Of the list of eating disorders, ARFID might not be one that you recognize – but it can be just as dangerous as the better-known conditions.

ARFID, or Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, is defined by the Cleveland Clinic as a condition that limits a person’s food intake. It is recognized in the DSM-5 (the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Illnesses by the American Psychiatric Association).

The disorder is marked by intense fear and anxiety about food and its specific qualities – like smell, taste and texture – or the consequences of eating, such as choking.

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Limiting food intake at an extreme level can lead to malnutrition and nutrient deficiencies, which 9-year-old Hannah of Los Angeles has experienced.

Hannah and her mom, Michelle, (who chose not to disclose their last name) sat down for an interview with Fox News Digital to discuss their journey with ARFID, which has included a prominent social media presence.

On Instagram, the duo has 1.5 million followers. Their TikTok account (@myarfidlife), features videos of Hannah bravely trying new foods, which have reached millions of views among nearly 460,000 followers.

Long before Hannah began sharing her journey on camera, Michelle struggled with what she thought was just a “picky eater.”

“I realized this was way more than just picky eating. This was obviously tormenting her.”

Michelle explained that Hannah, who is the youngest of three, was a “great eater” as a baby — until she was introduced to solid foods.

“She would protest, and she would spit the food out, or she would swat it out of my hand, or she would turn her head in the other direction,” she said — all “pretty common” behaviors among kids.

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But by the time Hannah turned 3, Michelle said she had started refusing even the select foods she once ate.

“It was very frustrating for us because she was already so limited as to what she was willing to eat,” she said.

Since Hannah was still growing normally, her doctors “weren’t too concerned,” and assumed she’d grow out of the picky eating.

After COVID-19 hit, Michelle said Hannah’s eating took a turn for the worse, and she eliminated even more food.

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“It was a big struggle to get her to eat anything at all,” she said. “She had no interest in food whatsoever, and her growth started to slow down.”

Hannah’s doctors ran tests to see if there was another health condition, such as IBS or celiac disease. She was referred to other specialists, from endocrinologists to nutritionists.

Hannah was also seeing a feeding therapist, which caused “a lot of stress and anxiety,” her mother noted.

Hannah, pictured with her mom Michelle, shared that she likes to draw, read and write, and play with slime. (@myarfidlife)

The doctors instructed Michelle to continue offering Hannah food when she was hungry, but her daughter’s condition only worsened.

“She couldn’t handle being around food,” she said. “She couldn’t handle sitting at the dinner table with us. She couldn’t handle the smell when I was cooking something in the kitchen.”

As Hannah got older, she didn’t grow out of the condition, but was able to verbalize her internal struggle.

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“We were in a drive-thru and I asked [Hannah], ‘What would you like me to order?’ And she broke down at that moment and asked me, ‘Why is it that every time you talk about food, it makes me really anxious?’” Michelle recalled.

“Hearing those words … I realized that this was way more than just picky eating. This was obviously tormenting her.”

Seeking help and ‘validation’

Michelle decided to seek help from a mental health care professional and found a therapist who specialized in ARFID. She said their first conversation was “so validating.”

“I remember saying to her, ‘She has very few foods that she’s willing to eat. And one of the foods is sour cream and onion Pringles, but they have to be in a special packaging. She refuses to eat the Pringles that come in the large container. They have to come in the individual small containers.’”

“And hearing the words from her — ‘This is so classic of ARFID’ — was so validating.”

The “psycho-social interference” of ARFID can be difficult in social settings, like at school and parties, according to an eating disorder expert. Hannah, pictured with her brothers, is living with the condition. (@myarfidlife)

The therapist first recommended nutritional protein shakes, which were difficult for Hannah to stomach.

But Hannah, who was dangerously underweight, told her mother, “I don’t want to live like this anymore.”

“She was at risk of needing a feeding tube,” Michelle told Fox News Digital. “She fell off the growth chart and wasn’t gaining weight. She wasn’t growing in height.”

“I don’t want to live like this anymore.”

“She just wasn’t getting the nutrition she needed. She was very weak, lethargic and sleeping a lot.”

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Michelle tried fun ways to get Hannah to drink the shakes, like timing her and seeing if she could beat her previous record.

Next, Michelle suggested taking a video of Hannah drinking her shake to send to her new therapist.

Hannah was immediately interested in how her therapist would respond.

Hannah says her famous tagline, “Here I go,” before taking a bite of food in her videos. (TikTok/@myarfidlife)

Michelle then decided to share the video online to help clue in friends and family about what Hannah was dealing with, and to help explain why she wasn’t able to attend holidays or birthday parties due to the presence of food.

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Since that first post, Hannah and Michelle’s social media following has skyrocketed, with thousands of strangers cheering on and motivating Hannah.

“Hannah’s grown so much physically and emotionally. Her confidence has soared,” Michelle said. “She’s a completely different kid.”

“There’s curiosity and motivation and excitement — definitely still a lot of anxiety, but she’s working through it.”

Hannah and Michelle are pictured wearing “Here I Go” T-shirts, which are on sale to help promote ARFID awareness. (@myarfidlife)

Now 9, Hannah is using her platform to spread ARFID awareness and share tips she learns in therapy.

“Many people since we started our page have discovered that this is what they’ve dealt with their whole life,” Michelle said.

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“It’s just really nice to meet other people who can understand each other and share stories.”

Hannah added that the encouragement she gets online helps motivate her to try new foods.

“It makes me really happy because I know I’m helping other people,” she told Fox News Digital. “And I’m also helping myself, too.”

Hannah shared that she feels proud of her continuous bravery.

“I feel good,” she said. “I’m really energetic today.”

Tips for overcoming ARFID

During her sessions, Hannah undergoes exposure therapy as well as talk therapy.

“We do breathing exercises and coping skills,” she said. “We also try different foods.”

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Taylor Rae Homesley, executive director of The Emily Program’s Atlanta-based Eating Disorder Treatment Center, works with ARFID patients.

She shared more details on the condition in an interview with Fox News Digital.

While symptoms may vary, limited food intake based on texture or food group, is a standout sign, one expert said. (iStock)

Since ARFID was coined as a “new term to describe something that’s existed for a long time,” Homesley said it has brought more awareness to the condition and how best to treat it.

There are three types of ARFID symptoms that parents should look for in their children, according to Homesley.

1. Fear of consequences

“I’m afraid I’m going to throw up, I’m afraid I’m going to get a stomachache, I’m afraid I’m going to choke,” the expert listed as examples.

2. Lack of interest in eating or food

“These are kids and adults who just aren’t motivated by food,” she said. 

“They’re the ones who may be playing outside for hours and hours and don’t think, ‘It’s time to eat now.’”

3. Avoidance of food based on sensory characteristics

“These are the kids and adults who are super limited in what they’re eating due to those sensory things,” Homesley said. 

“They may have aversions to taste, texture, smell or temperature of food.”

“[ARFID] needs to be treated differently and recognized as a different eating disorder,” one specialist said. (iStock)

“A lot of our patients with ARFID are what we consider super tasters,” the therapist added. “They taste bitter flavors at a higher intensity than the rest of us.”

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Treatment is still being developed for ARFID, but methods like cognitive behavioral therapy have proven helpful, according to Homesley.

Michelle noted that ARFID needs “a lot more awareness” and community building, which led her to start the ARFID Awareness nonprofit.

“Help is not readily available, and it’s very unfortunate because ARFID is lifelong, and it’s something that does require treatment,” she said.

“I feel like bringing community together and using our voices [is important] so that people see there’s a need.”

Black Friday is behind us, but holiday shopping season is still in full swing.

Winter holiday spending is expected to grow between 2.5% and 3.5% compared to 2023, according to the National Retail Federation. 

“That equates to between $979.5 billion and $989 billion in total holiday spending in November and December, compared with $955.6 billion during the same timeframe last year,” the same source said. 

In addition to having to navigate crowds, consumers can face some health challenges during the hectic retail season. 

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To help ensure safety during long shopping stints, Fox News Digital asked a medical doctor for tips on shopping without dropping. Here are six. 

1. Eat before you go

It’s never a good idea to go anywhere when you’re hungry, and Christmas shopping is no exception. Experts recommend packing some healthy snacks to sustain your energy. 

If you don’t eat something a few hours after your last meal, energy levels and blood glucose levels could dip, according to Harvard University.

“I always recommend a combination of nuts, seeds and fruit as snacks, since they are filling and healthy for everybody,” Matthew Badgett, M.D., a primary care physician at Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, told Fox News Digital. 

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“Also, plan to also eat a healthy meal before you hit the road.”

Packing healthy snacks is a better option than grabbing fast food at the food court, he said.

If you plan to take a break during shopping to grab lunch or dinner, Badgett recommends planning ahead to explore eating options and possibly making a reservation.

2. Know your physical limits

If you aren’t accustomed to being on your feet for extended periods of time, a long shopping trip could prove to be strenuous. 

Packing healthy snacks is a better option than grabbing fast food at the food court, one expert said. (iStock)

“If you aren’t regularly on your feet, limit how long you are walking — otherwise you could find yourself quite sore the next morning,” Badgett said. 

“If you normally only walk 3,000 to 4,000 steps per day, I wouldn’t walk more than 10,000 steps in a day of shopping.”

3. Refrain from lugging packages

Carrying a few packages is OK, but lugging around several heavy packages is not advised.  

“Don’t carry too much weight and injure yourself,” Badgett warned. 

“If you normally only walk 3,000 to 4,000 steps per day, I wouldn’t walk more than 10,000 steps in a day of shopping.”

Some stores may have shopping carts to reduce the load.

Yet if that’s not an option, it’s worth heading back to the car or even home to drop off some of the weight, he recommended. 

It’s recommended to stay up to date on vaccines and wear a mask if you are in a high-risk group, a doctor advised. (iStock)

“Carrying too much, especially when you aren’t used to it, can place a strain on the arms, shoulders, neck and back and lead to injuries,” the doctor said. 

“Try to carry manageable weights, balanced between both arms, and take breaks and drop off stuff as needed.”

4. Take proactive health measures

It’s recommended to stay up to date on vaccines and wear a mask if you are in a high-risk group.

“I recommend N-95 masks over surgical masks, as they are better at preventing germs from getting through,” Badgett told Fox News Digital.  

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For those who are sick, the doctor recommends staying home or wearing a mask while out in public.

Use hand sanitizer, try to social distance and wash hands as needed, experts advise.

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Some of the germiest spots at shopping venues include elevator buttons, handrails, escalators, public water fountains, ATMs, shopping carts, door knobs and the restroom, according to WebMD.

5. Dress appropriately

Experts caution against wearing a heavy coat and accessories while shopping indoors. 

Overdressing is “uncomfortable and sweaty,” a doctor told Fox News Digital. Instead, dress in layers to stay as comfortable as possible while shopping. (iStock)

Overdressing is “uncomfortable and sweaty,” Badgett told Fox News Digital. He recommends dressing in layers to stay as comfortable as possible while shopping.

6. Limit the duration of shopping trips

Breaking up shopping over multiple sessions may be better in terms of health outcomes, Badgett said.  

Not only will this allow you to maintain better stamina, but you can also take your time shopping and enjoy the experience more. 

Overdoing it is a bad idea, said Badgett, “since many of us are not used to this much carrying and walking around.”

FIRST ON FOX — Speaking exclusively to Fox News Digital, bestselling author and life strategist Tony Robbins is announcing on Tuesday that he and his partners in The 100 Billion Meals Challenge have secured commitments “to provide an impressive 30 billion meals to combat global hunger” in just two years of the program’s existence, he said.

The announcement comes on Giving Tuesday — significant because Robbins has pledged to match most donations that come in, whether from individuals or groups.

“If, on Giving Tuesday, someone wants to donate a dollar up to $2 million, I’ll match it,” said Robbins. “So you’ll get to double the amount of impact if you’d like to participate.”

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Robbins launched his anti-hunger initiative along with David Beasley, former head of the World Food Programme, with a goal to provide 100 billion meals across 10 years — and the program is now pacing well ahead of plans, he said. 

Robbins revealed in some detail his personal connection to the issue of hunger in America and all over the world. (See the video at the top of this article.) 

“I grew up in a pretty tough environment. We didn’t have any money,” said Robbins, who today is based in Florida with his wife, Sage, and their children. 

“I had four different fathers, and they’re all good men, but they all lost their jobs at various points. And I had a Thanksgiving when I was 11 years old where there was no money and no food in the home — no food. We had saltine crackers and peanut butter. But, you know, it was Thanksgiving.”

He said his parents were also arguing at that time — “yelling at each other or blaming each other. And I have a younger brother and younger sister, five and seven years younger, and I’m trying to make sure they don’t hear,” said Robbins, describing his life as a child.

“We had saltine crackers and peanut butter. But, you know, it was Thanksgiving.”

And then, he said, “there’s a knock at the door.”

And “long story short, this guy is holding two giant bags of groceries, and he had a pan with an uncooked frozen turkey on the ground [beside him]. He said, ‘Is your father here?’ And I was like, ‘Just one moment.’” 

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Robbins said the stranger was offering his family an amazing Thanksgiving meal simply out of the kindness of his heart — and as a boy from a family with very little, he said he felt “so excited,” said Robbins. 

“I thought, ‘This is going to be the most magical thing.’”

His dad, however, “did not have a positive reaction” to the offer at the door. 

“He looked at this man and said, ‘We don’t accept charity.’”

There was an uncomfortable exchange as his father attempted to close the door — and finally there came “a moment I’ll never forget,” said Robbins. 

“The man said, ‘Sir, please don’t make your family suffer because of your ego.’

“My dad turned bright red,” said Robbins. “I remember [seeing] the veins on the side of his neck. I thought, ‘He’s going to punch the guy in the face.’ But he just dropped his shoulders. He took the food and set it down.”

“I believed that strangers cared about me and my family. And then I wanted to care about strangers.”

Said Robbins, “And I was excited. Up until that moment, I couldn’t understand what was going on with [my father], but he didn’t take care of his family. And he left our family a few days later. It was one of the roughest moments in my life — but it was also the best moment because there was food.”

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From that experience as a boy, he said, “I developed a different belief. I believed that strangers cared — and that strangers cared about me and my family. And then I wanted to care about strangers.”

And so, said Robbins, he “set a goal that when I was older, when I was 17, I’d feed at least two families — and the next year I did four and then eight.”

Once he was in business and was able to help others on a larger scale, “we got into 50 and 100 — and then 100,000. Then finally we got it up to two million people through my foundation and two million through my wife and me.”

Said Robbins about his initiative and his motivation for helping others, “When you’ve suffered this much, you don’t want anybody else to suffer.” (Fox News Digital)

From there, over time, he dramatically increased his numbers and his connection with partners in the endeavor.

Together with Beasley, formerly of the World Food Programme, “we put together this project. And the National Pasta Association, International Pasta, Feed My Starving Children, Manna Nutrition, the government of Dubai — all of them are participating. And Global Citizen is giving us a platform to reach more people. So it’s not just me. But together, what we can do is amazing.”

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He said that no child should have to die of hunger anywhere in the world.

And the same goes for “here in America,” Robbins emphasized. “I’m doing another billion meals in America. We are the richest country in the world, and yet we still have roughly 40 million people, a lot of them children and elderly, that are still food insecure. It’s crazy. We need to do our part.”

(Robbins, with his wife, Sage Robbins, beside him, travels all over the world for his anti-hunger initiative. )

Global hunger has risen sharply in recent years — with acute hunger surging to 730 million people following the pandemic, according to Robbins and his team. 

Additionally, some 30 million people “are on the brink of famine.”

“I think I suffered that way so that others wouldn’t otherwise.”

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Robbins told Fox News Digital, “I think if I hadn’t grown up hungry, if I hadn’t suffered, I don’t think I would work this hard. But when you’ve suffered this much, you don’t want anybody else to suffer. And when I go to various parts of the world, including in this country where people are food insecure, I see that they don’t have any food.” 

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He said these up-close visuals and experiences “almost bring me to tears. It’s just a horrific thing to see a child who’s starving in a world that’s so abundant. And once you’ve seen those images in real life, not some picture [somewhere], you can’t put it out of your mind.”

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Robbins noted, “I always say there are two types of motivation in life. There’s push motivation, when you’re trying to make yourself do something. And then there’s pull motivation — where it’s a calling, where you feel like, by God’s grace or the universe’s grace, whatever you believe in, that you’re meant to do this. And I think I suffered that way so that others wouldn’t otherwise.”

He said this is why “it’s not hard to keep your passion going, especially when you see the joy in people’s eyes when that food is brought to them. Because it’s more than food. For me, it’s that people care. People are no longer alone. And I think we can all play that role.”

Said Robbins to Fox News Digital, “Together, we can do just about anything.” Anyone can learn more about his anti-hunger efforts at 100billionmeals.org. (Carlo Allegri For The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Robbins noted the health benefits of giving to others. 

“There are all kinds of studies to show that [helping others] creates a biochemical change in you. Something as simple as standing in line at Starbucks and paying for the coffee of the next five people — this will produce a larger chemical change in your body that lasts longer than usually getting something for yourself. It’s pretty wild.”

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He said, “As human beings, the reason we survive is because of our connection to community. We can never make it on our own — but together we can do just about anything.”