Is Vegetarianism and Eating Disorder?!
Posted on | April 7, 2009 | 12 Comments
the hubster sent over an article this morning that really irked me. it came from time magazine and asked the question: is vegetarianism a teen eating disorder?
the article discussed a study done in minnesota about adolescents who have decided to become vegetarians. the article states that
a significant number of kids experiment with a vegetarian diet as a way to mask an eating disorder, since it’s a socially acceptable way to avoid eating many foods and one that parents tend not to oppose.
wow. really? i am apparently pretty out of the loop.
the article goes on to talk about binge eating and other unhealthy eating habits that are more likely to appear in the teen vegetarian group than the meat-eating counterpart. it’s an interesting read. not sure that i agree with it, but interesting none-the-less.
side note, i love that they referenced candy flipping in the article as a “normal” thing that kids experiment with. riiight.
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12 Responses to “Is Vegetarianism and Eating Disorder?!”
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April 8th, 2009 @ 9:18 pm
Haha, apparently I am way out of the loop because I had nooo idea what the “candy flipping” deal was. I must have been one of the “abnormal” teens. (also, how delightful that they tossed it in between dyeing your hair and political involvement)
While I don’t know one way or the other about these alleged “vegetarians” actually being teens disguising an eating disorder, I do feel that, in the grand scheme of things, it’s less likely to occur than obesity as a result of following the Standard American Diet. I think we’re all pretty aware of what a huge issue that is. In many cases, the vegetarian diet IS used for weight loss/control–and, when done responsibly, it’s a very health means for that.
I’m not saying that there isn’t a possibility that some teens have used the vegetarian excuse to cover an eating disorder. I’m sure they have. I feel the tone of the article is completely inappropriate for the subject matter, though…Like, actually no one has any moral connection to the vegetarian cause–they’re all just liars who are hiding their secret binge-eating tendencies!
“It could also be that vegetarians are hungrier in general and somewhat more prone to bouts of binge eating.” …?
I can’t follow his logic on that one.
So, in closing, Mr. John Cloud and I are going to have to battle because I feel he opted to cop an attitude. Now parents all over the world are going to reject vegetarianism in fear that their child does NOT care about animals, but rather just wants to starve him/herself.
/rant.
April 8th, 2009 @ 9:18 pm
P.S. Sorry about the mile-long comment.
April 9th, 2009 @ 10:01 am
please do not apologize for the rant! i loved your comment.
and i agree with everything that you said and would be happy to help open a can of whoop ass on mr john cloud.
April 9th, 2009 @ 10:34 am
Sweet! We’ll show him not to mess with our vegetables!
April 9th, 2009 @ 1:20 pm
amen sistah!
April 22nd, 2009 @ 8:01 am
Is Vegetarianism Indicative of an Eating Disorder? In My Case, It Was….
(This is cross-posted at BlogHer.)
A recent study published in Time Magazine asked the question, Is Vegetarianism a Teen Eating Disorder? Just by looking at the title of the article, even before I read the accompanying text, I formed the answer in m…
April 26th, 2009 @ 2:08 pm
Yeah, the tone is pretty lame. I was a teen vegetarian who didn’t diet at all, and was proud of it. I ate hardly any veggies and plenty of fries and cheese (kept my iron levels okay with beans)…I was much healthier towards the end of my teens when I started going vegan and including some veggies.
I think the eating disordered “vegetarians” are more likely to be the ones that eat fish or chicken and still claim to be vegetarian–because really their motive is just restriction. I met plenty of those in my day, and they never stayed veg.
May 26th, 2009 @ 8:42 pm
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June 7th, 2009 @ 10:14 pm
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June 13th, 2009 @ 8:45 pm
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July 2nd, 2009 @ 10:47 pm
Have heard of several, more sure that the majority does not. The ideal is to research well before buying any drugs.
May 26th, 2010 @ 4:40 am
my girlfriend gas an eating disorder called bulimia, she always throws up what she eats.’~’