THIS MONTH IS ABOUT ANTI DIETING AND INTUITIVE EATING!
This month’s topic focuses on not falling into diet culture and focusing on having a healthy relationship with food and your body image. There are many diets out there that are significant to health but are being misused in order to help people fit a certain image. Diet culture is pushing the belief that thinness is associated with health and being larger in size is not. It is making it normal to value your appearance over your health and wellness. Many people are choosing specific diets to lose weight quickly because they believe that once they lose all the weight, they will reach optimal health.
This month I will be giving some key points that focus on intuitive eating and many fall victim to diet culture. I will also be discussing popular fad diets, how they should be used, and how many people are using them in reference to diet culture.
You may be falling into diet culture if:
- You look for diet programs that promote weight loss.
- You restrict yourself to certain foods and are strict on your diet.
- You exercise in order to just lose weight rather than for your mental wellbeing , health, or just for fun.
- Associate your weight with your health and self worth.
- Eat out of emotion and later look for solutions to burn off all the calories.
Intuitive eating references back to be mindful of food. Are you listening to your body or just going off emotion? Intuitive eating emphasizes having a healthy relationship with food and your body image. It promotes completely being aware of your body’s hunger, eating when you are hungry and stopping when you are full. It refers to eating when you’re physically and not emotionally. So when are you physically hungry? Your body signals signs such as a growling stomach, fatigue, irritability, a headache, etc. When are you emotionally hungry? You develop “hunger” when you are bored, happy, sad, stressed, etc. How to realize your body is full? Eat slow, take small bites and enjoy your food. Wait for your stomach to signal your brain that your body is full.
There are many trending diets out there. These diets do have their benefits but not for the reason most people are using them. The most popular right now are:
- The Keto Diet
- The Plant-based Flexitarian Diet
- The Paleo Diet
- Intermittent Fasting
- The Gluten Free Diet
The ketogenic diet was originally created to treat children who suffered epilepsy. It was never meant to be used for weight loss but since the body uses fat as energy rather than glucose many started to realize the change in weight while on the diet.
The plant-based flexitarian diet gives you space to eat like a vegetarian and be flexible while doing it. It’s purpose was to help transition and benefit from vegetarian eating while eating animal products in moderation. Yes, eating plant based foods is beneficial to one’s health but, again like many other diets, people are using it to lose weight primarily.
The paleo diet was created in order to eat more similar to the early humans as opposed to eating a diet which includes farming practices. The main purpose of this diet is to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight.
Intermittent fasting is not a new concept. Humans have been fasting since the beginning of time whether it be overnight, religious beliefs or food insecurity. It has now been normalized as a way to help someone lose weight.
The gluten free diet was created for those who suffer from Celiac disease in which gluten can not be properly digested by the small intestine. This leads to diarrhea, bloating, gas and other digestive problems. Gluten is the protein found in wheat, rye, and barley. Nowadays, many people that experience digestive issues automatically cut gluten out of their diet without being certain they even have celiac disease.
In this month’s second newsletter, you will find a detailed description of each diet.
