Eight signs your relationship with food might need attention

Many people assume they have a “normal” relationship with food. Yet for some, patterns that feel familiar may actually signal a deeper struggle with eating behaviours and body image.

Recognising the signs of disordered eating

Part of the challenge is that many problematic eating behaviours are widely normalised. Dieting, calorie counting, cutting out food groups, and feeling guilty after eating are often seen as everyday habits. As a result, many people experiencing disordered eating do not realise their relationship with food may need attention.

In my practice as a nutritionist specialising in eating disorders and disordered eating, I often meet people who are desperately seeking support for weight loss. However, as we begin to explore their eating patterns, it becomes clear that the problem lies in cycles of restriction, guilt, emotional eating, or preoccupation with food and body image.

Understanding the difference between balanced eating, disordered eating, and clinically diagnosed eating disorders can help bring clarity to these experiences.

Disordered eating vs eating disorders

Eating behaviours exist on a spectrum. At one end is a flexible, balanced approach to food. At the other end are clinical eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder.

Disordered eating sits somewhere in between. These patterns may not meet the formal diagnostic criteria for an eating disorder, but they can still significantly impact physical health, mental well-being, and quality of life. Importantly, disordered eating can also increase the risk of developing a clinical eating disorder if left unaddressed.

Eating disorders themselves are more common than many people realise. In the UK, it is estimated that at least 1.25 million people are currently living with an eating disorder, although the true number is likely higher due to underdiagnosis. Recent data also suggests that the prevalence of eating disorders is increasing, rising from around 6% of the population in 2019 to 7.5% in 2025. 

Despite common stereotypes, eating disorders affect people of all ages, genders, body sizes, ethnicities and backgrounds.

Eight signs your relationship with food may not be healthy

You don’t need to experience every behaviour for your eating habits to be a concern. Even a few could suggest that food and body image are taking up too much of your mental and emotional space.

Some of these experiences can also be linked to eating disorders. If any of these feel familiar or distressing, it’s important to seek support from a qualified professional.

1. Restricting food intake

This might involve strict dieting, counting calories obsessively, skipping meals, or cutting out entire food groups. While often framed as “healthy eating”, chronic restriction can disrupt your hunger signals and increase the risk of overeating or bingeing later.

2. Episodes of binge eating

Some people experience periods where they feel unable to stop eating or consume large amounts of food quickly. Even if these episodes do not meet the diagnostic criteria for binge eating disorder, they can cause distress and reinforce cycles of restriction and guilt.

3. Exercising primarily to change your body

Movement can support physical and mental health, but when exercise becomes driven by the need to burn calories, compensate for eating, or control weight, it may reflect a strained relationship with the body.

4. Self-induced vomiting after eating

Purging behaviours sometimes occur after eating what feels like “too much”. Even if this happens occasionally, it signals that eating has become associated with shame or punishment.

5. Using laxatives, weight-loss drugs or diet pills for weight control

Attempts to manipulate weight through laxatives or diet medication can have serious health consequences and often indicate underlying distress around food and body image.

6. Distorted body perception

You may struggle to see your body realistically, focusing intensely on perceived flaws or feeling compelled to change your shape before you can feel comfortable in your own skin.

7. Self-worth tied to body size

For many people with disordered eating, body weight or shape becomes a measure of personal value. Feeling “good” or “bad” about yourself may depend largely on how you perceive your body.

8. Persistent thoughts about food or dieting

Food may occupy a large amount of mental space – planning meals, worrying about calories, thinking about what you should or shouldn’t eat, or feeling anxious about upcoming meals.

Why recognising the signs matters

Disordered eating and eating disorders exist on the same continuum. Many individuals with eating disorders first experience milder forms of disordered eating before symptoms escalate.

Eating disorders can also change over time. Someone may move between different patterns or diagnoses during their life, which is why early awareness and support are so important.

Early intervention is associated with improved recovery outcomes and can prevent behaviours from becoming more deeply ingrained.

What does a balanced relationship with food look like?

A healthy relationship with food does not mean eating perfectly. Instead, it involves flexibility, trust in your body, and space for food to play a supportive, rather than dominant, role in your life.

Signs of a more balanced relationship with food and body include:

• exercising primarily for enjoyment, health, or well-being rather than punishment
• accepting your body without constant attempts to change it
• having generally consistent eating patterns, while recognising that occasional overeating or missed meals are part of normal life
• being able to think about food without it dominating your thoughts
• occasionally eating for comfort or emotion, without this becoming your only coping strategy or causing significant distress

Developing a healthier relationship with food is a gradual process, particularly in a culture where dieting and body dissatisfaction are often normalised. However, recognising the signs of disordered eating is an important first step toward change.

With the right support, it is possible to rebuild trust with food and reconnect with the body in a more compassionate and balanced way.