Exactly What is Orthorexia?

No fat, no carbs, no wheat — and hours of punishing exercise every day. How a dangerously obsessive quest for the perfect body has become the new middle-class eating disorder I've been told I'm risking arthritis and brittle bones and I'm often tired out. But I just can't stop...

WE ALL know the type. They never let wheat, yeast or dairy pass their lips. They've cut out alcohol and caffeine. They're obsessed with healthy eating — yet every day, they look more unwell and unhappier.

These are the symptoms of a condition called 'orthorexia' by dieticians. It is, apparently, on the increase — particularly in professional women in their 30s.