DD (15) won't touch food with her hands

[unionjack2012]

My DD seems to have adopted a phobia of touching food with her hands and is constantly worried about getting sick or having food posioning. She is also underweight and although 5'4, she is only a size 6 (if that!) and is 15 years old.
She won't eat anything unhealthy and now wants to be a vegetarian. She insists on watching/helping me cook but I wonder if it's to check that I've washed my hands or whether she wants to check I'm not putting fat into the meal?
Help! :(

[dinosaurrawwr]

This sounds like possible symptoms of Anorexia. Refusing to eat unhealthy food is definitely one. If she want to be a vegetarian you need to let her because 15 is old enough to make healthy choices about food but is she insists on it then make sure that shes still getting all the nutrients she needs. You can make lots of nice healthy and balance vegetarian meals so why not invest in a vegetarian cookbook and encourage her to pick ones that she likes and help you cook them. Just make sure you're always supportive her and never get angry at her for not eating. This will make her hesitant to tell you things. If you get really worried send to your GP.

Hope this helps :)

[Fluffanstuff]

I agree with the poster above that it does hint at being signs of anorexia , although I would also add that perhaps OCD aswell ?

I know it might not be the easiest thing to do, but your concerned , Perhaps discuss your concerns and see what she has to say ? Or alternativley encourage her to help you cook , you can get plasticy gloves like the ones you get when you die your hair if she dosnt wan't to touch it ?

Either way , I would still suggest you contact either somewhere like connexions or your GP. The further down the line she goes the harder it will be to come back from it .

[mathanxiety]

You need to get help for her. This is not healthy.

[BumsyClugger]

I just read your title and sort of knew what your OP would say. It bought back all sorts of memories.

I was like that when I was around 9. I had OCD at that time and would wash my hands countless times a day, among other things. I would never, ever eat anything that I had touched with my hands, even going so far as to crush up crisps in the bag and eat them with a spoon. It was all to do with germs from my hands going onto my food and making me ill. I was basically a vegetarian; the whole Mad Cow thing was about and I was scared of getting it so didn't eat beef, I wouldn't eat chicken or turkey because I thought that I would get food poisoning and die if they were slightly under cooked and lamb was always slightly pink, making me think it was undercooked and was going to kill me. I hardly ever ate, but wasn't worrying about unhealthy food. Though that could have something to do with not getting sick/avoiding germs.

The only way you will ever know what is going through your DD's head is to ask her. Personally I wouldn't make too big a deal about it at first, just slip it into conversation somehow.

YY to what fluffanstuff said.

Sorry for the mammoth post Hope you and DD get things sorted.