Hacker News Reader

Comment by airhead969 | Hacker News Reader

No offense to sufferers of eating disorders, but I'd like an eating disorder where I lose 40 lbs. / 18 kg. but then plateau right there. Can TikTok help me acquire just the right amount of body dysmorphia?

Poe's law disclaimer: the joke is about TikTok triggering eating disorders, not eating disorders themselves. :eye roll emoji:

View on HN

If you want to lose weight you just need to eat in a calorie deficit, not trigger an eating disorder. Your comment is extremely insensitive to those who actually struggle with eating disorders.

It's a mathematical equation to lose weight

Sometimes I wonder if the positive social consequences of having an eating disorder can actually make up for bad health outcomes. Good looking people are always treated a lot better, and mildly underweight looks a lot better than a little bit chubby. The “right amount of body dysmorphia” is a fun thing to think about since it’s hard to know if you’re crazy, or everyone else is, when you live somewhere that “normal” is actually pretty overweight and nobody acts like there’s a problem.

I think you’re just thinking about fitness and healthy living/eating. Throwing up every time you eat more than you “should” have, hating yourself for finishing your plate, constantly feeling hungry, constantly hating how you feel in your own body - these aren’t good.

I wonder how the negative effects of stress would balance with the positive effects of caloric restrictions on life expectancy.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18612251/

Eating disorders are not good for your life expectancy. From the study: "For example, statistically, a woman who has had AN since 15 years of age is likely to live 25 years less than predicted for the normal population."

No, I'm thinking about the more mild forms of disordered eating like a constant fear of gaining weight and feeling guilty about eating. Anyone who has a sedentary lifestyle needs to be pretty neurotic about food to maintain low body fat. Is a little bit underweight really that bad?

Reply on news.ycombinator.com