Abstract

The study shows that the problem of eating disorders in the twentieth century is associated with a cultural myth that created the phenomenon of Winnie the Pooh. Winnie’s character always manages to keep balance and control his emotions, manages to always be positive precisely because he eats in stress, and even when he is not hungry. Besides, he can’t stop eating all the good stuff. We suggest calling it «Winnie the Pooh syndrome». Winnie the Pooh syndrome became extremely popular due to the fact that it was offered during the period of cultural and historical trauma of hunger and danger, so during the second world war it became almost the only recipe that helped a person in a state of stress. This was fixed in the memory of generations, creating a cumulative cultural and historical trauma. The most susceptible to Winnie the Pooh syndrome are people with perfectionism, too low self-esteem, with an inflexible line of behavior, who are not able to come up with more powerful incentives for approval than sweets, as in childhood. Also plays an important role negative social experience, bullying or childhood trauma. But we can resist with Winnie the Pooh syndrome, if we realize that in our life there is something more pleasant than food – so today’s young people count calories, wear a fitness bracelet and try to lead a healthy lifestyle.