Myth: Those who suffer from Anorexia get a pass on “clean” food since the only thing that matters is getting in as many calories as possible no matter how unhealthy the calories are. 

Fact: Wrong. Let me explain why: Clean foods restore gut and brain health, both of which are damaged as a result of having an eating disorder. Perhaps even more importantly, both are also damaged by eating polluted foods. In fact, I believe many individuals suffering from EDs and obesity have been the victims of Food Pollution Disorder. Healing the gut and the brain and preventing further damage is therefore absolutely essential if the Anorexic patient is to recover and stay that way.

I can back this up in that my recovery and relapse rates are significantly better than industry averages. I believe the reason for this is that my refeeding protocols emphasize the importance of clean food. What I have noticed over the years is that the patients who embrace clean food are much more likely to recover and are much less likely to relapse than the patients who insist upon or continue to eat conventional (polluted) foods. This observation is consistent with the terrible impact conventional food is having in the US. 

Conventional US food is dangerous. I call it polluted for a reason. It attacks us on many different levels in many different ways, doing considerable damage. It is an unrecognized problem for all Americans. Here are some of the most shocking examples:

1. The Us is the most obese nation in the developed world.

2. The US has some of the worst infant survival rates in the world. 

3. Unlike our sister wealthy nations whose citizens are living longer lives, US life expectancy has declined significantly beginning in 2015. 

What is the common denominator setting us apart from all other wealthy nations? Our food supply is polluted with chemicals that are illegal in these other countries. Glyphosate (Round Up) is the best example. 

Many ED practitioners espouse the philosophy that “the patient should never be afraid to eat any food.” That includes foods polluted with herbicides, insecticides, fungicides, carcinogens, obesogens, autogens, and allergens. I do not want my patients to be afraid of food either. However, I do want them to select the safest foods so they do not suffer the negative consequences of eating polluted foods. In some cases, it has been their negative experience with polluted foods that drove the eating disorder in the first place. 

The upshot is that eating clean food goes a long way toward reducing the ED patient’s fear of food. Clean food behaves. It doesn’t cause a food baby or uncontrollable weight gain. It also nourishes the body including the brain, which reduces anxiety instead of causing anxiety. 

Speaking of anxiety. We know now that the gut is responsible for 90% of the body’s serotonin, which regulates mood, and not the brain, as we originally thought. Considering that serotonin is a neurotransmitter, it made sense that we assumed it was coming from the brain, right? Turns out that’s not right. 

Anxiety is an epidemic in the US today.  

The problem is that most Americans have a leaky gut because polluted foods attack the gut making holes in it. So if the gut is leaking and 90% of the body’s serotonin is in the gut, and it is serotonin that regulates mood… what we have is a recipe for disaster. For starters, we’re going to have more anxiety. That is what we are seeing today in the US. And yet, at most residential and many outpatient treatment centers calorie dense conventional foods are viewed as the preferred foods for Anorexics who are re-feeding. I did a survey almost 12 years ago and the answer to the question “Why don’t you use organic food for your patients?\’ was “It is too expensive”. These places are charging upwards of $1500 a day. 

I just got another new patient who took herself out of a local residential treatment center because she was forced to eat French fries fried in Canola oil with her conventional hamburger on a glyphosate-doused wheat bun and pancakes with ½ cup of syrup as part of her treatment. 

She would have preferred more fruits and vegetables, along with yogurt, dairy, or seafood for protein and fewer starches as she believed that she was addicted to sugar and starch and that it was her food addiction that was driving her Bulimia. The foods she was being offered triggered more of her cravings, of course, and left her wanting to binge and purge even more.

If she refused to eat the starchy, sugary foods, she was forced to drink a boost. Have you read the ingredients in a boost? Not good, as a significant part of boost is sugar in various forms, some more harmful than others. These “ingredients” have been shown to be damaging to the parts of the brain that regulate eating behavior and the gut. How is this helpful to a person trying to recover from Bulimiarexia (Bulimia plus Anorexia)?

I understand the sentiment “We should not be afraid of food”. And we should be able to eat them in moderation and be just fine. However, moderation may not be the solution if the foods are addicting, carcinogenic, autogenic, obesogenic, psychogenic, and neurotoxic. Call me stupid, but I’m thinking abstinence from polluted foods in favor of their clean version makes a lot more sense. There are so many good versions of the same foods that do not harm. Why risk it?

Organic sourdough bread would be an example for those who tolerate gluten. I have found that many people are not actually gluten intolerant, they just react poorly to bread made with the hyper-hybridized, glyphosate-soaked flour we find here in the US. Is there anything better than the occasional slice of sourdough toast with eggs scrambled in coconut oil? I don’t think so:)

Bottom line when it comes to treating individuals with eating disorders, I firmly believe that clean food is medicine. I am talking about organic, 100% grass-fed, wild-caught, and minimally processed foods as Mother Nature intended. Bon appetit. 

If you have questions about clean eating and/or if you would like to clean up your diet, call me. I can help.