Dark Side of Calorie Labels: HARMS Eating Disorder Recovery 

United States: A recent analysis of evidence reveals that food calorie indicators on restaurant menus end up hurting individuals who suffer from eating disorders. 

More about the news 

The nutrition labels aim to provide health benefits to restaurant dining by presenting customers with food calorie information. 

People who have eating disorders exhibit negative reactions toward calorie-labeled menu options, according to research published January 28 in the BMJ Public Health. 

A negative set of responses from individuals included staying away from all restaurants together with the emergence of harmful eating disorder thoughts and excessive focus on calorie values. 

People who saw such labels reported this experience maintained and strengthened the core beliefs of their eating disorders, according to researcher observations.

What more are the experts stating? 

As a patient who was suffering from an eating disorder stated, “It’s definitely set my recovery back by a long way, and I only feel safe eating at home now,” US News reported. 

Moreover, a senior researcher, Tom Jewell, a lecturer in mental health nursing at King’s College London, said, “Our study highlights that people with lived experience of eating disorders are frustrated at being left out of the conversation around calorie labels.” 

Because of the obesity epidemic, policymakers have started implementing changes even though they have not considered the effect on eating disorder patients, according to Jewell. 

“Striking a balance between the positive and harmful impacts of calorie labels on menus is vital in any public health policies,” he added. 

“Policymakers should consider the impact on both obesity and eating disorders when making decisions about nutrition labeling,” he continued. 

Study details 

Research analysts evaluated information gathered from 16 academic investigations, which examined data from over 8,000 participants. 

“Findings were mixed, but mostly showed negative impacts of out-of-home nutrition labels on people with lived experience of eating disorders or disordered eating,” researchers added. 

People with eating disorders demonstrated increased menu calorie label awareness and poor ability to remove their attention from these nutritional values. 

“I become hyperaware of the idea of the calories,” one of the participants added. “I imagine my body ballooning up. I feel dirty.” 

The participants experienced discomfort when their food choices started a conversation about dieting with their contacts.