We always take an evidence-based approach and in this article we’ll investigate the concept of intuitive eating, which differs from the popular culture of adopting a specific eating plan to maintain a healthy body weight.
What is intuitive eating?
Eating intuitively does not set out guidelines about what to eat and what not to eat. This is in contrast to traditional diet plans, which lay down strict rules about which food is allowed and which is not.
Instead, intuitive eating emphasises listening to your body and the signals it is giving you.
Diets and body image
Losing weight is a priority for many people, and from an increasingly young age. One study from Australia interviewed girls between six and eight years old who were of normal weight for their height and age. Half the girls said their ideal body shape was slimmer than their actual body shape (1).
Dieting during adolescence is linked to increased risk of adopting disordered eating patterns or becoming overweight in adulthood.
Researchers have also found it was more likely girls had a distorted body image if their mothers were habitually on a weight-loss diet. With another study finding over 90% of all mothers reporting they had recently been on a weight loss programme, it is perhaps unsurprising children are growing up believing diets are the answer to looking good (2).
People of normal weight can end up buying into the diet culture, for example in a desire to be slimmer in preparation for a holiday. The media contributes to distorted body image by portraying underweight and airbrushed models and athletes. Disordered eating is estimated to affect around one and a quarter million people in the UK, three quarters of them female.
Additionally, the weight loss market is a huge money spinner. The annual world weight loss market is predicted to be worth over 240 billion dollars by 2022, and the industry is growing at almost 7% per year.
Why diets don’t work
Diets, with their emphasis on or prohibition of certain foods or entire food groups, have been criticised for fostering an unhealthy attitude towards food by labelling it as ‘good’ or ‘bad’.
Diets don’t usually work over the long term. Few people are able to maintain their weight loss and may even end up gaining weight after dieting. A study found that five years after taking part in a six-month diet programme, one group of women weighed an average of 3.6kg more than they had weighed when they started the programme (3).
Dividing food up into ‘good’ or ‘bad’ food ignores the fact that we are all genetically unique. On top of this our varied lifestyles and individual health histories mean we all have very different requirements for nutrients. In other words, the perfect food choices for one person may not be ideal for another.
Intuitive eating taps into the belief that the body instinctively knows what it needs and what’s best to support its health. This type of eating rejects the idea there is a diet out there which will work for everyone and it encourages letting go of ideas about what you should and shouldn’t eat.
Intuitive hunger
Intuitive eating means eating when you’re hungry and stopping eating when you’re full. This requires you to eat mindfully and slowly, so you are aware when you have eaten enough. It involves learning how to listen to and trust what your body is telling you.
Hunger can be physical or emotional – in order to eat intuitively, you need to be able to differentiate between the two.
Physical hunger is a biological urge telling you that your nutrient levels need to be replenished. It increases gradually the longer you have gone without food. Symptoms of physical hunger include rumbling stomach, tiredness or irritability. Physical hunger goes away when you eat.
Emotional hunger has its origins in emotional needs such as boredom, low mood or loneliness. This type of hunger is characterised by food cravings, often for sugary, carbohydrate-laden processed foods which provide little nutritional value. It can be difficult not to give in to such cravings, which can be extremely strong.
Benefits of intuitive eating
Although studies on intuitive eating are scarce, it has been linked to positive attitudes, such as higher self-esteem and body image, lower depression and anxiety, less disordered eating, lower body mass index and maintenance of a healthy weight (4).
How to eat intuitively
- Become aware of the difference between physical and emotional hunger. Rank your hunger on a scale of 1-10, from very hungry to full. Aim to eat when you’re hungry but not ravenous.
- Learn to recognise the signs of being comfortably full, and stop eating at this point. Pause in the middle of a meal and check how full you are feeling.
- Take time to really taste what you are eating. This means eating mindfully. How many times have you eaten something in a hurry or while you’re engrossed in another task and you find you’ve hardly tasted it? Always sit down to eat and enjoy your food.
- Emotional eating can be a way to cope with negative feelings, so finding other methods to deal with your emotions can help. Keeping a journal may help you identify times when you confuse emotions with hunger. Try dealing with negative emotions without using food, maybe by exercising in a way you enjoy, connecting with a loved one or devoting some quality time to something you like doing. Realise food is not a way to deal with your feelings or solve your problems.
- Accept the genetic blueprint which dictates your body shape. Don’t criticise your body for what you may perceive is wrong with the way it looks – instead, celebrate yourself for being capable and strong.
- Above all, the food you eat should taste amazing and make you feel nourished. Intuitive eating is all about establishing beneficial patterns of eating.
Takeaway
If you would like to explore your relationship with food, a stay at an Amchara retreat can help you become more in tune with your eating behaviours and establish sustainable, healthy habits. You can investigate your relationship with nutrition and health through consultation with an experienced Personalised Health practitioner.
Sharing knowledge and experience is an important part of our philosophy and we would love to hear your views and experiences.
Gaining your insight helps us to help others find their path to optimal health.
Tell us what has helped you with your relationship with food, have you tried intuitive eating?
Please share your thoughts in the comments.
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