Disordered eating

The other day while on the treadmill I was reading through my latest copy of Self magazine and read an interesting article about "disordered eating." I'd never heard this term before, but I couldn't stop reading the article because the more I read the more I thought they were writing about me.

I've struggled with weight most of my adult life. I'm short so when you gain a few pounds people really notice. I'm also an emotional eater, which I've mentioned before. I've had a rough two and a half years and unfortunately used food to comfort the stress. But at the beginning of the year I decided to change that. I wouldn't call it a new year's resolution, but a lifestyle change.

I may have mentioned this before. But here's my biggest confession about that change. I'm obsessed about it. When I'm eating healthy and working out, I feel great. When I cheat and head to Mc Donald's, I feel bad about it. But I know I don't have an eating disorder. I've never starved myself, I like food too much for that. And I've never purged either. I hate throwing up, even when I'm legitimately sick so I can't imagine doing that to yourself either.

So this article says 6 in 10 women are "disordered eaters."
Sixty-five percent of American women who responded to a national survey by SELF are disordered eaters. Eating habits that women think are normal—such as banishing carbs, skipping meals and, in some cases, even dieting itself—may actually be symptoms of the syndrome. Although disordered eating doesn't have the lethal potential of anorexia or bulimia, it can wreck your emotional and physical health, says Cynthia Bulik, Ph.D., director of the eating disorders program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and SELF's partner in the survey. And it's everywhere, afflicting women like your sister, your friend, your coworker—or you.

If you read the article online you can even take the Self quiz to find out if you're at risk.

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude