The Relationship Between a Father and Daughter and Her Eating Habits

If you’re a father of a teenager daughter have you made plans to spend some quality time with her this fathers day? If you haven’t done so yet, do  you understand the impact that fathers have on a daughter’s relationship with food?

According to an article at sun-sentinel.com, “The Quality of the Relationship Between a Father and his Daughter”

“With Father’s Day on the horizon, one of the best things that dads can do for their daughter is to take her to lunch, just the two of them.
A father-daughter meal — pricey or not — delivers a kind of good nutrition-insurance policy.

Half a million teens struggle with eating disorders and disordered eating, according to data from a national survey. The onset of problems with food strikes 12- to 13-year-olds most frequently.

Although researchers insist that eating problems are caused by a complex array of ingredients, including genetics, biology, behavior, psychology and social issues, some experienced experts point to what they call “father hunger.”

Clinical psychologist Margo Maine, Ph.D., began treating clients with food issues including anorexia nervosa, bulimia, compulsive eating, yo-yo dieting, overeating, exercise abuse and poor body image back in 1980.

It was her clients bringing up their relationships with their fathers that led her to focus on father hunger as a contributing factor. “This unfulfilled longing for father often translates (for girls and women) into conflicts about food and weight,” she said.

What is father hunger? It is a child’s deep, persistent desire for a connection with father. When the connection exists, children grow strong, secure and feeling “good enough.”

When a father and daughter are remote, a child’s dissatisfaction transforms into doubts, pain, anxiety and depression. Eating — overeating or under-eating — becomes the stage upon which this drama unfolds.

Does Dad Deserve All the Blame?

Men are both perpetrators and victims in the father-hunger syndrome. Boys are raised to separate, to isolate themselves, to suppress their feelings.

Girls experience the opposite conditioning of boys. They are taught from infancy to put relationships first. Wanting a rapport, a close relationship with dad seems natural, and being denied one results in cravings and confusion.” To read the entire article click here.

If you’re daughter or loved one is struggling with an eating disorder in Reno, contact Barbara Cox at 775-329-0505 or visit ABCNutritionServices.com.