Eating disorders rise

DRIVERS: COMBINATION OF LIFE PRESSURES AS AGE CREEPS ALONG

- Hein Kaiser

Eating disorders are increasingly being diagnosed in women over the age of 40. It is a concerning trend that mental health professionals say may be driven by a combination of life pressures, changing identities as age creeps along and unresolved trauma.

While these conditions are still widely associated with younger people, Marlene van den Berg, therapeutic programme manager and occupational therapist at Netcare's Akeso Montrose Manor, says more middle-aged and older women are seeking help, often after years of unnoticed struggle.

Van den Berg says there are two primary conditions: orthorexia, the obsession with healthy eating, and binge eating.

These disorders are common in women over 45. Binge eating is often misunderstood. It is normalised as overeating or emotional eating, but it can be a sign of deeper distress. Orthorexia is similar in that it is socially accepted as healthy, but the behaviour often masks body hatred and feelings of unworthiness.

These two disorders can also fuel each other. "If you restrict your diet too much and overexercise, you are not giving your body enough nourishment," she said.

"That leads to intense hunger and cravings. Women may start a health routine and end up bingeing because their bodies are starving. It becomes a cycle that is difficult to stop.