Food Insecurity: A risk factor for the development of eating disorders
Did you know that November 17-23 is Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week?
With the Thanksgiving holiday upon us here in the United States, it seems apropos. If you’re like me, even amidst my own struggles and challenges, I feel extraordinarily grateful that secure housing and enough food aren’t on my list of worries.
Ensuring that all children have enough food to eat has long been a cause near and dear to my heart. I firmly believe that access to enough food is a human right and is a part of what fuels my passion for treating eating disorders. It is very difficult to live a full life without a full belly.
Food insecurity is a risk factor for the development of eating disorders (and numerous other mental and physical health challenges). More researchers and clinicians are paying attention to this significant life stressor.
I’ve been particularly interested in these two articles recently:
- Preliminary associations of body weight, weight bias, and dietary restriction with eating disorder diagnosis in women experiencing food insecurity.
- Partnering With Food Pantries to Disseminate and Implement Eating Disorder Interventions.
Clinicians, if you aren’t already, be sure to ask your clients about their past and current ability to get enough food to eat. This plays an important role in their here-and-now relationship to food, even if the food insecurity is in the past.
In the United States…
- 44 million people are at risk of suffering from hunger.
- 1 in 6 children are living in poverty.
- 795 million people worldwide do not have enough food to eat.
These numbers are staggering. Additionally, in the United States, one person dies as a direct result of their eating disorder every 52 minutes.
Inadequate nutrition, whether due to poverty, war, illness, or an active eating disorder, is taking a serious toll on millions.
And these issues are often left in the shadows given our country’s intense preoccupation with overeating and high weight.
Without knowing the intimate details of your life, I know that you are likely managing what feels like “too much” right now. Too much stress. Too many unknowns. An unexpected illness. Existential fears related to the health of our planet and the wars raging around the world. Sometimes, it can feel like we don’t know what “to do” to deal with it all.
For me, particularly during this time of year, giving to others who have less helps me to feel that I’m making a small but tangible difference in someone else’s life. More specifically, donating food and money grounds me. It helps me to connect to my gratitude and feel more aligned with my personal values. When problems feel very big, oddly, doing something seemingly small helps me keep going.
I don’t mean this message to feel like a guilt trip. Or to add more to your plate. Or to leave you feeling like, “Crap, here’s one more thing I’m not doing well!” It’s simply a reminder that when our problems feel big and unmanageable, sometimes little things help us shift our perspective.
I’m going to leave you with a couple of links to organizations that I feel confident in sending my money to. Perhaps you have some of your own. Or perhaps you have other ways that help you lean into gratitude when it all feels like too much. Know that I’m so glad you’re here and sending you support, no matter where this finds you.
With gratitude,
Marci Evans, MS, CEDS-S, LDN
Founder of Marci RD Nutrition. Food & Body Image Healer® helps clinicians and clients alike develop smart, enduring strategies for overcoming eating disorders, disordered eating, and the backlash of chronic dieting.
One thing my career has taught me is how much I love helping others learn and grow. That’s why I began creating my online courses and nutrition counseling trainings in the first place.
Here is a list of free resources for clinicians that can be downloaded and you can also check out all my online training programs for clinicians and dietitians. The goal for all of these resources and courses is to help you work with your clients with more confidence and new skills. Professional development for you!
If you are a client looking for resources to help you, I’ve got you covered too. Here is a page with several free resources that can help you on your path, whatever that may be.