ShareThisKnow someone who is never without a mug of heavily sugared coffee in his hand? How about someone who orders the very same thing no matter where or when you go out to lunch or dinner?
Could be he or she is one of those "freaky eaters," as the folks with this particular eating disorder are called in the eponymous reality series on the cable TV network TLC.
"A freaky eater is someone who can't stop an eating habit, even though it's detrimental, even though it's damaging a relationship, even though it's damaging their career and their health," said JJ Virgin, co-host of the show and a nutrition and fitness coach for celebrities who holds a Ph.D. in holistic nutrition.
"I can take (examples of such compulsive eaters) from the show," she added before introducing the stories behind "Victor, the Cheeseburger Guy"; and guests with compulsions for cola, french fries, pizza, and raw meat and chicken.
Victor, for instance, ate an average of four plain cheeseburgers a day, a habit Virgin said cost him $7,000 a year. There also were other, immeasurable costs.
"He was diabetic. He was obese. He had high blood pressure," she said. "He kept it a secret from his high-school sweetheart wife. Then they were on a very tight budget, and he couldn't do his job because he had to quit going out to dinner with clients. They would go out for expensive dinners, and he wanted cheeseburgers. ...
"There's still more. (His wife) is in school to become a chef -- you can't make this stuff up -- and he won't try any of her food. So it had an effect on their relationship: The one thing she's treasuring, he won't engage in."
Now he has stopped eating beef burgers and started monitoring his blood sugar while taking the diabetes and blood-pressure medicines he ignored before. He was "cured" by "coming clean to his wife," facing the costs of his compulsion, and working with co-host and psychotherapist Mike Dow on burgers with different burger trimmings. He has started eating burgers of turkey, vegetables, salmon and the like as a transition to more normal enjoyment of beef burgers.
Virgin said there's a little bit of a "freaky eater" in virtually everyone. "One who doesn't is an exception," she said. "Someone who wants an afternoon latte and a cookie, that doesn't qualify him as a 'freaky eater.' "
The cure varies, said Virgin, who with the show's team got four success stories out of the show's first six episodes. "The most effective thing is a combination of psychological component and the nutritional component for it to work." Testing is done through medical director Roy Winston to see if a cause is physical.
As for the cause: "I think it's a combination of environment and genetics," Virgin said. "Both the French Fry Girl and the Cheeseburger Guy had genetic taste issues. We ran genetic tissue (tests) on them, and they hated bitter food. ... There are genes that will impact how hungry you are, how much you'll search for it, whether you're a snacker. It's just all coming out."
JJ'S PASTA-PALOOZA (WITHOUT THE PASTA)
14-ounce jar organic marinara sauce
Half-glass of red wine
2 cups total of diced peppers, onions, mushrooms, zucchini and eggplant
12 ounces grilled chicken sausage or grass-fed meat
Chopped basil, garlic and sea salt to taste
Dump sauce into a slow cooker. Add the half-glass of red wine. (JJ's Rule: If it's bad wine, it will make bad sauce; use the good stuff!)
Add diced vegetables and meat. Toss in basil, garlic and salt.
Let mixture cook on low for two to three hours or until veggies are soft. Serve over spaghetti squash pasta.
Serves 2.
Quick tip: This sauce has so many veggies that it's like a stew. You can add a bit of pesto for a jolt. It's also great over chicken or fish or on top of an omelet the next day.
-- JJ Virgin
(E-mail Pohla Smith at psmith(at)post-gazette.com.)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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