[Villages PL]

Originally Posted by ilovetv

Right now, we have long-time friends who are on a newfound weight-loss and righteous eating jihad.

It's like a really bad religion or cult.

Does that description include those who only eat Kosher?

[Villages PL]

Originally Posted by Barefoot

Of course good health is important! And we'd all like to live a long time. But I think you're missing the most important aspect, GOOD QUALITY OF LIFE. And I'm talking about good friends, socialization, sharing meals and exercises with others, doing volunteer work to contribute back to the community. I think those things enrich the tapestry of life and fill it with joy. In my opinion, it's not how long you live, it's how well you've lived and how much love you've shared.

From articles I have read about Walter Breuning, it seems he had a pretty good quality of life. He lived his remaining years in an assisted living facility and liked getting together with other residents and having interesting discussions with them. Those were his friends that he socialized with and shared meals with in the dining room. Because of his age, he was treated like a V.I.P. and people from the outside (organizations like GRG) made appointments to talk with him. (I guess you could say that was his volunteer work.)

Why do you assume he didn't have a good quality of life?

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by Villages PL

I agree that people with "obsessions" often do great things. I put "obsessions" in quotes because I'm not sure how we would always agree on what constitutes an obsession. Was Albert Einstein obsessed or just following a passionate interest in the wonders of the universe?

What about other occupations:

Are chefs obsessed with food because they think about food every working day of their lives? Perhaps that's the reason they chose to become a chef in the first place. Maybe, if they think about it on their days off and when they get up to pee at night. And sometimes can't go to sleep thinking about it.

How about the author of a cookbook or a series of cookbooks? Not unless they have no other subject they enjoy or they don't have many friends or finding new recipes is making them nervous all of the time.

How about a dietition or nutritionist? If the nutritionist in question only wants to talk about nutrition to everyone and if he/she wants to improve others nutrition without being consulted and rarely goes to the movies, out to dinner or enjoys television because he/she is thinking about the result of good nurtrition on the lives of other...maybe.

What about the person who came up with the idea of orthorexia? Did that person have an obsession? It must have been on their mind a lot. Could be. I've heard it said that behaviorists are a chancy bunch of folks.

What about people who treat such obsessions? Well you never know. They could be obsessed with obsessions.

What about all the many health clubs in The Villages? Are they all obsessed? I don't think places can have human qualities but the people who go to them could be, if they don't ever want to go home.

What about The Villages preoccupation with becoming America's Healthiest Hometown? n/a

How many people in the U.S. are on a diet at any given time? 1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men.

How many people go on a diet each year

Being passionate about something and being obsessed with something are two different behaviors. If a person is enjoying their life and being comfortable without the need to change everyone elses mind on a subject, and dont' think about one subject most of the time, then they are probably just passionate and not obsessed.

Disclaimer. My knowledge is limited to a few courses in psychology that I took with Martha Washington a couple of centuries ago and the fact that I am kinda interested in human behavior and read a lot of stuff about it.

I could be obsessed, but I don't think so because I play a lot of golf.

[Villages PL]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Being passionate about something and being obsessed with something are two different behaviors. If a person is enjoying their life and being comfortable without the need to change everyone elses mind on a subject, and dont' think about one subject most of the time, then they are probably just passionate and not obsessed.

Disclaimer. My knowledge is limited to a few courses in psychology that I took with Martha Washington a couple of centuries ago and the fact that I am kinda interested in human behavior and read a lot of stuff about it.

I could be obsessed, but I don't think so because I play a lot of golf.

According to your definition, fast-food advertisers are obsessed because they are always trying to change everyone's mind (or influence them) to tempt them into buying fast food.

Also, on a "Medical and Health Discussion Board" isn't it possible that some people are just passionate about having discussions on whatever the topic happens to be? Isn't that what a discussion board is set up for in the first place?

Those who don't appear to be at all interested in healthy diet/lifestyle, always seem show up to be against whatever the healthy suggestions are. Are they passionate in their rejection of healthy suggestions or are they obsessed with it? If they don't like the topic, why do they show up for it, unless they are obsessed?

It would be like me, a non golfer, showing up at a golf course and remarking, "Hey, look at all those golfers, is that all they do is play golf all the time? Then they go for lunch together and talk about golf. I sometimes wonder if they might be obsessed." No, I would never do that. What would be the point of it, unless I am obsessed with the fact that they like to play golf?

A golf course is for playing golf and a health discussion board is for having discussions about health.

[DonH57]

Originally Posted by Golfingnut

I am obsessed with keeping my Bud Light between 28 and 31 degrees in the pool bar fridge. hee hee hee

That's the ideal temp!

[Halibut]

Re nagging and friendships -- what really creams my corn is the assumption among some of the food police that anyone who becomes ill brought it on themselves through some manner of "unhealthy" living.

I don't give a rat's patoot if someone smoked 8 packs of cigarettes a day and weighs 600 pounds. If that person develops lung cancer or diabetes, another human being should offer comfort and compassion, not condemnation and self-righteous disregard.

Dog forbid anyone suffers from heart diease these days; those poor souls get bombarded from all sides.

I have a genetic neurologic disorder, but by golly, there must be something I ate or drank or inhaled in 62 years, or some amount of exercise I didn't do, that caused it.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by Villages PL

From articles I have read about Walter Breuning, it seems he had a pretty good quality of life. He lived his remaining years in an assisted living facility and liked getting together with other residents and having interesting discussions with them. Those were his friends that he socialized with and shared meals with in the dining room. Because of his age, he was treated like a V.I.P. and people from the outside (organizations like GRG) made appointments to talk with him. (I guess you could say that was his volunteer work.)

Why do you assume he didn't have a good quality of life?

I wasn't talking about Walter. I was talking about people afflicted with Orthorexia.

[zonerboy]

Someone seems awfully defensive about the topic of orthorexia.

[Villages PL]

Originally Posted by Barefoot

I wasn't talking about Walter. I was talking about people afflicted with Orthorexia.

How can anyone be afflicted with a bogus disease? There's no such disease except as imagined by the fast food industry or those who work for them, namely dietitians. Read the following link:

The Truth About Orthorexia | Raw Vegan Radio

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by Villages PL

How can anyone be afflicted with a bogus disease? There's no such disease except as imagined by the fast food industry or those who work for them, namely dietitians.

But that is just your opinion. I don't think it's imaginary or bogus. But I guess at one time, people didn't believe Anorexia was a real disease!

[Villages PL]

Originally Posted by Barefoot

But that is just your opinion. I don't think it's imaginary or bogus. But I guess at one time, people didn't believe Anorexia was a real disease!

It's interesting that you haven't said the same about those who are promoting it as a disease. So far it's not clinically recognized as a disease. So it's only their opinion. Therefore, it's up to them to prove it and so far they haven't been able to. I don't think the burden should be on me to disprove something that hasn't been proven.

But I can tell you why I think it hasn't been officially accepted as a disease: They don't have any specifics on any of it. If they would say that going below a certain BMI is a sign of Orthorexia, then that would be something concrete. But the promoters don't want specifics, in my opinion. That wouldn't work for them because they want ALL healthy eaters to be under suspicion of having an unhealthy obsession. And the likely reason for that is because the fast-food industry is behind it.

[ilovetv]

Originally Posted by Villages PL

It's interesting that you haven't said the same about those who are promoting it as a disease. So far it's not clinically recognized as a disease. So it's only their opinion. Therefore, it's up to them to prove it and so far they haven't been able to. I don't think the burden should be on me to disprove something that hasn't been proven.

But I can tell you why I think it hasen't been officially accepted a disease: They don't have any specifics on any of it. If they would say that going below a certain BMI is a sign of Orthorexia, then that would be something concrete. But they don't want specifics. That wouldn't work for them because they want ALL healthy eaters to be under suspicion of having an unhelthy obsession.

Orthorexia doesn't necessarily exhibit itself as a disease of body weight, malnutrition etc. It's a behavioral problem and maybe a psychiatric one, and actually "addiction" would be a better term to use than obsession. The person gets addicted to their grueling, expensive, punishing regimen and cannot stop.

The people I know well who have orthorexia have also been addicted to bingeing and purging (bulimia), anorexic, and alcoholic. They are addicts, I'm very sad to say.

[Polar Bear]

Originally Posted by Villages PL

...the fast-food industry is behind it.

No paranoia here.

[Villages PL]

Originally Posted by ilovetv

Orthorexia doesn't necessarily exhibit itself as a disease of body weight, malnutrition etc. It's a behavioral problem and maybe a psychiatric one, and actually "addiction" would be a better term to use than obsession. The person gets addicted to their grueling, expensive, punishing regimen and cannot stop.

You still don't have anything specific. It's too fuzzy. Saying that it's grueling, expensive and punishing, is your characterization of it. I could say the same about golfing, basketball and football.

The people I know well who have orthorexia have also been addicted to bingeing and purging (bulimia), anorexic, and alcoholic. They are addicts, I'm very sad to say.

They may have eating disorders and they may be alcoholic, but at this point we can't label them as having orthorexia. That's because there are no scientifically accepted parameters.

[Villages PL]

Originally Posted by Polar Bear

No paranoia here.

Well, if you notice, I said "the likely reason". You might imagine it's being promoted by some caring organization that just wants to be helpful. But, generally, nothing happens unless some organization stands to make money. Has any legitimate scientific organization stepped forward to endorse it? If not, who do you think is behind it?

I would rather be sceptical than gullible.