Oh Snap!

Psychiatrist Says People Who Post Pictures of Meals Online May Have Medical Issues

Also, this guy is doing it all wrong.
Also, this guy is doing it all wrong. Photo: Fun!

Okay, this actually happened: The Mental Health chair of the Canadian Obesity Network presented on the connections between, say, obsessive Instagramming of croissants and an emerging epidemic of eating disorders, the CBC reports, at a summit on obesity yesterday. “You don’t take pictures of who you’re with, you take pictures of what you’re eating,” says Dr. Valerie Taylor, the psychiatrist-in-chief at Women’s College Hospital in Toronto. The first sign for some, says Taylor, happens when the camera-phone lens shifts away from your friend named Patty and on to a lot of hamburger patties. So. What time is the intervention?

We’ve seen our share of send-ups of obsessive food photographers — it seems like there’s a new parody video every day, in fact. The mood-killingly lethal combination of social media and camera phones has even led to a complicated etiquette that’s been put together apace with the technology.

It’s become inescapable and routine practice, and now Taylor says those addicted to posting may be most prone to developing “unhealthy weight disorders.” We always knew that unending cavalcade of pupusas and pork-bun snapshots was annoying, but is the quest to make sure no Brussels sprout goes undocumented really the sign of future illness? Are food-photo-heavy Twitter feeds replacing real meals?

Posting pictures of meals online? You may have health problems [CBC]
Related: Department of Deportment: The End-All, Be-All Guide to Using Your Phone at the Table

Psychiatrist Says People Who Post Pictures of Meals Online May Have Medical