a deliberate choice to improve health (losing weight/eating “healthier” foods/cutting out certain foods groups) for people predisposed to eating disorders, these seemingly harmless choices quickly become obsessive and spiral out of control. By the time someone’s behaviors have escalated to the point of an eating disorder, they no longer have many choices in their own actions. This is why it can be so harmful when friends and family members who do not understand the nature of the disease tell someone in the depths of anorexia to “just eat.” If it were so easy, they would.
There’s actually been a decent amount of research done implying that genetics plays an important role in eating disorders. Some researchers have found anorexia to be associated with genetic abnormalities related to chromosome 12, and other studies have posited that the chance of developing anorexia is 50-80% genetic.
Eating disorders are not a choice. Evelyn Tribole, creator of Intuitive Eating, says, “No one wakes up one day and says, ‘Hey, I’m going to have an eating disorder.’ It’s a slow descent into hell.” She is right, it is a slow descent. Recovery, however, is a choice. It’s a slow ascent into freedom and peace.
Myth #5
People binge eat because they lack willpower
False. Binge eating is biological—it’s our body’s way of telling us something important. Where there is binge eating there is most always restriction. When a person restricts their food intake and doesn’t get enough energy, the body does what it was biologically designed to do—it signals to the body that it is in danger and it goes to great lengths to keep it safe and alive. Binge eating is actually the body’s way of saying, “Hey, I need more!” So, what actually happens when the body isn’t getting enough food?
Let’s start with Leptin. Leptin is the fat storage, appetite and satiety hormone. Leptin and the hypothalamus, the part of the brain that controls appetite and food intake, communicate frequently. When food intake is being restricted, the hypothalamus tells Leptin to increase cravings for high-energy foods. The brain is just doing its thing to protect us. The body cannot tell the difference between literal famine and dieting, and our bodies will do miraculous things to keep us alive. In many ways, binging is an adaptive coping mechanism that serves people really well (until it doesn’t anymore). Food restriction leads to a preoccupation with food which leads to binging which leads to compensation which leads us to restrict. It’s a vicious cycle and a lack of willpower has literally nothing to do with it!
Not having enough “willpower” isn’t the problem—the whole system and structure of dieting is the problem. The most primal parts of your brain, your basic need for food, will always override the more rational parts of your brain, like the pre-frontal cortex, where diet culture messages and “willpower” exist. You may be able to override your body’s natural and primal drive temporarily, but ultimately, your biology wins.
Eating disorders are real and valid, and it’s important to be informed and educated about what they are and what they are not. I hope this post has helped expand your knowledge about eating disorders and shatter some stereotypes and stigma about them. If you are struggling, please do not struggle alone. You deserve to heal.
With love always,
Rach
Resources:
Eating Disorders Coalition. (2016). Facts About Eating Disorders: What The Research Shows.http://eatingdisorderscoalition.org.s208556.gridserver.com/couch/uploads/file/fact-sheet_2016.pdf
Medical University of Vienna. (2017, June 12). Anorexia nervosa has a genetic basis. ScienceDaily. Retrieved February 26, 2020