A recent study found that intermittent fasting may be associated with an increased risk of eating disorders in adolescents and young adults, a group of disorders that disrupt a person's eating pattern.
In the study published in the journal Eating Behaviors, researchers from the University of Toronto said that the popularity of intermittent fasting has grown over the past years, although it has been proven to be associated with eating disorder behaviors and psychopathology.
The researchers added that the study examined the prevalence and characteristics of engaging in intermittent fasting, and its association with eating disorder behaviors and psychopathological problems.
Data from the Canadian Study of Adolescent Health Behaviour, a national study of Canadian adolescents and youth, with a sample of 2,762 people, was analyzed.
During the study, intermittent fasting during the past 12 months or 30 days was significantly associated with psychopathic eating disorder among the participants, and different patterns of association between intermittent fasting behaviors and eating disorder were discovered between the sexes.
"This includes binge eating, as well as compensatory behaviors such as vomiting and compulsive exercise," lead study author Dr. Kyle T. Ganson told Health Line.
compensatory behaviors
Compensatory behaviors are behaviors that a person does to compensate for eating, such as:
Practicing vigorous and vigorous exercise to burn the calories a person has eaten.
Intentional vomiting.
Taking laxatives to stimulate diarrhea.
"For men, those who tried the diet routine were more likely to report compulsive exercise," Ganson added.
Ganson noted that he wasn't surprised by the results, adding that since we know diet restriction is a major risk factor for eating disorders, we hypothesized that intermittent fasting - which in many ways is a more rigorous practice of diet restriction - would also be a risk factor for eating disorders.
The study's lead author also found that the prevalence of intermittent fasting behaviors among adolescents and young adults was significant. "In addition, it was of concern that intermittent fasting was associated with several risky behaviors among young women, including compulsive exercise, laxative use, and vomiting."
The researchers said more research is needed to confirm whether intermittent fasting is in fact a healthy way to control weight.
What are eating disorders?
Eating disorders are a group of disorders that disrupt a person's eating pattern, leading to a person eating too much or too little food.
This may also be accompanied by a change in the person's view of his body and weight, as he may see himself as very fat even though he is very thin.
Eating disorders seriously affect a person's health, for example, a person with anorexia nervosa is 18 times more likely to die early than a healthy person, so these disorders are a serious medical problem, and it is not a luxury as some believe.
It is often accompanied by other diseases such as depression, addiction and anxiety.
The most common eating disorders are:
Anorexia nervosa
In this disease, the person eats a small amount of food, and many sufferers see themselves as very obese, although they are very thin, and they become fond of controlling weight and controlling eating.
Bulimia nervosa
In this disorder, a person goes through bouts of binge eating, in which he eats large amounts of food, and then tries to compensate for this by vomiting, using laxatives, diuretics, starvation, and excessive exercise.
Bulimia differs from anorexia nervosa in that patients in the first have a healthy weight that is within the normal range of weight, while those with the second usually have less than normal weight.
binge eating
In this disorder, a person goes through bouts of binge eating, but is not followed by vomiting, starvation or exercise, and therefore people with this disorder are usually obese and obese.
These people are more prone to heart disease and high blood pressure, and they feel shame and guilt for what they do.