The Best Diet May Not Be a Diet at All. A Nutritionist Explains

Have you heard the buzz about Intuitive Eating but aren’t quite sure what it means? 

Prairie Ridge Health’s Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) Jessica Davidson is here to help. Jessica specializes in nutrition counseling for a variety of health-related conditions, including cardiac conditions like high cholesterol, gastrointestinal issues and food allergies. She also has expertise in Intuitive Eating, which she utilizes to help anyone suffering from eating disorders, disordered eating and chronic dieting.

How do you define Intuitive Eating?

“Simply put, intuitive eating is listening to your body. That means eating when hungry, stopping when full and choosing foods that help your body to feel mentally and physically at its best. This seems like a simple concept, but it’s a lot harder than you might think.

Busy schedules, a desire to look a certain way (diet culture) and a history of dieting often puts the brain in charge. We start to distrust our bodies after periods of food restriction (dieting), we give in, choose “bad” foods and overeat.

Our bodies stop giving off easy to identify signals of hunger and fullness because we stopped listening a long time ago.

My goal is to help people learn what hunger and fullness feels like in their body and what foods help their body to feel its best, allowing them to trust their body, heal their relationship with food and enjoy life. Intuitive eating is not a diet, it is not a destination, it’s a lifelong commitment to developing a more peaceful relationship with food.”

What are the basics of Intuitive Eating?

“While Intuitive Eating might sound new, it was actually developed in 1995 by two dietitians, Elyse Resche and Evelyn Tribole. The framework consists of 10 principles, which help to increase awareness of the damage of dieting and diet culture, and gently frees individuals from disordered eating.”

10 Principles of Intuitive Eating:

1. Reject the Diet Mentality
2. Honor Your Hunger
3. Make Peace with Food
4. Challenge the Food Police
5. Discover the Satisfaction Factor
6. Feel You Fullness
7. Cope with Your Emotions with Kindness
8. Respect Your Body
9. Movement – Feel the Difference
10. Honor Your Health – Gentle Nutrition

How do you use Intuitive Eating with your patients?

“When I work with someone, I review concepts of each principle, but keep it very individualized. We all have different struggles and lifestyles. Some people like a lot of structure and others do not. There is a right fit for everyone, but sometimes it takes time to find that fit.

We are born eating intuitively and while there is no one size fits all, the majority of people I work with benefit when they start listening and respecting their body. It can be freeing because our mind no longer has to keep track of what or how much to eat, we follow our body’s signals. Each individual body knows what it needs to feel it’s best, I’m just the GPS helping each person to find that destination and address roadblocks along the way.”

What’s the most common hurdle you see when teaching someone about Intuitive Eating?

“It can feel very scary to stop labeling foods as “good” or “bad” and to trust one’s body. With that in mind, I take my patients through the framework of intuitive eating, focusing on whatever area(s) they need the most support on. We start by slowly understanding the impact of diets on their life and undoing their faulty science. I help them understand the fundamentals of what their bodies need to feel their best.

From there we work on whatever issues or areas they want to focus on. Like I said, it is a journey, so it’s not a linear process. Sometimes we go backwards, sideways or forward. Whatever the patient needs is my priority.”

Anything else you would like to leave readers with?

“If you take anything away from this, let it be that Intuitive Eating is not a diet. No foods are off limits. There are no rules on when, what, or how much to eat. It’s a way to freedom, self-acceptance and yes, even health and wellness.”

To learn more or schedule an appointment with Jessica visit www.prairieridge.health/nutrition or call 920-623-1294.