According to the SELF-University of North Carolina survey--a poll of over 4000 women--6 out of every 10 women suffers from some form of disordered eating, falling into one of these categories: A Food Addict, a Calorie Prisoner, a Secret Eater, a Career Dieter, a Purger or an Exercise Addict. So what is disordered eating? It's eating behavior and thoughts about food and weight that are unhealthy for a woman's body and psyche. A disordered eater isn't someone who has a bona-fide eating disorder (anorexia, bulimia, binge disorder), but she doesn't view food and eating normally, either. A non-disordered eater, for example, eats when she's hungry, stop when she's full, and doesn't engage in extreme behaviors (meal skipping, fasting, diet pills) to control her weight. A disordered eater, on the other hand, might spend 50 percent of her day thinking about food and her weight, perhaps going to extremes to control it (restricting her calories below what is healthy, or cutting out whole food groups).
Perhaps you--or someone you know--fits this description. To find out if you might be at risk for disordered eating, take our quiz. The good news is that once you ID the behaviors that aren't healthy or that are interfering with your happiness and enjoyment of eating (it's a pleasure, afterall!), you can work your way toward the healthier end of the spectrum.
The antidote to disordered eating? Finding your Happy Weight, the weight your body can healthfully stay at without you having to obsess over every calorie (or every curve). Check out these tips on how to find your weight and celebrate your gorgeous self.
Image via WiseGeek
MORE FROM SELF: