Forbes: Are Gluten-Free Dining Halls Feeding Potential Eating Disorders?

A recent article in Forbes magazine alleges that gluten-free dining choices encourage eating disorders because of con fusion about what gluten is...

EXCERPT: Jodi Krumholz, director of nutrition at The Renfrew Center of Florida, an eating disorder treatment facility, says that some 20% of adults perceive that they have food allergies and intolerances when, in reality, only about 2% actually do. She believes that the trend of gluten-free dieting without being allergic could be indicative of orthorexia nervosa, an unhealthy obsession with healthy eating. Orthorexia differs from eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia because orthorexics focus on the quality of what they are eating as opposed to the quantity. Orthorexia is not yet recognized by the DSM -5, so the number of sufferers is unclear. Many people equate “gluten-free” with high carbohydrates or calories. “One of the biggest issues is that gluten has become a lot of what people think are fatty foods,” says Krumholz. “We get a lot of calls saying that people want to be admitted [to our center] but don’t want to eat gluten or dairy.”

For the full article, go here.