4 Tips To Improve Your Food Relationship

Feeling a bit overwhelmed with all the names and categories of nutrition science? Is it poly- or monounsaturated? Is it essential or non­ essential? How much of each trace mineral do I need? Or macronutrient? Or vitamin? It is important to note that without addressing our actions and thoughts surrounding food and eating habits, these pieces of information may not help you on your present heath journey. Addressing our thoughts and behaviors surrounding food is an important step to achieving health behavior change. ARE SOME FOODS BAD? Do you think about foods as good or bad? More than likely, yes. In media and food packaging, things are labeled as such. These sensational titles pack a punch and, when used well, can encourage healthier choices. But they also come with subliminal messaging. These shortcuts to define foods illicit feelings based on our own definitions of the words. "Guilt-free foods" suggest the alternatives are guilt-laden. Healthy foods are inherently assumed to be "good" and unhealthy foods are assumed to be bad. Clean eating suggests that the alternative is unclean. Some synonyms of unclean are impure, polluted, infected, unhygienic, grimy, filthy, contaminated. No wonder we have a variety of emotions surrounding the food we eat. BEHAVIOR CHANGE STARTS WITH OBJECTIVE AWARENESS Awareness is the starting point in behavior and thought change. Simply being aware of the topic can start moving you away from being swayed by the words often associated with foods. These names and labels are not going anywhere in media or packaging. But your response to them can shift. Consider this example: if you are a smoker and unaware of the health dangers of this behavior, there is no driving force for change. You will continue to smoke. However, once the information is adopted about possible complications caused by smoking, then next corrective steps can be taken. Even if cigarettes are still around you, or your friends are still smoking, the knowledge of the potential ill-effects on your health can begin to be mobilized for behavior change. Being aware of the feelings associated with foods, food groups, food labels and eating behaviors will shed some light on where you can make a positive impact on your present and future health. Healthful eating is more than what the food is made up of. If it were, we would all be eating properly portioned plates full of nutrient-dense and balanced foods. It is also about what your body needs in the moment, what your emotions are, how much sleep you have had, the amount of stress you feel, the environment, including people, in which you are eating in or with, the experiences you have had in the past surrounding food availability and quality...the list goes on. So cut yourself some slack! Most diets do not discuss these topics. It's no wonder why there is an estimate that 95% of diets fail. In fact, research suggests that the more diet attempts made by a person, the more likely he/she will gain weight in the future than their non-dieting counterpart.1 Note the language here: the diet fails to set the person up for success. The person does not fail. But it can certainly feel like failure. So let's start at the beginning of health behavior change: awareness. Here are some ideas to become aware of your own relationship with food and your eating patterns:

Take stock in how you feel before, during, and after you eat. 1| Before: Where is your interest in eating coming from? Is it physical hunger, is it caused by an emotion like boredom, frustration, stress, fatigue, joy, is it a desire for mouth-feel like flavor or texture, or is it environmentally influenced? · Physical hunger sensations can feel like: · Mild gurgling or gnawing in the stomach · Growling noises · Light-headedness · Difficulty concentrating · Uncomfortable stomach pain · Irritability · Feeling faint · Headache 2| During: While you are eating, what do you notice? Consider the flavors, textures, temperature, the feeling of the utensil, the sounds around you. Do you realize you are eating, or are you multitasking? Do you chew thoroughly, or find yourself swallowing your food quickly? Do you have a desire to finish whatever is on your plate? What happens when you put your fork down to savor the bite? Being thoughtful (also called mindful) while you eat not only allows you to enjoy your food but also encourages you to slow down. Hunger and fullness cues are more easily interpreted at a slower pace.

3| After: How does your stomach feel compared to when you started eating? Do you feel full, content, bloated, uncomfortable, or having significant discomfort? Which emotions do you feel? What is your brain telling you about your plate or your habits? · Physical satiety sensations can feel like: · A subtle feeling of stomach fullness · Feeling satisfied and content · Nothingness - neither hungry nor full · Thoughts of food subside

Visually take in your plate. Then take a breath. This is meant to slow you down. What do you see? Without judgement, how much of each component do you want versus need? If you were not the owner of your plate's portions (eating out, at a friend or family member's house, at your child's school event, etc.), decide how much of the plate will serve your current body's needs. If you are out at a restaurant, ask for a to-go box when you order. Divide the food into portions that serve you BEFORE you dig in.

Add in. Instead of focusing on what you cannot have, what CAN you have? What can you add onto your plate to add more nutrients? Where can you add more spices, more colorful vegetables, more nuts and seeds? Where can you support your body's needs by addition without restriction?

Time Travel. As humans, we have an incredible tool of mental time travel. We can rewind to things in the past as well as fast forward to our future self. Use this tool to your advantage by doing a quick mental scan. Have you been in a scenario like this in the past? What did you choose and how did you feel afterward? What would happen if you chose differently? Or the same? Similarly, what will your future self feel about this current moment?

Ask yourself: "(Your name), how will you feel about this tomorrow? Or next week? Let's think about which friend you can call tomorrow to discuss this with."

Key takeaways: 1) How do you FEEL? 2) Take a breath 3) Add in 4) Mental time travel

RESOURCES

1| Lowe MR, Doshi SD, Katterman SN, Feig EH. Dieting and restrained eating as prospective predictors of weight gain. Front Psychol. 2013 Sep 2;4:577. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00577. PMID: 24032024; PMCID: PMC3759019.