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Chewing and Spitting... eating disorder?
I'm new to calorie count plus. I'm 18 and I don't really use the computer that much other than for email and word documents so all of this is kind of new to me...
I have struggled my whole life with my weight. I was down to my goal weight of 125 but I recently gained weight and I'm being very careful, probably eating around 600-700 calories a day.
I have been chewing and spitting for about a year and a half but I never thought it was an actual thing, then I joined here and there were people talking about it like it was a disorder or something. Is it? I never really thought it was a big deal...
Reason: Promotion of starvation diets or habits that exhibit signs of an eating disorder ("pro-ana", "pro-mia", etc.) is prohibited.
It definitely is an eating disorder. And you REALLY need to eat more, 1200 cals a day is the minimum for a woman...and you should eat more because at 18 you are still growing (a little). You may be having trouble with you weight because your body is in starvation mode, you have to bring your calories up, so you may gain a little in the first few weeks while you body gets used to it, but you will be able to lose after that.
However, it sounds like you have an eating disorder, since you seem to be restricting and chewing and spitting. You may want to get some help before you decide to lose weight, or at least talk to a nutritionist about getting on track so that you can be healthy now and later in life. I'm not saying that you have to be unhappy with your body forever, it's just that losing weight an unhealthy way is never the right way to be happy with your body, you want to be you goal weight AND healthy, yeah?
Good luck!
Thermal is right, it IS an eating disorder.
First off, your body is in DEEP starvation mode, 600-700 calories is hardly what I consider 'careful'. Since you're a teen, your ABSOLUTE, DEAD, DO-NOT-GO-UNDER-FOR-ANY-CIRCUMSTANCE is around 1,500 caloriesAT LEAST until you're, oh say, 25 or so.
I used to have a problem with chewing and spitting as well along with restricting, and it just ended up screwing my metabolism over even more. Digestion starts in the mouth immediately, so you're getting calories, but not nutrients. I'M NOT SAYING TO JUST NOT EAT (I had this thought immediately after, and, needless to say, it didn't work). Also, I've heard horror stories of chewers and spitters who have gained body fat by smelling food, because after a while your body will just start to try and rev up digestion and eats away at muscle and turns it into fat.
I'm about 1 month into my recovery from ED, but I've learned a lot since then. If you want to lose weight, you need to eat (crazy, I know). That 1,500 calories? That's only if you're in a comatose state, that's not including getting up to use the bathroom. That's just to make sure your heart and brain and other internal organs keep working (They're kind of important to have, hahah).
Anywho, I know how you feel, you feel stuck because you think you're doing all the right things, and it seems like your body is screwing you over. No fun. But, I said what I could say and wish the best for you. If you want, feel free to message me, ok?
But if your body goes into starvation mode and you supposedly don't lose weight, why are anorexic people all so skinny? It must work! And if I'm eating SOMETHING it's better than eating nothing at all, right? And I eat a lot, too, it's just mostly vegetables and stuff which have barely any calories. I usually have an egg for breakfast, and coffee or a skim latte. Then for lunch I have some lettuce with lowfat dressing (2 tablespoons = 50 calories). And maybe another skim latte. Then for dinner I have a LOT of veggies and maybe a small piece of white meat chicken or something like that. I'm not unhealthy, but it usually comes out to around 700 calories...
But specific diagnostic jargon aside, it is a terrible thing to do to your body (and the planet- all that wasted food, yikes!).
It's definately not a behaviour that could ever be a part of a healthy eating lifestyle. Like the above poser mentioned, 600-700 calories a day will ruin your body, mind, and metabolism, and make it easier for you to gain weight in the future.
If you continue to drastically undereat, you will lose muscle, then some fat if you keep it up long enough, then your organs (including your brain and heart) will SHRINK and shrivel. Skinny models look the way they look from long-term starvation and genetics.
Everyone who starves themself either eventually starts eating normally again, or dies. Assuming you wisen up and choose the former option, your metabolism will have greatly suffered and you will have to work much much harder to be healthily slim for the rest of your life. So unless youre happy dying young or being obese when you're older, I'd strongly recommend you starting eating at least 1500 cal/day NOW.
Original Post by mem18:
But if your body goes into starvation mode and you supposedly don't lose weight, why are anorexic people all so skinny? It must work! And if I'm eating SOMETHING it's better than eating nothing at all, right? And I eat a lot, too, it's just mostly vegetables and stuff which have barely any calories. I usually have an egg for breakfast, and coffee or a skim latte. Then for lunch I have some lettuce with lowfat dressing (2 tablespoons = 50 calories). And maybe another skim latte. Then for dinner I have a LOT of veggies and maybe a small piece of white meat chicken or something like that. I'm not unhealthy, but it usually comes out to around 700 calories...
First of all, No it doesn't work for everyone. And while you are correct it's better than NOTHING, you're still doing the exact opposite of what you want to do. I used to starve myself down to 300-800 calories a day for about year, you want to know my lowest weight? 132. Not 100, not 90. I was still in healthy BMI.
The thing is, it DOESN'T work. It WON'T work. And hate to break it to you but that little 'something' is still not enough. I know you think that starving is the answer. It's not. It won't be and it NEVER will be. I was in your shoes exactly not too long ago, and really, you're doing more harm than you think.
Your metabolism is shot, to say the least. so despite putting healthy things in, you're still going to gain weight because your body is thinking that there's not enough food in the world and you'll just store more and more fat. Your body doesn't CARE that you want to fit into an impossible size or have this and this measurement or weigh X amount of pounds. Your body is only looking out for itself, despite you trying to work against it.
But DO NOT assume that 'it works for everyone else', it doesn't. I PERSONALLY can vouch for that. You need complex carbs, you NEED protein to keep/gain muscle. You don't want to end up one day blacking out while at the gym trying to burn off your lunch. You don't want to feel like your heart is rocking out to some speed metal when you simply stand up. Trust me, even if you don't lose weight, you'll get just as many problems as 'all those skinny anorexics' have, except you'll still be the size you are.
It ain't worth it. TRUST ME
Chewing and Spitting is not a commonly known eating disorder but it is one.
This can be just as harmful as not eating since your body is not getting all of the proper nutrients.
Please talk to someone soon about this. These are just some of the effects of C&S:
*Swollen glands
*Mouth Sores
*Cavities
*Cracked teeth
*Sore throats
*Irritated or ulcerous stomachs
Here are some details of C&S listed on ANRED site.
Chewing and spitting
- The person puts food in his/her mouth, tastes it, chews it, and then spits it out.
- Some people believe this behavior is a separate eating disorder. It is not. It is a calorie-control strategy commonly seen in anorexia nervosa, and sometimes in bulimia and eating-disorder-not-otherwise-specified. The person is creative, allowing some experience and enjoyment of food but avoiding all but a few calories. Since essential nutrients are not incorporated into the body, chewing and spitting can be just as harmful to health as are starvation dieting and binge eating followed by purging.
An extremely helpful site to check out when you are talking to your family is something-fishy.org.
Furthermore, you are definitely undereating. Eating not enough food will often yield the same results as eating too much (you gain weight...). Take a look at these websites to get a better idea of how that happens:
- Dieting & Metabolism (explains starvation mode and why undereating is counter-productive)
- The Body Neglected (explains what happens when you undereat a long time)
Please note that Calorie Count Plus's mission is to promote healthy and sustainable weight management. Disordered Eating should not be used as a method for Weight Loss. Doing so is against CC's Posting Guidelines:
- Promotion of starvation diets or habits that exhibit signs of an eating disorder ("pro-ana", "pro-mia", etc.) is prohibited.
Take care.
Thanks for the help. If anyone else has any advice please post it!
I am currently trying to eat more calories per day... today I got to about 950. I think my goal for tomorrow is going to be the same (about 900-1000) but I'm not sure if I'm going to be up for going above that any time soon...
To coach_k: I'm not promoting an eating disorder... I'm trying to get better from what could potentially be one.
Original Post by fidget84:
direwolfe: are you eating 1500+cals??
I most certainly am, my calories are going to about 1,470-1,700. Trying to do the up the calories to lose thing :)
