OCD and Food

[boedicca]

A man is so obsessed with McDonalds that he has eaten 23,000 Big Macs, and has saved the receipt for every one.

A 54-year-old man says his obsessive-compulsive disorder drove him to eat 23,000 Big Macs in 36 years.

Fifty-four-year-old Don Gorske says he hit the milestone last month, continuing a pleasurable obsession that began May 17, 1972 when he got his first car.

Gorske has kept every burger receipt in a box. He says he was always fascinated with numbers, and watching McDonald's track its number of customers motivated him to track his own consumption.

Disorder drives man to eat 23,000 Big Macs - Mental health - MSNBC.com

I'm really curious why anyone would become so obsessed with unhealthy junk food. I personally find such food to be incredibly unhealthy and unappetizing.

[patrick]

Don Gorski on Youtube

- from Supersize Me, bit with him starts 1:40 in. Funny, b/c he doesn't seem particularly heavy.

[Kleenex]

I liked the stuff as a teenager but now it just tastes nasty.

[Vautrin]

He may be blessed with 'slim genes' then. I can eat anything and still retain a BMI of <21 (in metric standards), which is on the skinny side of life.

Except for Krispy Kreme Donuts.

[TKDLady]

Well, that works out to about 1.7 burgers a day. If he is active, then I can see him burning it off. I didn't read the article but if he didn't have the fries each time as well then I don't think it is such an unhealthy diet provided he didn't gorge himself on other things on top of it.

[boedicca]

Calories don't equal nutritional value. Fast food like this is woefully devoid of proper vitamins, minerals, etc. - which is why one often feels unsatisfied and craves more.

I've seen SuperSize Me - it is a horror film. Another show that is a good cautionary tale is (I think) on TLC. It's about four morbidly obese people who eat between 14,000 and 36,000 calories a day. The quantity of junk food each of them eats is mind boggling (and positively revolting).

[Weiser]

I worked at mcdonalds for 7 years, and ate there before my shift, on my break(s) and after work. Plus I snacked on nuggets during my shift. I never gained a pound.

Do I eat there now? Not unless I am craving drunk food after a night of drinking, and even then I'll head to a shwarma place before I'll go there.

[TKDLady]

If that is all he ever ate than I would agree that it is empty calories but I assume he ate other things. If those other things were of better quality he has a chance. I wouldn't like a diet like that but to each his own.

[Meanon]

Originally Posted by boedicca

Gorske has kept every burger receipt in a box. He says he was always fascinated with numbers, and watching McDonald's track its number of customers motivated him to track his own consumption.

I'm really curious why anyone would become so obsessed with unhealthy junk food. I personally find such food to be incredibly unhealthy and unappetizing.

It may have little to do with the food - in this case it's more likely to be the act of collecting the receipts and rituals to do with storage of them and the numbers on the receipts. The ritual is why he's doing it, the eating is just the means (a side effect of the illness, in effect) - though he must like the taste!

[Waternymph]

I detest fast foods, i avoid them.