May 3, 2024 • 47 mins
Embark on an exploration of your body's deepest cravings and nutritional needs with our guest star, Annie Zappulla, a trailblazing dietitian and owner of A to Z Wellness Solutions in Sea Girt, NJ. As we chart the landscape of intuitive eating, you'll discover how to decode the signals your body sends, paving the way to a healthier, more vibrant you.
Ever feel like you're on the losing end of a battle with food guilt and restrictive diets? We're flipping the script, busting the myths of forbidden fruits (or roll-ups, in this case) to forge a new narrative where food is neither a foe nor a mere fuel but a friend. With laughter as our companion, we navigate the emotional and psychological terrain of eating, learning to honor hunger and savor satisfaction without the baggage of the "food police."
This episode isn't just about what we put on our plates; it's about the holistic tapestry of health—where hormones dance in harmony with diet and lifestyle, and where medications like Ozempic are demystified. Join us as we unravel the threads of gentle nutrition and honor our bodies' wisdom, planting the seeds for a nourished life, rich with the joys of food as nature intended. With Annie's expertise guiding the way, let's feast on the knowledge that'll lead us to the heart of whole body well-being.
Guest Star:
Annie Zappulla, BS, RDN
A to Z Wellness Solutions
2130 NJ-35 STE 227
Sea Girt, NJ 08750
Phone: 732-619-1854
Instagram: @atozwellness_
Website: https://atozwellnesssolutions.com/
Disclaimer: This podcast represents the opinions of Dr. Bridget Melton, MD and licensed therapist Marissa Volinsky, MS, LPC, NCC. The contents of our podcast and website should not be taken as medical advice. The contents of our podcast and website are for general informational purposes only, and are not intended to diagnose, treat, prevent, or cure any condition or disease or substitute for medical advice. Always seek the advice of your physician, mental health professional, or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment and before starting or discontinuing treatment.
If you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts or a crisis, please reach out immediately to the Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255 or text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741. These services are free and confidential.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
welcome back to the podcast guys today.
Your hosts, marissa and bridgetwho hopefully you you know by
now if you've tuned in beforeare here the very special guest,
annie Zapula.
So Annie is a registereddietitian and nutritionist and
the owner of A to Z Wellness inNew Jersey, who focuses on
intuitive eating and, I think,integrative health.
(00:34):
Is that correct?
Or integrative eating?
Is that another term?
Speaker 3 (00:38):
Yes, yes.
Whole body health is a goodapproach.
So not only intuitive eating,but also other aspects of health
that nutrition can helpdefinitely.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Brilliant.
So Annie is also a busy mom whoknows the importance of fueling
our bodies properly in order tomake the most of our days.
So today we'll be talking aboutthe mind-gut connection, diets
and how food affects our health.
I do want to just preface bysaying if I mention any like
dieting terms, that is notsupported by the intuitive
(01:10):
eating community.
It's just coming from mymedical perspective.
That's all.
So nobody attack Annie, yeah,nobody.
So, annie, if you have anyfurther introduction for
yourself, carry on.
Speaker 3 (01:22):
Thanks, bridget, thank you, marissa and Bridget
for having me.
It's so nice to be able to beon a platform like this to share
the nutrition side of health,because I always advocate my
clients to be working with allof their interdisciplinary teams
.
I think that the therapies areso important to be working
together, so it's so great tohave all three perspectives on a
(01:43):
podcast like this.
So, like Bridget said, I am adietician nutritionist.
I have a private practice inSeagirt, new Jersey, that
provides one-on-one nutritionalcounseling services for those
who want to utilize nutrition asa way to promote their overall
health.
I work one-on-one with clientsto support a variety of health
goals, whether it's helpingwomen heal their relationship
with food with a more intuitiveeating approach, or just helping
(02:06):
other genders and age groupssupport their overall health or
manage any kind of chronicdiseases like diabetes or heart
disease.
So I really advocate for myclients and take a very
personalized approach insupporting their health and want
it to be something that feelslike a positive incorporation to
their lifelong well-being.
So I do virtual and in-personsessions and work with major
(02:29):
insurance plans.
So just the accessibility ofnutrition therapy is also super
important to me.
So I'm excited to share alittle bit more of my
perspective and, like I said,thank you for having me on to
share a little bit morespecifically about intuitive
eating and its benefits.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Excellent, yeah, absolutely.
About intuitive eating and itsbenefits Excellent, okay, yeah,
absolutely.
So, before we really get intoit, quick bump date for
everybody, anybody who cares,probably like two friends.
I'm 21 weeks now, so we're morethan halfway and I do not know
the sex, so let us know.
What do you think, boy or girl,or does nobody care?
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Oh, my God, I'm going to say boy, you think boy?
Speaker 3 (03:05):
I would say boy, yeah , for sure.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
So I'm having like horrific acne, so take these.
I'm ugly as anything, so justthink about that.
No other symptoms exceptextreme ugliness.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
This is why we cannot video podcast.
Just kidding, I know.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
We don't video because right now I'm not fit
for camera.
Speaker 3 (03:28):
This is, this is a face for radio.
It's technical issues.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
A face.
Only a mother could loveTechnical issues, so yeah, All
right, let's get into it guys.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
So I'm going to just chat a little bit about how our
diet and what we eat affects ourphysical health.
I'm sure a lot of this stuffpeople have heard before, but
just in case.
So, according to the CDC, ahealthy diet helps children grow
and develop properly.
Adequate vitamin D preventsbone diseases like rickets in
children and osteopenia orosteoporosis in adults.
(03:58):
So osteopenia is basically theweakening of the bones and it
can develop into osteoporosis,which is literally translated to
porous bones, and that's whenyou're at risk of fractures,
especially in postmenopausalwomen.
So a healthy diet helps us tolive longer and healthier lives.
It prevents chronic diseaseslike diabetes, high blood
pressure, cardiac disease,having a higher weight and even
(04:19):
certain cancers.
Nine in 10 American adultsconsume too much sodium to
support a healthy diet andnearly $173 billion a year is
spent on healthcare forcomplications caused by having a
higher weight, which is crazy.
I read that number and I waslike blown away.
It really shows you that ourhealthcare should be more
(04:40):
focused on prevention and livinghealthy lives instead of
treating it after the fact.
You're already behind the curve.
At that point it's too late.
Yeah, In the US, 20% of youngpeople.
So people aged two to 19 yearsold and 42% of adults are
classified as larger bodied, andthis can lead to chronic
(05:01):
diseases, even cancer, which Iknow sounds really frightening
but it is true.
So basically, things likeincreased peripheral fat stores
can lead to endometrial cancerand that's just related to
increased estrogen productioncauses your endometrium to get
thicker and thicker and that canlead to some dysplasia and
eventually cancer.
And increased fat stores canalso lead to breast cancer,
(05:22):
especially in men.
So I think breast canceroverall incidence for men is
only like 1% of breast cancersare male and you see that higher
in men with gynecomastia, sofat pads around where their
pectoral muscles are.
So increased weight can lead tobreast cancer in men.
The overconsumption of certainfoods like ultra processed foods
and red meat, can lead tocolorectal cancer.
(05:43):
Higher levels of fat affect ourhormones, mainly estrogen.
The excess fat also leads tocellular damage from release of
reactive oxygen species.
Places where cell damage happensrepeatedly, cancer cells are
more likely to develop, and I'llexplain how that happens.
So one really good example issomething called Barrett's
esophagus, which is aprec-cancerous condition and
(06:05):
it's really common.
So something as simple aschronic acid reflux.
It's increased chances inmiddle-aged people with higher
weights, who eat particularlylike spicy food or greasy food,
or who eat really late at night,have stressful careers or are
smokers or drink a lot ofalcohol.
These all contribute to havingthis chronic acid reflux that
(06:25):
doesn't really respond tomedication.
So if you have acid refluxevery night, eventually the
cells that line your esophaguswill change over to a more
sturdy cell to prevent thelining of your esophagus from
eroding further.
So when this happens it'scalled Barrett's esophagus and
that's pre-cancer, and yearsdown the road that can actually
turn into esophageal cancer.
(06:46):
Just because of the repeatedattack of acid on your throat,
you develop metaplasia, which isa new cell in the throat, and
that can lead to dysplasia andthen cancer.
So it's really interesting abouthow our diet and our lifestyle
can actually directly causecancer in certain situations.
So we all know that feeling offatigue and brain fog after a
week of maybe binge eating,whether we were away on vacation
(07:08):
or just overindulging duringthe holidays or just if you had
a poor week of takeout anddrinking when you were in
college.
When we fuel our bodies poorly,we feel poor because we're not
taking in maybe enough food,Maybe we're feeling guilty and
we're not eating as much as weshould be.
So we're undernourished and wedon't realize and that's why
you're so lethargic.
So all of these things reallyaffect how we act as adults.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
So Annie is going to explain more about what she does
.
And yeah, thanks, bridget.
I think that's actually areally great segue, because
intuitive eating is really abouthow you can be more in tune
with yourself and perceive whatyour physical and psychological
needs are.
So it is a lot about checkingin with your body to see how
does food make me feel, andjumping into that side of
nutrition and honoring whatmakes us feel our best on a day
(07:55):
to day basis.
I want to share a little bitabout how I got into intuitive
eating.
So I've always been prettyintrigued with intuitive eating
because I grew up a prettyintuitive eater.
My mom would always say I couldjust leave a couple bites of
food on my plate and walk awayand easily listen to my body, I
would say.
For the most part growing up,even through high school and
college, I had a pretty goodrelationship with food.
(08:16):
I did struggle to find thatright balance, which I think a
lot of people do in this day andage.
Unfortunately, through highschool and college I was thrown
so much nutrition information,you know just through my career
choice, that it was difficult tonot get over consumed with that
, which I think sometimes peoplestruggle with now, especially
just with like the outlets wehave with social media.
There's a lot of informationout there and part of my job is
(08:39):
to make that information easierto digest and find the right
information as well.
So I do feel like intuitiveeating for myself always brought
me back center and gave me thatright mix of like utilizing the
nutrition information withoutfeeling too overwhelmed.
And then, through my practicewith nutritional counseling, I
just I've run into so manyclients who also struggle with
(08:59):
the same thing or currentlystruggle with their relationship
with food.
I'm really just passionateabout helping people heal and
just get to a better place foroverall wellness.
So intuitive eating isconsidered a self-care eating
framework.
It's rooted in providingrespect for all bodies and it's
a non-diet approach to eating.
So it's not weight lossspecific, it's more of that
(09:21):
non-diet approach and just kindof focusing more on what our
body tells us, what makes usfeel good and what behaviors
we're doing on a day to daybasis.
And it follows 10 specificprinciples.
Those 10 principles are dynamic, play with instinct, emotion
and thought, and so a little bitof a background on intuiting as
well.
It was coined not that long ago, but we still have a good
(09:44):
amount of time under our belt.
It was coined in 1990 by EvelynTriboli and Elise Resch, who
are the founders of intuitiveeating, and then it wasn't until
2005 where intuitive eatingstudies actually started to
emerge and have actually grownto over 200 that exist now, so
it's really gaining popularityand it's something that people I
see a lot of dietitians areincorporating it into their
(10:05):
counseling.
There's actually over 2000intuitive eating counselors
across 40 countries now, so it'sreally grown a lot since they
first started it and I find thatyou know so many different
clients can benefit from it.
So intuitive eating is all aboutsomething called interceptive
awareness, which is the abilityto perceive your physical
(10:26):
sensations in your body thatarise.
So like feeling like you have afull bladder.
You can also feel like whenyour body is satiated from food
or when emotion comes up, sowhen we can be really in tune
with our bodies throughintuitive eating, we can know
what our physical needs are,maybe through nutrition and
nourishment, but also ourpsychological needs as well,
like maybe needing to have someextra self care when emotions
(10:48):
come up.
I know the goal with intuitiveeating is is to make it as
simple as knowing that we haveto use the restroom, knowing
when our body needs nourishment,what kind of nourishment that
is, and knowing when you knowwhen we're satisfied and we're
we're done and finished.
This is a whole practice that isunique to each person and it's
a direct experience throughyourself and everyone's journey
(11:09):
is different, but it allows youto kind of make your own food
choices based on what your bodyis telling you.
So through the intuitive eatingstudies, we do see that it
increases variety of foods.
It also increases bodyappreciation, body trust,
enjoyment of eating, overallwell-being, actually can
increase your HDL levels, whichis your good cholesterol.
It lowers your triglyceridelevels and it can regulate
(11:33):
glycemic control as well, whichis your blood sugar regulation.
People also notice a sense ofoverall optimism, enjoyment of
food and there's a reducedincidence of disordered eating,
which is super important forpeople to feel like they don't
have that poor relationship withfood.
Speaker 2 (11:50):
So, like I, mentioned Wow, can I interject yeah?
Speaker 3 (11:53):
Yes, please.
Speaker 2 (11:54):
Real quick.
I just have a question for you.
Do you find that peoplestruggle to find that internal
sensor that says I think I'mfull now, or do you think it
kind of comes naturally onceit's explained to them?
Speaker 3 (12:06):
That's a really good question and I will say it
varies for each person.
Someone can really jump onintuitive eating and heal their
relationship with food in acouple months.
Sometimes it takes years.
So I will say there's ainformation we collect in the
first session of like where yourhealth history is at, where
your relationship with food wasat when you were younger and
(12:26):
what's kind of contributed toyour perspective on food now.
So I will say that it variesper person but it is kind of
like a whole new learningprocess for some people.
We're kind of sometimes startingfrom scratch if people from you
know, from a young area are notused to listening to their body
and maybe have been told a lotof rules and restrictions as a
(12:46):
child or do struggle with, like,their relationship with social
media and following certainpeople that put some fear around
food.
So everyone's journey isdifferent.
I would say we do a lot ofpractices together to make that
easier for you.
For example, I have a resourcethat is called a hunger scale
and it is a scale from zero to10 that rates zero being like
(13:08):
very hungry and pain,uncomfortable, and 10 being the
opposite but for fullness, sobeing bloated, having pain, not
having any energy, not beingable to move too much, and we
utilize that informationtogether to kind of check in
with where do you sense thosethings approaching meals and how
does that change also as you'reeating.
(13:29):
So we do a lot of mindfulnesspractice when it comes to
intuitive eating.
Mindfulness is a skill andintuitive eating is more of like
this eating style and lifestyleapproach, and so we do a lot of
practices together to not onlyhave that nutrition education
but also, you know, bring itback to yourselves too, because
there are a lot of guidelineswhen it comes to nutrition.
We also want to circle back tohow you're feeling in the
(13:52):
process as well.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
Cool.
It sounds like such a holisticapproach to really overall
wellness.
So it's very interesting.
Speaker 1 (13:59):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (14:00):
Yeah, definitely so.
I think I mentioned thisearlier.
There's literally so much wecould talk about when it comes
to intuitive eating Because,like I said, there are 10
principles to it and everyone'sexperience is different, so you
know how deep we get in certainvaries per person, so someone
might really struggle with onetopic and one might be a breeze
(14:20):
for them, and so you know eacheach person's different, but
there's just a lot ofinformation to talk about, which
is which is very interesting,but it also shows you how much
people struggle with theirrelationship with food, which is
really unfortunate.
Food is supposed to besomething that, like, supports
our body and providesnourishment and makes us feel
better, and unfortunately,that's not always the case, and
(14:41):
so intuitive eating is a reallyhelpful approach to improve that
.
Speaker 1 (14:45):
Absolutely.
I was just even thinking withyou.
Know you explaining intuitiveeating?
How many kids might have grownup I know this is probably more
older generations but in a housewhere they were full and they
were feeling full, but theirparent was like no, you don't
leave the table till you finishthe plate.
Speaker 3 (14:58):
Right, exactly, and that's actually like a food rule
.
People don't really recognizethat when they come to see me,
but that actually is a food rulethat pulls yourself away from
what your body is telling you.
It makes you feel like you haveto go against its.
You know your body signals andunfortunately that's just kind
of losing trust with your bodyand making it really confusing
(15:19):
on how to eat.
So that's something that we doin the beginning is to recognize
where maybe like that foodpolice or those food rules are
coming from and to really try tochange that.
You know those thoughts andtalk around food.
There's a lot of preoccupationpeople have with food when
they're eating.
There's a lot of things goingthrough people's minds that
(15:41):
unfortunately those thoughts andrules can cause them to avoid
listening to their body's needsand can push them past that
comfortable fullness for sure.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
That's interesting.
Yeah, I'm sure very you knowhelpful for people, maybe even
hearing this for the first time.
Speaker 3 (15:59):
Yeah, and there's 10 principles to intuitive eating,
and I wanted to just touch on acouple here that I find my
clients or people struggle withthe most when it comes to their
relationship with food, and I'lltry to try to be concise with
this as well.
Like I said, there's so muchinformation, but definitely jump
in and let me know if you havequestions with anything that I
share here.
(16:19):
So one of the first actuallythe first principle of intuitive
eating is rejecting the dietmentality, and this is a big one
when it comes to intuitiveeating, because we're
essentially accepting thatdieting does not work and
research does show us that, andso it pretty much, you know,
means that we're going to acceptthat following any kind of like
restrictive fad diet is notgoing to support overall
(16:42):
well-being and is not going tobe sustainable.
There's actually a reallyinteresting study called the
Minnesota Starvation Study.
I'm not sure if either of youhave heard of it before, but it
was taken place in 1944 to 1945on college-age men who were put
on a semi-starvation diet alongwith exercise, and they were put
on about a 1,700 calorie diet,which was really only a few
(17:04):
hundred less calories than whattheir body would need.
But they found that this studyled to food preoccupation.
So food thoughts, food talk,people just talking about food
in excess, collecting recipes,studying cookbooks, having food
cravings, so kind of reallybecoming like that obsessive,
having those obsessive feelingsaround food that some people
often do when they're on reallyrestrictive diets.
(17:25):
And there are actually a couplescenarios where people did binge
on food and purge because theyover consumed and they kind of
had that rebound effect of undereating and then that food
restriction causing them tobinge on food and then be so
uncomfortable that they purge.
So it's really interesting howwe have these studies to show
that diets don't work and howmuch people can actually suffer
(17:47):
and struggle when they are puton really restrictive diets.
And so diets don't work forsustainable weight loss and more
of a predictor of weight gain.
So in 30 studies up to twothirds of people regained more
weight than they lost withinthat five year mark, and so
that's kind of where wegenerally see a lot of those
diets start to cause people togain weight.
There's not a lot of studieswith these diets after five
(18:09):
years and so that's kind of likein that five year mark where we
start seeing people gain theweight back, just because it's
just not sustainable andrealistic for the long term and
so, like I mentioned, itactually can increase poor
mental health and poor physicalhealth when we're experiencing
some of these side effects fromunder under eating, like Bridget
(18:30):
was kind of mentioning earlier.
Speaker 2 (18:31):
Yeah, it's kind of like when you grow up in that
really restrictive household andyou're not allowed to have any
snacks.
You know you had no soda, nosnacks, nothing fun.
And you go to your friend'shouse and they have everything,
so you just eat it all.
And then you go home and youbeg your parents like please,
can we have fruit roll-ups?
And your parents are like, no,sorry, but that's all you could
(18:52):
think about.
Now.
How do I get the fruit roll-ups?
Who has the fruit roll-ups?
Where can I eat the fruitroll-ups?
Speaker 3 (18:57):
Yeah, and I related a lot to COVID with my clients
too.
When the pandemic happened, wewere told we couldn't go outside
, go to the grocery store, go toa park, go do anything, and all
we wanted to do was go stand inthe grocery store, right Like
it was.
When we're told we can't dothat something and we're like
really restricted with something, that's where our minds start
to become like we start tooverthink around, and the same
(19:20):
thing applies to food as well.
Yeah, that's so funny.
Speaker 2 (19:23):
Okay, during COVID.
This is so, it's just funny.
You mentioned the grocery storeduring COVID.
I was in Chicago.
In Chicago, it was like spring2020.
So early COVID Chicago had likea full lockdown effect in order
because COVID was spreadingrampant there.
So my roommate Marwa and Ilockdown effect in order because
COVID was spreading rampantthere.
So my roommate Marwa and Ishout out to Marwa we were just
(19:43):
watching Superstore, that NBCsitcom.
We were watching Superstore andit basically takes place in
something called Cloud 9, butit's like a Walmart, it's a huge
store and we were watchingepisode after episode for hours
sitting on the couch.
And one time I just looked overat Marwa and I was like, oh my
God, should we quit medicine?
Like maybe we should just havea fun job like that.
And she's like Bridget, this isthe COVID talking.
(20:04):
You just want space.
Like you just want to leave theapartment and go to a Walmart,
I think.
And I was like, oh my God, workat Walmart.
I just want to like go to one.
I'm just stuck in a two bedroomapartment.
Speaker 1 (20:16):
Like it was so weird.
I was like, oh yeah, oh my God,yeah, that's hilarious.
I would love to be there whenyou broke the news to mom.
You know, I don't want to domed school anymore, I just want
to be a Walmart.
You know, greeters.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
I just had so many fun antics and I was like, oh my
God, there's so much like spaceand free time.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
Oh my goodness I love it the amount of times you've
mentioned walmart.
You think they'd be sponsoringus.
Yeah, okay, shout out towalmart, please.
Speaker 3 (20:45):
That would be good lord, I would be impressed if
you guys got walmart.
That is like the largest foodstore, I think, like the most,
like the most successful foodstore, isn't it?
Walmart's pretty impressive isit?
Oh my god, wow, I mean, Iwouldn't be shocked it's one of
the largest, like real retailersendorsement for a lot of
products funny.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
I'm in a walmart sundress right now.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
Love it you know what's her name?
Sophia vergara.
There's clothing for walmart.
Speaker 1 (21:12):
That makes sense, because that's fabulous and
comfy.
Speaker 2 (21:14):
I know all right, we gotta stop bigging up walmart
unless they're giving us money.
Speaker 3 (21:18):
Yeah.
Oh, my gosh, that's hilarious,walmart, yeah.
So I think that it takes homethe point that when we're told
we can't have something, we wantan even more.
And so we really want to likelook at those notions head on
and recognize where those rulesare coming into play.
Which actually takes me to mynext principle of challenging
(21:38):
the food police.
Whether that's an inner play oran outer play, we want to
challenge the thoughts, beliefsand rules that are held against
food.
People say I feel guiltybecause I ate this, or oh, I'm
so bad for eating this food, orI need to, I need to go on a
cleanse tomorrow because I ate apiece of cake the day before,
and so we really want to unpackthese thoughts and feelings as a
(22:01):
way to kind of let go of themand change the script that we
have with the food.
So that's a really big practicefor people.
It's actually interesting whenwe sit down and actually think
about what thoughts are going on, you know, when we're eating.
I actually recently did thiswith a client on Friday and she
sent me a paragraph of herthoughts just from one meal and
(22:23):
she was like, wow, I have a lotof fog around my food and we
need to break down what's thetruth and what's a rule or
what's a belief that doesn'thold truth for your well-being,
because that distraction andthose thoughts around food
during an eating experiencereally take away from your
eating experience overall andit's just going to continue to
(22:45):
interfere with your ability toheal your relationship with food
.
And that's where myself, as adietician, can share the actual
nutrition facts with you.
Is this something that is afactual information or is this
not?
And should you really befeeling guilty around food?
Did you kill anyone to get thefood?
Did you steal the food?
Guilt is a pretty strongemotion to feel with food and we
really want to try to reducethat around your eating
(23:08):
experience.
It's not going to make it asenjoyable if we're feeling or
thinking these thoughts thissignificantly.
Speaker 2 (23:15):
Very interesting.
Can you think off the top ofyour head like a really odd food
rule that you've heard?
Speaker 3 (23:20):
Let's see.
Well, I wouldn't saynecessarily odd, but I would say
it's very unfortunate and sadfor me to hear is that females
or males in a larger body theybelieve that they shouldn't be
eating in general, and so that'sa whole nother topic in itself,
but that is really unfortunateto feel like, because someone's
in a larger body, that theythink they shouldn't be eating
(23:41):
or that they're going to bejudged for eating anything or
more, judged for eating aspecific food.
So that is one of the moreunfortunate things.
I hear that people reallystruggle with feeling like they
deserve to eat because maybe ofwhat people have said to them or
how they think that they comeacross in regards to the size of
their body.
Speaker 1 (23:58):
Wow, god, that's awful.
Speaker 3 (23:59):
Yeah.
So it is very important to meto advocate that.
Doesn't matter your body size,it doesn't matter what you look
like or who you are your bodydeserves to eat, deserves to be
nourished, it deserves to feelgood on a day to day basis.
Nutrition is a basic need thatneeds to be met on a daily basis
.
It's just like getting enoughhydration, it's just like
shelter, it's just like adequatesleep, and this is something
(24:20):
that we definitely don't want topull ourselves away from, but
there's a lot to unpack there aswell.
So one of the next, one of thenext principles that I think is
a little bit lighter and alittle bit more fun is
discovering your satisfaction,which is the hub of intuitive
eating, they like to call it,and finding your satisfaction is
really important process ofintuitive eating, because it
(24:41):
allows you to decide where do Ifeel like I'm comfortable
fullness, but also like reallyenjoying what I'm eating.
A lot of times, people, becausethey maybe have been told eat
this, eat that, or don't eatthis, don't eat that, that they
don't even really know what theylike anymore, and so we really
get curious and get excitedabout getting to know ourselves
(25:03):
in this process, to say, okay,what tastes do I like, what
textures, what aromas, whattemperature, what feels good in
my body?
And it's really interesting howpeople can discover how they
get that level of satisfactionin their meals when they just
start to pay attention a littlebit more and start to get to
know their bodies a little bitbetter.
That's interesting.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Yeah, I was just going to say have you ever
watched Physical on Apple TV?
No, I haven't.
Great show, it's Rose Byrne's.
You know the comedian?
I think her name's Rose Byrne.
She is a woman in the 80s whohas bulimia and she's always
struggled with it.
And she, in the end, sheeventually does forcibly go to
therapy and in one of thesessions they're they have an
(25:44):
orange and they're taught tojust hold the orange, smell the
orange, you know, feel theorange.
What emotions does it elicit?
And she didn't even know if sheliked oranges at that point,
because she was so far removedfrom her body's cues and just
saw food as binging and purgingexercise only.
She had no idea what she liked.
If someone asked her, what fooddo you enjoy?
(26:05):
She would have no answer yeah,that's so interesting.
Speaker 3 (26:08):
I find that, even for a lot of my clients' fear of
foods, when we actually practicethat mindfulness and they give
themselves permission to eat andthey can slow down and really
taste what they're eating,they're like it was too sweet
for me.
I didn't even like it.
I wouldn't go back and eat thatagain.
But that is a really bigcomponent of saying you're the
main driver of what you want toeat, instead of being told like,
(26:30):
oh well, you can't have that,that increases your desire for
it and then you're not even sureif you like it right and so
when we can pull it back toourselves.
You know, a lot of times thesefoods that were restricted or
feel like we have no controlover actually easily goes away
because we're the onesdetermining whether we like it
or not.
But that mindfulness practiceis huge to get a better picture
(26:51):
of, like what actually is thisfood about?
Do I, do I like it?
Does it make me feel good?
Is it tasty to me?
That's super interesting.
I'm gonna have to look up thatshow for sure.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
Yeah, it's very, very good.
I definitely recommend it toeveryone regardless so good.
Speaker 3 (27:06):
One of the next, one of the next principles that's
also super important is copingwith emotions, with kindness.
So a lot of times peoplestruggle with the thought of
intuitive eating because theythink that oh well, if you ditch
diets and you ditch food rulesand you give yourself permission
to fully eat, aren't you justgoing to eat whatever you want
at all times of the day, whichreally isn't the case.
(27:28):
Like I mentioned, with theresearch that we talked about
earlier, actually shows morecontrol over eating and less
binge eating and whatnot.
That mental side of eatingwhere you know there's emotional
eating that we rely on at timesand it's unrealistic to say
that we're never going to usefood as an outlet for stress.
That's just, unfortunately,impossible to say.
(27:49):
We're never going to, you know,lean on food in times of comfort
, but what I think is importantis that it's not our only outlet
, right, and so we want to kindof move away from food being our
only outlet for these emotionsand have healthier solutions for
that, which, obviously, workingwith a therapist who has more
guidance and specialty aroundmanaging stress and anxiety or
(28:11):
emotions that come up is superimportant.
Like I mentioned earlier, thetherapies with nutrition therapy
and seeing a therapist, workhand in hand together and make
this process a lot easier foryou.
So, yes, we can lean on foodfor emotion, but eventually
we're going to have to deal withthe emotions that come on head
on.
So we just want to figure outwhat outlets can kind of manage
those emotions that do come upand make sure you're seeking
(28:33):
additional help if needed forthings that are maybe a little
bit more significant.
Speaker 1 (28:38):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (28:38):
The last principle I'll touch on is is honoring
your health through gentlenutrition.
So I think this is an importantone as a dietician for me to
touch on.
Like where does nutrition comein the mix right?
Like, how do we also prioritizesome of the information Bridget
was talking about in regards tohealing our relationship with
food?
So we wanna make sure thatwe're making food choices that
honor our health and taste budswhile making us feel good.
(29:01):
So it means that we think aboutother parts of our body,
outside of our tongue, that cansupport our eating choices.
You don't have to eat perfectlyto be healthy.
One food is never going tocause you to have a nutrition
deficiency or cause you to havediabetes or heart disease.
It's never going to be onewrong move.
It's really we're looking at,you know, cumulatively, what are
(29:21):
we doing overall to support ourhealth, for physical, mental
and emotional well being?
So we want to really beflexible and not have those
rigid rules and ask ourselvesokay, with this information,
this nutrition information, howdo I align with this?
How do I see that this couldsupport where my goals are and
still support my relationshipwith food?
(29:42):
So I find that a lot ofdietitians are taking a more of
like an addition approach totheir counseling, which I really
support, I really like.
So, in regards to heart health,people might be concerned about
higher fat meats, ultraprocessed foods or cholesterol,
different things like that.
And you know, in my perspectivethere's actually a ton of
(30:02):
research that shows how fiber issuper important to absorbing
our cholesterol in our bloodright.
So how can we add maybe alittle bit more fiber and help
you meet your fiber needsthrough the day?
So it feels like we're addingto your meals instead of taking
away, and we really want to kindof think about that approach so
it doesn't feel so restrictive,but we're kind of like adding
nutritious components to yourmeal.
(30:23):
So we're thinking about variety, balance and sufficiency in
regards to your nutrition.
So the honoring your health andgentle nutrition is the last
principle of intuitive eating,because if your relationship
hasn't fully healed before goingto this, there is a chance that
you could take the gentlenutrition information and start
(30:43):
playing it in more of the rigidrules.
And so we really want to healyour relationship and
perspective on food beforeadding in more of like that
research around.
You know nutrition guidelines.
Speaker 1 (30:53):
Wow, that's awesome.
I feel like those were all.
Speaker 2 (30:55):
Yeah, absolutely Excellent point.
Yeah, I've learned a lot.
Speaker 3 (31:00):
No, I definitely did Like I said there's so much to
chat about.
I wanted to like highlight alot like the specific principles
that I see a lot with myclients and I will say too, when
it comes to intuitive eating, Ireally do encourage, if
anyone's interested in pursuingthat route, to seek out a
dietician that is certified inintuitive eating.
(31:20):
There's a lot of informationout there, whether it's on
social media or Google, and somethings are contradictory.
So it's definitely important tomake sure you're getting
information from a reliablesource, and I will say I always
just encourage people to likebring it back to yourself.
If something's making you feeluncomfortable or if you're
starting to feel scared aroundfood, then that's a red flag.
So we just want to make surethat every like what you're
(31:43):
incorporating in your day to dayfeels really aligned for you.
Speaker 2 (31:46):
Yeah absolutely, yeah , definitely.
If you're feeling uncomfortablearound food, then someone has
sent you the wrong message atsome point.
I think.
Right, exactly.
Speaker 3 (31:54):
If you're starting to question some things in that
realm, it doesn't mean thatyou're doing something wrong.
I think that's an importantemotion and feeling to recognize
around information that you'retaking in on a daily basis,
because we can take in a lotjust from the outlets we have.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
Absolutely.
In your experience, do youthink a lot of the external food
rules?
Do you think they come more sofrom social media or more so
from, maybe friends or parentsgrowing up, or is it a
combination really?
Speaker 3 (32:25):
I definitely think it can be a combination, but I
also see that, depending on theage group, there's either a lot
of food rules from growing up orin the millennial Gen Z age
group, there may be a little bitmore from social media because
we have so much more access tothat and, like I mentioned
earlier, there's a lot just moredifferent types of social media
(32:46):
in our outlets as well.
And I will say that there's alot of fear mongering around
foods on the social media realmabout how we really shouldn't be
eating foods at all and how, ifyou know how, if you know, they
discuss how eating a food isgoing to result in X disease and
unfortunately it's just a lotof things aren't accurate and
(33:08):
it's just not a healthy approacheither way.
What, either way, to be puttingfear against people with food
when it's supposed to besomething that's supporting our
body.
So I will say that itdefinitely is a combination, but
the amount of whether it's fromgrowing up or social media, it
definitely varies on maybe justage group, how old someone is.
Speaker 2 (33:29):
Yeah, I could see that Definitely.
Like Marissa mentioned, thewhole you know empty plate club.
That was definitely more of.
Our grandparents said that andit was like I don't think you
understand that a child'sstomach is smaller.
You can't give me the sameportion of chicken and think
that I eat that if you're eatingthat.
Speaker 1 (33:48):
But I will say, bridget, because you know how we
were talking earlier in thesegment about.
You know, when you don't have,you want right.
I'm wondering.
Some of our grandparents,depending on their ages, were
during the Great Depression,right, so they didn't have, so
maybe they were always worriedabout that next meal.
That that's where they got thatfrom, you know.
Speaker 2 (34:05):
Yeah, definitely I think you're right there.
It was more of a survival thing.
They just never knew, you know.
Speaker 3 (34:10):
And that is a form of restriction as well.
Just not knowing when your nextmeal is going to come, that's
completely valid, but in thosesituations we just have to fact
check that as well.
Can you go into your pantry andsee that you have food
available to you, that you arenot going to be going starving,
and you have that accessibilityto food?
Maybe your grandparents didn'thave, but it's super interesting
(34:32):
how a lot of those things canbe connected and intertwined
Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (34:35):
So Annie did segue me perfectly into mental health
and the aspect of mental healthwith eating she's mentioned.
It could be an outlet forstress to eat and your behaviors
around eating, and there'sconsequences of diet culture
that are way more than justphysical.
They take a significant toll onour mental health as well.
Research has shown a stronglink between chronic dieting and
increased risk of eatingdisorders, depression, anxiety
(34:59):
and that's what Andy wasmentioning, where it's good that
they go hand in hand, right.
Nutritionist and therapist, andyou know what?
Let's add even Bridget in.
You know, get your primary carephysician going.
I think all three is very goodand you know you're all getting
information from differentoutlets and if they all work
together, even better.
Consuming processed foods on aregular basis has been linked to
increased rates of depression,anxiety and cognitive decline.
(35:19):
This inflammatory responsetriggered by these foods can
disrupt neurotransmitterfunctions and impair our ability
to regulate our emotionseffectively, which is super
important.
I like that Andy was mentioning.
You know, take a step back,figure out how it's making you
feel From a therapistperspective, that's super
important.
Our emotions, our feelings, ourthoughts they all go hand in
hand.
They're important to explore.
Figure out what they mean toyou and what you need in that
(35:41):
moment and what's going to helpyou Absolutely 100% agree with.
And also minimizing our intakeof processed foods and
prioritizing whole, unprocessedoptions can be great for better
mental health and promotegreater emotional stability.
So there is a relentless pursuit, like the diet culture that we
did mention here and there, thatgives it unattainable ideal
levels, and how does that makepeople feel and what are the
(36:01):
impacts that's doing?
It could leave you feelingdepleted, both mentally and
emotionally, and we can losesight of our inherent worth,
trading our well-being for afalse promise of perfection.
So it's definitely important tofocus from weight loss to
holistic well-being, I feel, andthat way you can cultivate that
positive relationship with foodand your body.
And also it's a form ofself-care.
I think Annie touched on thattoo.
(36:23):
You know nourishing yourself isimportant and self-care is
important, and that goes hand inhand with therapy and pushing
you forward on the mental healthaspect of things.
And it's better than punishmentand restriction, definitely a
hundred percent better.
Speaker 3 (36:35):
Yeah, I agree with Marissa.
I think it's so important toavoid thinking about how we need
to change ourselves and justthink about how we continue want
to be the best version ofourselves.
Speaker 1 (36:44):
Absolutely, and even outside of, obviously, us being
on this podcast.
There has been times you knowyou had said you needed a
referral for therapy and I thinkit's like, as Annie has
mentioned, it's important tounderstand that you definitely
need a therapist thatspecializes in this.
I am obviously not one of them.
I specialize in other things,mostly related to trauma and
anxiety and depression, butdefinitely find a therapist that
(37:05):
will pair great with anutritionist.
They definitely go hand in handsuper important.
Speaker 3 (37:09):
For sure.
Speaker 2 (37:10):
Okay.
So I just want to touch onsomething that is all the rage
lately, but I don't know if it'sjust because of my career.
I hear about it all the time.
People mention it to me all thetime.
So it's not something that isreally endorsed by the medical
world, but I've heard so muchabout it that I've had to do my
own research about it.
So it's something that everyoneis calling the hormone diet.
So if, gosh, you do a quickGoogle search, you'll see 20
(37:33):
million versions of it.
So, basically, this so calledhormone diet claims to treat
things like infertilityassociated with polycystic
ovarian syndrome.
So PCOS is a very commonsyndrome whereby people have
excess androgens and estrogenaffecting their menstrual cycle.
They often skip periods andtherefore don't ovulate monthly.
(37:54):
So without ovulation, pregnancydoesn't occur naturally.
So one of the biggest riskfactors for PCOS is having a
higher weight.
Hence how we have now gotten tothis hormone diet.
So the hormone diet claims thatquote when your hormones are
out of control, you feel tiredall the time because your body
is converting food into fatinstead of fuel.
(38:15):
You lose muscle tone and fatbuilds up.
End quote.
Unsure about the validity ofthat statement, but I just
thought I would mention that Iwas like, hmm, that's an
interesting.
I don't know if that's accurate, but anecdotally people are
very pleased with the results.
So I was like, what does thisdiet entail?
Actually not that crazy.
(38:36):
So they do encourage 60 minutesof some sort of exercise, so
that could just be if you go fora walk for a few minutes and
then you go to the gym or you gofor a run, so you can combine
different movements throughoutthe day, but up to about 60
minutes daily.
And they also encourage healthysleep as a means to reduce
stress, which, yes, I think wecan all agree with.
That Sleeping is so essential.
(38:57):
And the diet involves takingvitamins, lots of vitamins B6,
b12, zinc and DIM.
So DIM is found in cruciferousvegetables like that's, like
broccoli stuff like that leafies, leafy greens as well, and this
stimulates efficient estrogenmetabolism, which that is true.
That is true.
Sometimes, you know, peopletake that over the counter, just
(39:17):
their own little you know, ifthey're going through menopause
or something, people will takethat and fenugreek.
So the hormone diet includesthree meals and two to three
snacks daily.
So you are eating enough.
Definitely it encouragesprotein to stay fuller longer
and it discourages processedfoods.
Vegetables, fruits and eggwhites can be consumed in
unlimited quantities.
(39:38):
So I was looking throughbecause they have like pages and
pages of example diets.
So like one of them would belike two egg whites in the
morning with a piece of toastand like maybe some spinach, and
then like a cottage cheesesnack mid-morning, a nice big
Greek salad for lunch, and thendinner might be like chicken,
vegetables, rice, a roll on theside.
(39:58):
So it is adequate food andthree snacks daily.
And I don't know if there's anyvalidity to this quote hormone
diet.
It's more so that people arejust eating whole foods and
eating enough and getting moreprotein and feeling better about
themselves and then, as a sideeffect, they are maybe shedding
a few pounds and overall theirsymptoms are improving.
(40:19):
So I think that's what's reallyhappening.
Speaker 3 (40:21):
Yeah, what are the behaviors behind supporting your
health right?
Instead of, like you mentionedit, being weight loss focused,
let's think about, like where isyour overall lifestyle at and
is there anything we can do toadd a little bit more balance in
there?
And I will say that in specificin regards to, like PCOS,
something that we do on anutrition standpoint is making
(40:42):
sure their blood sugar is reallystable, because if their blood
sugar is unstable, they might bereleasing a hormone called
insulin too much, which canaffect their health outcomes,
and so, in regards to keepingyour blood sugar stable, we
think about making sure you haveenough protein.
Generally, having protein andor fat every time you eat slows
(41:03):
the digestion of your food downand can kind of keep your energy
levels more stable and youfeeling more fuller for longer,
like Bridget was saying.
Speaker 2 (41:12):
Yes, definitely PCOS.
I really feel for people whoare struggling with it because
they do have thathyperinsulinemia and a lot of
them struggle.
They might have a higher bodyweight and they always have and
they struggle to take it offwhen your doctor's telling you
you need to lose fiber in yourweight or otherwise you know
you'll never get better andthese people are doing
(41:33):
everything they can and it'sjust so difficult because of
their hormonal imbalance.
So it can be very difficult totreat because of that and it
really does need like a holisticapproach.
So these, you know, thesepatients are getting adequate
dietary information.
They are definitely eatingenough and they're not just
restricting themselves becausethey're like well, you know, my
doctor told me I need to loseweight and they are getting some
(41:55):
healthy exercise, even ifthat's just going for a walk 20
minutes every day getting alittle sunshine on your face.
But I really feel for peoplewith PCOS just because it can
affect, you know, mind and bodyand spirit, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (42:08):
For sure.
Do you find that, when lookingat more of their behaviors day
to day, that that can alsosupport their outcomes with PCOS
without the weight lossincluded in that?
Speaker 2 (42:21):
Possibly.
The thing is I work in ahospital so I don't do enough
like follow-up with patientsbecause I'm not in a clinic, so
unfortunately I don't really getto see any of that
follow-through.
But usually if you can correctcertain behaviors then, yeah,
it's all kind of interlinkedthat way and they start feeling
better about themselves.
So then they actually startmaybe wanting to have more
(42:42):
nutritious meals and taking careof themselves because they're
feeling better and it's all justkind of linked that way in a
sense.
But it is something that is sodifficult to tell because a lot
of these patients are onmedications from a very young
age, so they can be teenagersdiagnosed with PCOS and then
they're on, you know, like acombined hormonal birth control
(43:03):
pill for years and years andyears.
So we don't actually know whattheir body is doing off of these
medications, sometimes untilthey're trying to become
pregnant and then they stoptaking them.
Interesting, yeah, so we mask alot of symptoms, unfortunately.
I also want to talk aboutOzempic.
That is wow.
Everywhere on social media youmight know someone taking
(43:24):
Ozempic.
It is just so common.
Obviously, we've heard aboutthe shortages for people who
actually need Ozempic becauseeveryone is just buying it up.
So we are seeing anunprecedented number of
unplanned pregnancies from womenwho are taking Ozempic.
We're calling them Ozempicbabies.
So Ozempic is a GLP agonist.
It does now come with a warningbecause they can reduce the
(43:48):
effectiveness of birth controlpills, mostly combined birth
control, so with estrogen andprogesterone.
So women are being told to useIUDs, condoms or other long-term
progesterone or copper methodsto prevent any unwanted
pregnancies.
And the other theory is thatweight loss itself is correcting
years of anovulatoryinfertility seen in things like
(44:10):
PCOS.
So a lot of times, first-linetreatment for PCOS, if you want
to start ovulating, is to lose5% of your body weight.
So even if you're not a largerbodied person, if you fall into
the average category for BMI, asmall amount of fat loss can
correct your hormonal imbalanceand improve symptoms.
So it's only making sense thatwomen suffering with being
(44:32):
larger bodied and they have type2 diabetes are using ozempic.
So this is causing asignificant weight loss over a
short amount of time.
It's their periods are nowreturning suddenly, meaning
they're now ovulating monthly,and this is obviously going to
lead to pregnancy if you havesex during ovulation with
adequate sperm.
So I've read stories of coupleswho struggled to conceive for
(44:54):
six or more years, only to windup unexpectedly pregnant when
they were not trying, becausethe female partner is recently
taking Ozempic for her diabetes.
So it's very interesting, and Imean a lot of the stories.
Obviously they're only going topublish the good ones, but
everyone was like overjoyed,they didn't, they weren't trying
for years because they just itwas completely ruled out for
them, but I find that sointeresting.
(45:16):
So now these ozempic babies arejust popping up all over the
place and yeah, so it's just abit of a combination of possibly
some excess fat loss and theineffectiveness of some birth
control now because of theseGLP-1 agonists.
Speaker 1 (45:29):
Yeah, I've seen the negative impacts in my practice
alone.
I've had some clients that hadto get off of it because their
depressive thoughts wereincreasing and they were
actually had, like, done so muchwork in progress with me, then
started Ozempic and then maybe amonth, month and a half in they
were like I feel like I haven'teven started therapy at all and
they were listing out all thethings they were thinking and
(45:49):
their symptoms and I was like Icould be wrong.
But I feel like they areconnected.
So we had them try.
They would stop, they wouldn'tgo for their next shot or
whatever their next appointmentwas and all of a sudden they
were back to the previous clientI was seeing.
It was like a complete nightand day, wow.
Speaker 2 (46:05):
Okay, I have read a little bit about mood symptoms,
but I haven't seen it.
Speaker 1 (46:08):
Oh yeah, I didn't think I was going to see it.
And then I started to and I waslike, wow, yeah, absolutely
yeah, absolutely, super Jinx youowe me a soda.
Speaker 2 (46:16):
I'm concerned that Ozempic is going to become yeah,
oh my God, same brain.
But I'm concerned Ozempic isjust going to become this like
new gold standard shiny objectthat everyone's chasing because
they think it will solve all oftheir problems.
Yeah, got to be careful.
Speaker 1 (46:32):
Exactly so.
Everybody, as always, thank youfor joining us on this journey
through the impact of dietculture on our mental health and
intuitive eating and hearingall three perspectives.
We are so thankful to be ableto have Annie on our podcast
today with us.
She's amazing.
If you've enjoyed today'sepisode, don't forget to
subscribe, share it with yourfriends and family and,
obviously, until next time, takecare of yourselves and remember
(46:55):
you are enough.
Thank you for joining in.
Speaker 3 (46:57):
Thank you so much, bridget and Marissa, for having
me on and talking aboutintuitive eating and how that
can support your overall health.
I hope that there was some snipof information that helped you
in your health journey.
If you're looking for moreone-on-one support and would
like to do nutritionalcounseling, my business name is
A to Z Wellness Solutions.
My website isatozwellnesssolutionscom and you
(47:21):
can follow me on Instagram atatozwellness, underscore.
Thank you so much.
welcome back to the podcast guys today.
Your hosts, marissa and bridgetwho hopefully you you know by
now if you've tuned in beforeare here the very special guest,
annie Zapula.
So Annie is a registereddietitian and nutritionist and
the owner of A to Z Wellness inNew Jersey, who focuses on
intuitive eating and, I think,integrative health.
(00:34):
Is that correct?
Or integrative eating?
Is that another term?
Speaker 3 (00:38):
Yes, yes.
Whole body health is a goodapproach.
So not only intuitive eating,but also other aspects of health
that nutrition can helpdefinitely.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Brilliant.
So Annie is also a busy mom whoknows the importance of fueling
our bodies properly in order tomake the most of our days.
So today we'll be talking aboutthe mind-gut connection, diets
and how food affects our health.
I do want to just preface bysaying if I mention any like
dieting terms, that is notsupported by the intuitive
(01:10):
eating community.
It's just coming from mymedical perspective.
That's all.
So nobody attack Annie, yeah,nobody.
So, annie, if you have anyfurther introduction for
yourself, carry on.
Speaker 3 (01:22):
Thanks, bridget, thank you, marissa and Bridget
for having me.
It's so nice to be able to beon a platform like this to share
the nutrition side of health,because I always advocate my
clients to be working with allof their interdisciplinary teams
.
I think that the therapies areso important to be working
together, so it's so great tohave all three perspectives on a
(01:43):
podcast like this.
So, like Bridget said, I am adietician nutritionist.
I have a private practice inSeagirt, new Jersey, that
provides one-on-one nutritionalcounseling services for those
who want to utilize nutrition asa way to promote their overall
health.
I work one-on-one with clientsto support a variety of health
goals, whether it's helpingwomen heal their relationship
with food with a more intuitiveeating approach, or just helping
(02:06):
other genders and age groupssupport their overall health or
manage any kind of chronicdiseases like diabetes or heart
disease.
So I really advocate for myclients and take a very
personalized approach insupporting their health and want
it to be something that feelslike a positive incorporation to
their lifelong well-being.
So I do virtual and in-personsessions and work with major
(02:29):
insurance plans.
So just the accessibility ofnutrition therapy is also super
important to me.
So I'm excited to share alittle bit more of my
perspective and, like I said,thank you for having me on to
share a little bit morespecifically about intuitive
eating and its benefits.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Excellent, yeah, absolutely.
About intuitive eating and itsbenefits Excellent, okay, yeah,
absolutely.
So, before we really get intoit, quick bump date for
everybody, anybody who cares,probably like two friends.
I'm 21 weeks now, so we're morethan halfway and I do not know
the sex, so let us know.
What do you think, boy or girl,or does nobody care?
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Oh, my God, I'm going to say boy, you think boy?
Speaker 3 (03:05):
I would say boy, yeah , for sure.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
So I'm having like horrific acne, so take these.
I'm ugly as anything, so justthink about that.
No other symptoms exceptextreme ugliness.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
This is why we cannot video podcast.
Just kidding, I know.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
We don't video because right now I'm not fit
for camera.
Speaker 3 (03:28):
This is, this is a face for radio.
It's technical issues.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
A face.
Only a mother could loveTechnical issues, so yeah, All
right, let's get into it guys.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
So I'm going to just chat a little bit about how our
diet and what we eat affects ourphysical health.
I'm sure a lot of this stuffpeople have heard before, but
just in case.
So, according to the CDC, ahealthy diet helps children grow
and develop properly.
Adequate vitamin D preventsbone diseases like rickets in
children and osteopenia orosteoporosis in adults.
(03:58):
So osteopenia is basically theweakening of the bones and it
can develop into osteoporosis,which is literally translated to
porous bones, and that's whenyou're at risk of fractures,
especially in postmenopausalwomen.
So a healthy diet helps us tolive longer and healthier lives.
It prevents chronic diseaseslike diabetes, high blood
pressure, cardiac disease,having a higher weight and even
(04:19):
certain cancers.
Nine in 10 American adultsconsume too much sodium to
support a healthy diet andnearly $173 billion a year is
spent on healthcare forcomplications caused by having a
higher weight, which is crazy.
I read that number and I waslike blown away.
It really shows you that ourhealthcare should be more
(04:40):
focused on prevention and livinghealthy lives instead of
treating it after the fact.
You're already behind the curve.
At that point it's too late.
Yeah, In the US, 20% of youngpeople.
So people aged two to 19 yearsold and 42% of adults are
classified as larger bodied, andthis can lead to chronic
(05:01):
diseases, even cancer, which Iknow sounds really frightening
but it is true.
So basically, things likeincreased peripheral fat stores
can lead to endometrial cancerand that's just related to
increased estrogen productioncauses your endometrium to get
thicker and thicker and that canlead to some dysplasia and
eventually cancer.
And increased fat stores canalso lead to breast cancer,
(05:22):
especially in men.
So I think breast canceroverall incidence for men is
only like 1% of breast cancersare male and you see that higher
in men with gynecomastia, sofat pads around where their
pectoral muscles are.
So increased weight can lead tobreast cancer in men.
The overconsumption of certainfoods like ultra processed foods
and red meat, can lead tocolorectal cancer.
(05:43):
Higher levels of fat affect ourhormones, mainly estrogen.
The excess fat also leads tocellular damage from release of
reactive oxygen species.
Places where cell damage happensrepeatedly, cancer cells are
more likely to develop, and I'llexplain how that happens.
So one really good example issomething called Barrett's
esophagus, which is aprec-cancerous condition and
(06:05):
it's really common.
So something as simple aschronic acid reflux.
It's increased chances inmiddle-aged people with higher
weights, who eat particularlylike spicy food or greasy food,
or who eat really late at night,have stressful careers or are
smokers or drink a lot ofalcohol.
These all contribute to havingthis chronic acid reflux that
(06:25):
doesn't really respond tomedication.
So if you have acid refluxevery night, eventually the
cells that line your esophaguswill change over to a more
sturdy cell to prevent thelining of your esophagus from
eroding further.
So when this happens it'scalled Barrett's esophagus and
that's pre-cancer, and yearsdown the road that can actually
turn into esophageal cancer.
(06:46):
Just because of the repeatedattack of acid on your throat,
you develop metaplasia, which isa new cell in the throat, and
that can lead to dysplasia andthen cancer.
So it's really interesting abouthow our diet and our lifestyle
can actually directly causecancer in certain situations.
So we all know that feeling offatigue and brain fog after a
week of maybe binge eating,whether we were away on vacation
(07:08):
or just overindulging duringthe holidays or just if you had
a poor week of takeout anddrinking when you were in
college.
When we fuel our bodies poorly,we feel poor because we're not
taking in maybe enough food,Maybe we're feeling guilty and
we're not eating as much as weshould be.
So we're undernourished and wedon't realize and that's why
you're so lethargic.
So all of these things reallyaffect how we act as adults.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
So Annie is going to explain more about what she does
.
And yeah, thanks, bridget.
I think that's actually areally great segue, because
intuitive eating is really abouthow you can be more in tune
with yourself and perceive whatyour physical and psychological
needs are.
So it is a lot about checkingin with your body to see how
does food make me feel, andjumping into that side of
nutrition and honoring whatmakes us feel our best on a day
(07:55):
to day basis.
I want to share a little bitabout how I got into intuitive
eating.
So I've always been prettyintrigued with intuitive eating
because I grew up a prettyintuitive eater.
My mom would always say I couldjust leave a couple bites of
food on my plate and walk awayand easily listen to my body, I
would say.
For the most part growing up,even through high school and
college, I had a pretty goodrelationship with food.
(08:16):
I did struggle to find thatright balance, which I think a
lot of people do in this day andage.
Unfortunately, through highschool and college I was thrown
so much nutrition information,you know just through my career
choice, that it was difficult tonot get over consumed with that
, which I think sometimes peoplestruggle with now, especially
just with like the outlets wehave with social media.
There's a lot of informationout there and part of my job is
(08:39):
to make that information easierto digest and find the right
information as well.
So I do feel like intuitiveeating for myself always brought
me back center and gave me thatright mix of like utilizing the
nutrition information withoutfeeling too overwhelmed.
And then, through my practicewith nutritional counseling, I
just I've run into so manyclients who also struggle with
(08:59):
the same thing or currentlystruggle with their relationship
with food.
I'm really just passionateabout helping people heal and
just get to a better place foroverall wellness.
So intuitive eating isconsidered a self-care eating
framework.
It's rooted in providingrespect for all bodies and it's
a non-diet approach to eating.
So it's not weight lossspecific, it's more of that
(09:21):
non-diet approach and just kindof focusing more on what our
body tells us, what makes usfeel good and what behaviors
we're doing on a day to daybasis.
And it follows 10 specificprinciples.
Those 10 principles are dynamic, play with instinct, emotion
and thought, and so a little bitof a background on intuiting as
well.
It was coined not that long ago, but we still have a good
(09:44):
amount of time under our belt.
It was coined in 1990 by EvelynTriboli and Elise Resch, who
are the founders of intuitiveeating, and then it wasn't until
2005 where intuitive eatingstudies actually started to
emerge and have actually grownto over 200 that exist now, so
it's really gaining popularityand it's something that people I
see a lot of dietitians areincorporating it into their
(10:05):
counseling.
There's actually over 2000intuitive eating counselors
across 40 countries now, so it'sreally grown a lot since they
first started it and I find thatyou know so many different
clients can benefit from it.
So intuitive eating is all aboutsomething called interceptive
awareness, which is the abilityto perceive your physical
(10:26):
sensations in your body thatarise.
So like feeling like you have afull bladder.
You can also feel like whenyour body is satiated from food
or when emotion comes up, sowhen we can be really in tune
with our bodies throughintuitive eating, we can know
what our physical needs are,maybe through nutrition and
nourishment, but also ourpsychological needs as well,
like maybe needing to have someextra self care when emotions
(10:48):
come up.
I know the goal with intuitiveeating is is to make it as
simple as knowing that we haveto use the restroom, knowing
when our body needs nourishment,what kind of nourishment that
is, and knowing when you knowwhen we're satisfied and we're
we're done and finished.
This is a whole practice that isunique to each person and it's
a direct experience throughyourself and everyone's journey
(11:09):
is different, but it allows youto kind of make your own food
choices based on what your bodyis telling you.
So through the intuitive eatingstudies, we do see that it
increases variety of foods.
It also increases bodyappreciation, body trust,
enjoyment of eating, overallwell-being, actually can
increase your HDL levels, whichis your good cholesterol.
It lowers your triglyceridelevels and it can regulate
(11:33):
glycemic control as well, whichis your blood sugar regulation.
People also notice a sense ofoverall optimism, enjoyment of
food and there's a reducedincidence of disordered eating,
which is super important forpeople to feel like they don't
have that poor relationship withfood.
Speaker 2 (11:50):
So, like I, mentioned Wow, can I interject yeah?
Speaker 3 (11:53):
Yes, please.
Speaker 2 (11:54):
Real quick.
I just have a question for you.
Do you find that peoplestruggle to find that internal
sensor that says I think I'mfull now, or do you think it
kind of comes naturally onceit's explained to them?
Speaker 3 (12:06):
That's a really good question and I will say it
varies for each person.
Someone can really jump onintuitive eating and heal their
relationship with food in acouple months.
Sometimes it takes years.
So I will say there's ainformation we collect in the
first session of like where yourhealth history is at, where
your relationship with food wasat when you were younger and
(12:26):
what's kind of contributed toyour perspective on food now.
So I will say that it variesper person but it is kind of
like a whole new learningprocess for some people.
We're kind of sometimes startingfrom scratch if people from you
know, from a young area are notused to listening to their body
and maybe have been told a lotof rules and restrictions as a
(12:46):
child or do struggle with, like,their relationship with social
media and following certainpeople that put some fear around
food.
So everyone's journey isdifferent.
I would say we do a lot ofpractices together to make that
easier for you.
For example, I have a resourcethat is called a hunger scale
and it is a scale from zero to10 that rates zero being like
(13:08):
very hungry and pain,uncomfortable, and 10 being the
opposite but for fullness, sobeing bloated, having pain, not
having any energy, not beingable to move too much, and we
utilize that informationtogether to kind of check in
with where do you sense thosethings approaching meals and how
does that change also as you'reeating.
(13:29):
So we do a lot of mindfulnesspractice when it comes to
intuitive eating.
Mindfulness is a skill andintuitive eating is more of like
this eating style and lifestyleapproach, and so we do a lot of
practices together to not onlyhave that nutrition education
but also, you know, bring itback to yourselves too, because
there are a lot of guidelineswhen it comes to nutrition.
We also want to circle back tohow you're feeling in the
(13:52):
process as well.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
Cool.
It sounds like such a holisticapproach to really overall
wellness.
So it's very interesting.
Speaker 1 (13:59):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (14:00):
Yeah, definitely so.
I think I mentioned thisearlier.
There's literally so much wecould talk about when it comes
to intuitive eating Because,like I said, there are 10
principles to it and everyone'sexperience is different, so you
know how deep we get in certainvaries per person, so someone
might really struggle with onetopic and one might be a breeze
(14:20):
for them, and so you know eacheach person's different, but
there's just a lot ofinformation to talk about, which
is which is very interesting,but it also shows you how much
people struggle with theirrelationship with food, which is
really unfortunate.
Food is supposed to besomething that, like, supports
our body and providesnourishment and makes us feel
better, and unfortunately,that's not always the case, and
(14:41):
so intuitive eating is a reallyhelpful approach to improve that
.
Speaker 1 (14:45):
Absolutely.
I was just even thinking withyou.
Know you explaining intuitiveeating?
How many kids might have grownup I know this is probably more
older generations but in a housewhere they were full and they
were feeling full, but theirparent was like no, you don't
leave the table till you finishthe plate.
Speaker 3 (14:58):
Right, exactly, and that's actually like a food rule
.
People don't really recognizethat when they come to see me,
but that actually is a food rulethat pulls yourself away from
what your body is telling you.
It makes you feel like you haveto go against its.
You know your body signals andunfortunately that's just kind
of losing trust with your bodyand making it really confusing
(15:19):
on how to eat.
So that's something that we doin the beginning is to recognize
where maybe like that foodpolice or those food rules are
coming from and to really try tochange that.
You know those thoughts andtalk around food.
There's a lot of preoccupationpeople have with food when
they're eating.
There's a lot of things goingthrough people's minds that
(15:41):
unfortunately those thoughts andrules can cause them to avoid
listening to their body's needsand can push them past that
comfortable fullness for sure.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
That's interesting.
Yeah, I'm sure very you knowhelpful for people, maybe even
hearing this for the first time.
Speaker 3 (15:59):
Yeah, and there's 10 principles to intuitive eating,
and I wanted to just touch on acouple here that I find my
clients or people struggle withthe most when it comes to their
relationship with food, and I'lltry to try to be concise with
this as well.
Like I said, there's so muchinformation, but definitely jump
in and let me know if you havequestions with anything that I
share here.
(16:19):
So one of the first actuallythe first principle of intuitive
eating is rejecting the dietmentality, and this is a big one
when it comes to intuitiveeating, because we're
essentially accepting thatdieting does not work and
research does show us that, andso it pretty much, you know,
means that we're going to acceptthat following any kind of like
restrictive fad diet is notgoing to support overall
(16:42):
well-being and is not going tobe sustainable.
There's actually a reallyinteresting study called the
Minnesota Starvation Study.
I'm not sure if either of youhave heard of it before, but it
was taken place in 1944 to 1945on college-age men who were put
on a semi-starvation diet alongwith exercise, and they were put
on about a 1,700 calorie diet,which was really only a few
(17:04):
hundred less calories than whattheir body would need.
But they found that this studyled to food preoccupation.
So food thoughts, food talk,people just talking about food
in excess, collecting recipes,studying cookbooks, having food
cravings, so kind of reallybecoming like that obsessive,
having those obsessive feelingsaround food that some people
often do when they're on reallyrestrictive diets.
(17:25):
And there are actually a couplescenarios where people did binge
on food and purge because theyover consumed and they kind of
had that rebound effect of undereating and then that food
restriction causing them tobinge on food and then be so
uncomfortable that they purge.
So it's really interesting howwe have these studies to show
that diets don't work and howmuch people can actually suffer
(17:47):
and struggle when they are puton really restrictive diets.
And so diets don't work forsustainable weight loss and more
of a predictor of weight gain.
So in 30 studies up to twothirds of people regained more
weight than they lost withinthat five year mark, and so
that's kind of where wegenerally see a lot of those
diets start to cause people togain weight.
There's not a lot of studieswith these diets after five
(18:09):
years and so that's kind of likein that five year mark where we
start seeing people gain theweight back, just because it's
just not sustainable andrealistic for the long term and
so, like I mentioned, itactually can increase poor
mental health and poor physicalhealth when we're experiencing
some of these side effects fromunder under eating, like Bridget
(18:30):
was kind of mentioning earlier.
Speaker 2 (18:31):
Yeah, it's kind of like when you grow up in that
really restrictive household andyou're not allowed to have any
snacks.
You know you had no soda, nosnacks, nothing fun.
And you go to your friend'shouse and they have everything,
so you just eat it all.
And then you go home and youbeg your parents like please,
can we have fruit roll-ups?
And your parents are like, no,sorry, but that's all you could
(18:52):
think about.
Now.
How do I get the fruit roll-ups?
Who has the fruit roll-ups?
Where can I eat the fruitroll-ups?
Speaker 3 (18:57):
Yeah, and I related a lot to COVID with my clients
too.
When the pandemic happened, wewere told we couldn't go outside
, go to the grocery store, go toa park, go do anything, and all
we wanted to do was go stand inthe grocery store, right Like
it was.
When we're told we can't dothat something and we're like
really restricted with something, that's where our minds start
to become like we start tooverthink around, and the same
(19:20):
thing applies to food as well.
Yeah, that's so funny.
Speaker 2 (19:23):
Okay, during COVID.
This is so, it's just funny.
You mentioned the grocery storeduring COVID.
I was in Chicago.
In Chicago, it was like spring2020.
So early COVID Chicago had likea full lockdown effect in order
because COVID was spreadingrampant there.
So my roommate Marwa and Ilockdown effect in order because
COVID was spreading rampantthere.
So my roommate Marwa and Ishout out to Marwa we were just
(19:43):
watching Superstore, that NBCsitcom.
We were watching Superstore andit basically takes place in
something called Cloud 9, butit's like a Walmart, it's a huge
store and we were watchingepisode after episode for hours
sitting on the couch.
And one time I just looked overat Marwa and I was like, oh my
God, should we quit medicine?
Like maybe we should just havea fun job like that.
And she's like Bridget, this isthe COVID talking.
(20:04):
You just want space.
Like you just want to leave theapartment and go to a Walmart,
I think.
And I was like, oh my God, workat Walmart.
I just want to like go to one.
I'm just stuck in a two bedroomapartment.
Speaker 1 (20:16):
Like it was so weird.
I was like, oh yeah, oh my God,yeah, that's hilarious.
I would love to be there whenyou broke the news to mom.
You know, I don't want to domed school anymore, I just want
to be a Walmart.
You know, greeters.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
I just had so many fun antics and I was like, oh my
God, there's so much like spaceand free time.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
Oh my goodness I love it the amount of times you've
mentioned walmart.
You think they'd be sponsoringus.
Yeah, okay, shout out towalmart, please.
Speaker 3 (20:45):
That would be good lord, I would be impressed if
you guys got walmart.
That is like the largest foodstore, I think, like the most,
like the most successful foodstore, isn't it?
Walmart's pretty impressive isit?
Oh my god, wow, I mean, Iwouldn't be shocked it's one of
the largest, like real retailersendorsement for a lot of
products funny.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
I'm in a walmart sundress right now.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
Love it you know what's her name?
Sophia vergara.
There's clothing for walmart.
Speaker 1 (21:12):
That makes sense, because that's fabulous and
comfy.
Speaker 2 (21:14):
I know all right, we gotta stop bigging up walmart
unless they're giving us money.
Speaker 3 (21:18):
Yeah.
Oh, my gosh, that's hilarious,walmart, yeah.
So I think that it takes homethe point that when we're told
we can't have something, we wantan even more.
And so we really want to likelook at those notions head on
and recognize where those rulesare coming into play.
Which actually takes me to mynext principle of challenging
(21:38):
the food police.
Whether that's an inner play oran outer play, we want to
challenge the thoughts, beliefsand rules that are held against
food.
People say I feel guiltybecause I ate this, or oh, I'm
so bad for eating this food, orI need to, I need to go on a
cleanse tomorrow because I ate apiece of cake the day before,
and so we really want to unpackthese thoughts and feelings as a
(22:01):
way to kind of let go of themand change the script that we
have with the food.
So that's a really big practicefor people.
It's actually interesting whenwe sit down and actually think
about what thoughts are going on, you know, when we're eating.
I actually recently did thiswith a client on Friday and she
sent me a paragraph of herthoughts just from one meal and
(22:23):
she was like, wow, I have a lotof fog around my food and we
need to break down what's thetruth and what's a rule or
what's a belief that doesn'thold truth for your well-being,
because that distraction andthose thoughts around food
during an eating experiencereally take away from your
eating experience overall andit's just going to continue to
(22:45):
interfere with your ability toheal your relationship with food
.
And that's where myself, as adietician, can share the actual
nutrition facts with you.
Is this something that is afactual information or is this
not?
And should you really befeeling guilty around food?
Did you kill anyone to get thefood?
Did you steal the food?
Guilt is a pretty strongemotion to feel with food and we
really want to try to reducethat around your eating
(23:08):
experience.
It's not going to make it asenjoyable if we're feeling or
thinking these thoughts thissignificantly.
Speaker 2 (23:15):
Very interesting.
Can you think off the top ofyour head like a really odd food
rule that you've heard?
Speaker 3 (23:20):
Let's see.
Well, I wouldn't saynecessarily odd, but I would say
it's very unfortunate and sadfor me to hear is that females
or males in a larger body theybelieve that they shouldn't be
eating in general, and so that'sa whole nother topic in itself,
but that is really unfortunateto feel like, because someone's
in a larger body, that theythink they shouldn't be eating
(23:41):
or that they're going to bejudged for eating anything or
more, judged for eating aspecific food.
So that is one of the moreunfortunate things.
I hear that people reallystruggle with feeling like they
deserve to eat because maybe ofwhat people have said to them or
how they think that they comeacross in regards to the size of
their body.
Speaker 1 (23:58):
Wow, god, that's awful.
Speaker 3 (23:59):
Yeah.
So it is very important to meto advocate that.
Doesn't matter your body size,it doesn't matter what you look
like or who you are your bodydeserves to eat, deserves to be
nourished, it deserves to feelgood on a day to day basis.
Nutrition is a basic need thatneeds to be met on a daily basis
.
It's just like getting enoughhydration, it's just like
shelter, it's just like adequatesleep, and this is something
(24:20):
that we definitely don't want topull ourselves away from, but
there's a lot to unpack there aswell.
So one of the next, one of thenext principles that I think is
a little bit lighter and alittle bit more fun is
discovering your satisfaction,which is the hub of intuitive
eating, they like to call it,and finding your satisfaction is
really important process ofintuitive eating, because it
(24:41):
allows you to decide where do Ifeel like I'm comfortable
fullness, but also like reallyenjoying what I'm eating.
A lot of times, people, becausethey maybe have been told eat
this, eat that, or don't eatthis, don't eat that, that they
don't even really know what theylike anymore, and so we really
get curious and get excitedabout getting to know ourselves
(25:03):
in this process, to say, okay,what tastes do I like, what
textures, what aromas, whattemperature, what feels good in
my body?
And it's really interesting howpeople can discover how they
get that level of satisfactionin their meals when they just
start to pay attention a littlebit more and start to get to
know their bodies a little bitbetter.
That's interesting.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Yeah, I was just going to say have you ever
watched Physical on Apple TV?
No, I haven't.
Great show, it's Rose Byrne's.
You know the comedian?
I think her name's Rose Byrne.
She is a woman in the 80s whohas bulimia and she's always
struggled with it.
And she, in the end, sheeventually does forcibly go to
therapy and in one of thesessions they're they have an
(25:44):
orange and they're taught tojust hold the orange, smell the
orange, you know, feel theorange.
What emotions does it elicit?
And she didn't even know if sheliked oranges at that point,
because she was so far removedfrom her body's cues and just
saw food as binging and purgingexercise only.
She had no idea what she liked.
If someone asked her, what fooddo you enjoy?
(26:05):
She would have no answer yeah,that's so interesting.
Speaker 3 (26:08):
I find that, even for a lot of my clients' fear of
foods, when we actually practicethat mindfulness and they give
themselves permission to eat andthey can slow down and really
taste what they're eating,they're like it was too sweet
for me.
I didn't even like it.
I wouldn't go back and eat thatagain.
But that is a really bigcomponent of saying you're the
main driver of what you want toeat, instead of being told like,
(26:30):
oh well, you can't have that,that increases your desire for
it and then you're not even sureif you like it right and so
when we can pull it back toourselves.
You know, a lot of times thesefoods that were restricted or
feel like we have no controlover actually easily goes away
because we're the onesdetermining whether we like it
or not.
But that mindfulness practiceis huge to get a better picture
(26:51):
of, like what actually is thisfood about?
Do I, do I like it?
Does it make me feel good?
Is it tasty to me?
That's super interesting.
I'm gonna have to look up thatshow for sure.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
Yeah, it's very, very good.
I definitely recommend it toeveryone regardless so good.
Speaker 3 (27:06):
One of the next, one of the next principles that's
also super important is copingwith emotions, with kindness.
So a lot of times peoplestruggle with the thought of
intuitive eating because theythink that oh well, if you ditch
diets and you ditch food rulesand you give yourself permission
to fully eat, aren't you justgoing to eat whatever you want
at all times of the day, whichreally isn't the case.
(27:28):
Like I mentioned, with theresearch that we talked about
earlier, actually shows morecontrol over eating and less
binge eating and whatnot.
That mental side of eatingwhere you know there's emotional
eating that we rely on at timesand it's unrealistic to say
that we're never going to usefood as an outlet for stress.
That's just, unfortunately,impossible to say.
(27:49):
We're never going to, you know,lean on food in times of comfort
, but what I think is importantis that it's not our only outlet
, right, and so we want to kindof move away from food being our
only outlet for these emotionsand have healthier solutions for
that, which, obviously, workingwith a therapist who has more
guidance and specialty aroundmanaging stress and anxiety or
(28:11):
emotions that come up is superimportant.
Like I mentioned earlier, thetherapies with nutrition therapy
and seeing a therapist, workhand in hand together and make
this process a lot easier foryou.
So, yes, we can lean on foodfor emotion, but eventually
we're going to have to deal withthe emotions that come on head
on.
So we just want to figure outwhat outlets can kind of manage
those emotions that do come upand make sure you're seeking
(28:33):
additional help if needed forthings that are maybe a little
bit more significant.
Speaker 1 (28:38):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (28:38):
The last principle I'll touch on is is honoring
your health through gentlenutrition.
So I think this is an importantone as a dietician for me to
touch on.
Like where does nutrition comein the mix right?
Like, how do we also prioritizesome of the information Bridget
was talking about in regards tohealing our relationship with
food?
So we wanna make sure thatwe're making food choices that
honor our health and taste budswhile making us feel good.
(29:01):
So it means that we think aboutother parts of our body,
outside of our tongue, that cansupport our eating choices.
You don't have to eat perfectlyto be healthy.
One food is never going tocause you to have a nutrition
deficiency or cause you to havediabetes or heart disease.
It's never going to be onewrong move.
It's really we're looking at,you know, cumulatively, what are
(29:21):
we doing overall to support ourhealth, for physical, mental
and emotional well being?
So we want to really beflexible and not have those
rigid rules and ask ourselvesokay, with this information,
this nutrition information, howdo I align with this?
How do I see that this couldsupport where my goals are and
still support my relationshipwith food?
(29:42):
So I find that a lot ofdietitians are taking a more of
like an addition approach totheir counseling, which I really
support, I really like.
So, in regards to heart health,people might be concerned about
higher fat meats, ultraprocessed foods or cholesterol,
different things like that.
And you know, in my perspectivethere's actually a ton of
(30:02):
research that shows how fiber issuper important to absorbing
our cholesterol in our bloodright.
So how can we add maybe alittle bit more fiber and help
you meet your fiber needsthrough the day?
So it feels like we're addingto your meals instead of taking
away, and we really want to kindof think about that approach so
it doesn't feel so restrictive,but we're kind of like adding
nutritious components to yourmeal.
(30:23):
So we're thinking about variety, balance and sufficiency in
regards to your nutrition.
So the honoring your health andgentle nutrition is the last
principle of intuitive eating,because if your relationship
hasn't fully healed before goingto this, there is a chance that
you could take the gentlenutrition information and start
(30:43):
playing it in more of the rigidrules.
And so we really want to healyour relationship and
perspective on food beforeadding in more of like that
research around.
You know nutrition guidelines.
Speaker 1 (30:53):
Wow, that's awesome.
I feel like those were all.
Speaker 2 (30:55):
Yeah, absolutely Excellent point.
Yeah, I've learned a lot.
Speaker 3 (31:00):
No, I definitely did Like I said there's so much to
chat about.
I wanted to like highlight alot like the specific principles
that I see a lot with myclients and I will say too, when
it comes to intuitive eating, Ireally do encourage, if
anyone's interested in pursuingthat route, to seek out a
dietician that is certified inintuitive eating.
(31:20):
There's a lot of informationout there, whether it's on
social media or Google, and somethings are contradictory.
So it's definitely important tomake sure you're getting
information from a reliablesource, and I will say I always
just encourage people to likebring it back to yourself.
If something's making you feeluncomfortable or if you're
starting to feel scared aroundfood, then that's a red flag.
So we just want to make surethat every like what you're
(31:43):
incorporating in your day to dayfeels really aligned for you.
Speaker 2 (31:46):
Yeah absolutely, yeah , definitely.
If you're feeling uncomfortablearound food, then someone has
sent you the wrong message atsome point.
I think.
Right, exactly.
Speaker 3 (31:54):
If you're starting to question some things in that
realm, it doesn't mean thatyou're doing something wrong.
I think that's an importantemotion and feeling to recognize
around information that you'retaking in on a daily basis,
because we can take in a lotjust from the outlets we have.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
Absolutely.
In your experience, do youthink a lot of the external food
rules?
Do you think they come more sofrom social media or more so
from, maybe friends or parentsgrowing up, or is it a
combination really?
Speaker 3 (32:25):
I definitely think it can be a combination, but I
also see that, depending on theage group, there's either a lot
of food rules from growing up orin the millennial Gen Z age
group, there may be a little bitmore from social media because
we have so much more access tothat and, like I mentioned
earlier, there's a lot just moredifferent types of social media
(32:46):
in our outlets as well.
And I will say that there's alot of fear mongering around
foods on the social media realmabout how we really shouldn't be
eating foods at all and how, ifyou know how, if you know, they
discuss how eating a food isgoing to result in X disease and
unfortunately it's just a lotof things aren't accurate and
(33:08):
it's just not a healthy approacheither way.
What, either way, to be puttingfear against people with food
when it's supposed to besomething that's supporting our
body.
So I will say that itdefinitely is a combination, but
the amount of whether it's fromgrowing up or social media, it
definitely varies on maybe justage group, how old someone is.
Speaker 2 (33:29):
Yeah, I could see that Definitely.
Like Marissa mentioned, thewhole you know empty plate club.
That was definitely more of.
Our grandparents said that andit was like I don't think you
understand that a child'sstomach is smaller.
You can't give me the sameportion of chicken and think
that I eat that if you're eatingthat.
Speaker 1 (33:48):
But I will say, bridget, because you know how we
were talking earlier in thesegment about.
You know, when you don't have,you want right.
I'm wondering.
Some of our grandparents,depending on their ages, were
during the Great Depression,right, so they didn't have, so
maybe they were always worriedabout that next meal.
That that's where they got thatfrom, you know.
Speaker 2 (34:05):
Yeah, definitely I think you're right there.
It was more of a survival thing.
They just never knew, you know.
Speaker 3 (34:10):
And that is a form of restriction as well.
Just not knowing when your nextmeal is going to come, that's
completely valid, but in thosesituations we just have to fact
check that as well.
Can you go into your pantry andsee that you have food
available to you, that you arenot going to be going starving,
and you have that accessibilityto food?
Maybe your grandparents didn'thave, but it's super interesting
(34:32):
how a lot of those things canbe connected and intertwined
Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (34:35):
So Annie did segue me perfectly into mental health
and the aspect of mental healthwith eating she's mentioned.
It could be an outlet forstress to eat and your behaviors
around eating, and there'sconsequences of diet culture
that are way more than justphysical.
They take a significant toll onour mental health as well.
Research has shown a stronglink between chronic dieting and
increased risk of eatingdisorders, depression, anxiety
(34:59):
and that's what Andy wasmentioning, where it's good that
they go hand in hand, right.
Nutritionist and therapist, andyou know what?
Let's add even Bridget in.
You know, get your primary carephysician going.
I think all three is very goodand you know you're all getting
information from differentoutlets and if they all work
together, even better.
Consuming processed foods on aregular basis has been linked to
increased rates of depression,anxiety and cognitive decline.
(35:19):
This inflammatory responsetriggered by these foods can
disrupt neurotransmitterfunctions and impair our ability
to regulate our emotionseffectively, which is super
important.
I like that Andy was mentioning.
You know, take a step back,figure out how it's making you
feel From a therapistperspective, that's super
important.
Our emotions, our feelings, ourthoughts they all go hand in
hand.
They're important to explore.
Figure out what they mean toyou and what you need in that
(35:41):
moment and what's going to helpyou Absolutely 100% agree with.
And also minimizing our intakeof processed foods and
prioritizing whole, unprocessedoptions can be great for better
mental health and promotegreater emotional stability.
So there is a relentless pursuit, like the diet culture that we
did mention here and there, thatgives it unattainable ideal
levels, and how does that makepeople feel and what are the
(36:01):
impacts that's doing?
It could leave you feelingdepleted, both mentally and
emotionally, and we can losesight of our inherent worth,
trading our well-being for afalse promise of perfection.
So it's definitely important tofocus from weight loss to
holistic well-being, I feel, andthat way you can cultivate that
positive relationship with foodand your body.
And also it's a form ofself-care.
I think Annie touched on thattoo.
(36:23):
You know nourishing yourself isimportant and self-care is
important, and that goes hand inhand with therapy and pushing
you forward on the mental healthaspect of things.
And it's better than punishmentand restriction, definitely a
hundred percent better.
Speaker 3 (36:35):
Yeah, I agree with Marissa.
I think it's so important toavoid thinking about how we need
to change ourselves and justthink about how we continue want
to be the best version ofourselves.
Speaker 1 (36:44):
Absolutely, and even outside of, obviously, us being
on this podcast.
There has been times you knowyou had said you needed a
referral for therapy and I thinkit's like, as Annie has
mentioned, it's important tounderstand that you definitely
need a therapist thatspecializes in this.
I am obviously not one of them.
I specialize in other things,mostly related to trauma and
anxiety and depression, butdefinitely find a therapist that
(37:05):
will pair great with anutritionist.
They definitely go hand in handsuper important.
Speaker 3 (37:09):
For sure.
Speaker 2 (37:10):
Okay.
So I just want to touch onsomething that is all the rage
lately, but I don't know if it'sjust because of my career.
I hear about it all the time.
People mention it to me all thetime.
So it's not something that isreally endorsed by the medical
world, but I've heard so muchabout it that I've had to do my
own research about it.
So it's something that everyoneis calling the hormone diet.
So if, gosh, you do a quickGoogle search, you'll see 20
(37:33):
million versions of it.
So, basically, this so calledhormone diet claims to treat
things like infertilityassociated with polycystic
ovarian syndrome.
So PCOS is a very commonsyndrome whereby people have
excess androgens and estrogenaffecting their menstrual cycle.
They often skip periods andtherefore don't ovulate monthly.
(37:54):
So without ovulation, pregnancydoesn't occur naturally.
So one of the biggest riskfactors for PCOS is having a
higher weight.
Hence how we have now gotten tothis hormone diet.
So the hormone diet claims thatquote when your hormones are
out of control, you feel tiredall the time because your body
is converting food into fatinstead of fuel.
(38:15):
You lose muscle tone and fatbuilds up.
End quote.
Unsure about the validity ofthat statement, but I just
thought I would mention that Iwas like, hmm, that's an
interesting.
I don't know if that's accurate, but anecdotally people are
very pleased with the results.
So I was like, what does thisdiet entail?
Actually not that crazy.
(38:36):
So they do encourage 60 minutesof some sort of exercise, so
that could just be if you go fora walk for a few minutes and
then you go to the gym or you gofor a run, so you can combine
different movements throughoutthe day, but up to about 60
minutes daily.
And they also encourage healthysleep as a means to reduce
stress, which, yes, I think wecan all agree with.
That Sleeping is so essential.
(38:57):
And the diet involves takingvitamins, lots of vitamins B6,
b12, zinc and DIM.
So DIM is found in cruciferousvegetables like that's, like
broccoli stuff like that leafies, leafy greens as well, and this
stimulates efficient estrogenmetabolism, which that is true.
That is true.
Sometimes, you know, peopletake that over the counter, just
(39:17):
their own little you know, ifthey're going through menopause
or something, people will takethat and fenugreek.
So the hormone diet includesthree meals and two to three
snacks daily.
So you are eating enough.
Definitely it encouragesprotein to stay fuller longer
and it discourages processedfoods.
Vegetables, fruits and eggwhites can be consumed in
unlimited quantities.
(39:38):
So I was looking throughbecause they have like pages and
pages of example diets.
So like one of them would belike two egg whites in the
morning with a piece of toastand like maybe some spinach, and
then like a cottage cheesesnack mid-morning, a nice big
Greek salad for lunch, and thendinner might be like chicken,
vegetables, rice, a roll on theside.
(39:58):
So it is adequate food andthree snacks daily.
And I don't know if there's anyvalidity to this quote hormone
diet.
It's more so that people arejust eating whole foods and
eating enough and getting moreprotein and feeling better about
themselves and then, as a sideeffect, they are maybe shedding
a few pounds and overall theirsymptoms are improving.
(40:19):
So I think that's what's reallyhappening.
Speaker 3 (40:21):
Yeah, what are the behaviors behind supporting your
health right?
Instead of, like you mentionedit, being weight loss focused,
let's think about, like where isyour overall lifestyle at and
is there anything we can do toadd a little bit more balance in
there?
And I will say that in specificin regards to, like PCOS,
something that we do on anutrition standpoint is making
(40:42):
sure their blood sugar is reallystable, because if their blood
sugar is unstable, they might bereleasing a hormone called
insulin too much, which canaffect their health outcomes,
and so, in regards to keepingyour blood sugar stable, we
think about making sure you haveenough protein.
Generally, having protein andor fat every time you eat slows
(41:03):
the digestion of your food downand can kind of keep your energy
levels more stable and youfeeling more fuller for longer,
like Bridget was saying.
Speaker 2 (41:12):
Yes, definitely PCOS.
I really feel for people whoare struggling with it because
they do have thathyperinsulinemia and a lot of
them struggle.
They might have a higher bodyweight and they always have and
they struggle to take it offwhen your doctor's telling you
you need to lose fiber in yourweight or otherwise you know
you'll never get better andthese people are doing
(41:33):
everything they can and it'sjust so difficult because of
their hormonal imbalance.
So it can be very difficult totreat because of that and it
really does need like a holisticapproach.
So these, you know, thesepatients are getting adequate
dietary information.
They are definitely eatingenough and they're not just
restricting themselves becausethey're like well, you know, my
doctor told me I need to loseweight and they are getting some
(41:55):
healthy exercise, even ifthat's just going for a walk 20
minutes every day getting alittle sunshine on your face.
But I really feel for peoplewith PCOS just because it can
affect, you know, mind and bodyand spirit, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (42:08):
For sure.
Do you find that, when lookingat more of their behaviors day
to day, that that can alsosupport their outcomes with PCOS
without the weight lossincluded in that?
Speaker 2 (42:21):
Possibly.
The thing is I work in ahospital so I don't do enough
like follow-up with patientsbecause I'm not in a clinic, so
unfortunately I don't really getto see any of that
follow-through.
But usually if you can correctcertain behaviors then, yeah,
it's all kind of interlinkedthat way and they start feeling
better about themselves.
So then they actually startmaybe wanting to have more
(42:42):
nutritious meals and taking careof themselves because they're
feeling better and it's all justkind of linked that way in a
sense.
But it is something that is sodifficult to tell because a lot
of these patients are onmedications from a very young
age, so they can be teenagersdiagnosed with PCOS and then
they're on, you know, like acombined hormonal birth control
(43:03):
pill for years and years andyears.
So we don't actually know whattheir body is doing off of these
medications, sometimes untilthey're trying to become
pregnant and then they stoptaking them.
Interesting, yeah, so we mask alot of symptoms, unfortunately.
I also want to talk aboutOzempic.
That is wow.
Everywhere on social media youmight know someone taking
(43:24):
Ozempic.
It is just so common.
Obviously, we've heard aboutthe shortages for people who
actually need Ozempic becauseeveryone is just buying it up.
So we are seeing anunprecedented number of
unplanned pregnancies from womenwho are taking Ozempic.
We're calling them Ozempicbabies.
So Ozempic is a GLP agonist.
It does now come with a warningbecause they can reduce the
(43:48):
effectiveness of birth controlpills, mostly combined birth
control, so with estrogen andprogesterone.
So women are being told to useIUDs, condoms or other long-term
progesterone or copper methodsto prevent any unwanted
pregnancies.
And the other theory is thatweight loss itself is correcting
years of anovulatoryinfertility seen in things like
(44:10):
PCOS.
So a lot of times, first-linetreatment for PCOS, if you want
to start ovulating, is to lose5% of your body weight.
So even if you're not a largerbodied person, if you fall into
the average category for BMI, asmall amount of fat loss can
correct your hormonal imbalanceand improve symptoms.
So it's only making sense thatwomen suffering with being
(44:32):
larger bodied and they have type2 diabetes are using ozempic.
So this is causing asignificant weight loss over a
short amount of time.
It's their periods are nowreturning suddenly, meaning
they're now ovulating monthly,and this is obviously going to
lead to pregnancy if you havesex during ovulation with
adequate sperm.
So I've read stories of coupleswho struggled to conceive for
(44:54):
six or more years, only to windup unexpectedly pregnant when
they were not trying, becausethe female partner is recently
taking Ozempic for her diabetes.
So it's very interesting, and Imean a lot of the stories.
Obviously they're only going topublish the good ones, but
everyone was like overjoyed,they didn't, they weren't trying
for years because they just itwas completely ruled out for
them, but I find that sointeresting.
(45:16):
So now these ozempic babies arejust popping up all over the
place and yeah, so it's just abit of a combination of possibly
some excess fat loss and theineffectiveness of some birth
control now because of theseGLP-1 agonists.
Speaker 1 (45:29):
Yeah, I've seen the negative impacts in my practice
alone.
I've had some clients that hadto get off of it because their
depressive thoughts wereincreasing and they were
actually had, like, done so muchwork in progress with me, then
started Ozempic and then maybe amonth, month and a half in they
were like I feel like I haven'teven started therapy at all and
they were listing out all thethings they were thinking and
(45:49):
their symptoms and I was like Icould be wrong.
But I feel like they areconnected.
So we had them try.
They would stop, they wouldn'tgo for their next shot or
whatever their next appointmentwas and all of a sudden they
were back to the previous clientI was seeing.
It was like a complete nightand day, wow.
Speaker 2 (46:05):
Okay, I have read a little bit about mood symptoms,
but I haven't seen it.
Speaker 1 (46:08):
Oh yeah, I didn't think I was going to see it.
And then I started to and I waslike, wow, yeah, absolutely
yeah, absolutely, super Jinx youowe me a soda.
Speaker 2 (46:16):
I'm concerned that Ozempic is going to become yeah,
oh my God, same brain.
But I'm concerned Ozempic isjust going to become this like
new gold standard shiny objectthat everyone's chasing because
they think it will solve all oftheir problems.
Yeah, got to be careful.
Speaker 1 (46:32):
Exactly so.
Everybody, as always, thank youfor joining us on this journey
through the impact of dietculture on our mental health and
intuitive eating and hearingall three perspectives.
We are so thankful to be ableto have Annie on our podcast
today with us.
She's amazing.
If you've enjoyed today'sepisode, don't forget to
subscribe, share it with yourfriends and family and,
obviously, until next time, takecare of yourselves and remember
(46:55):
you are enough.
Thank you for joining in.
Speaker 3 (46:57):
Thank you so much, bridget and Marissa, for having
me on and talking aboutintuitive eating and how that
can support your overall health.
I hope that there was some snipof information that helped you
in your health journey.
If you're looking for moreone-on-one support and would
like to do nutritionalcounseling, my business name is
A to Z Wellness Solutions.
My website isatozwellnesssolutionscom and you
(47:21):
can follow me on Instagram atatozwellness, underscore.
Thank you so much.
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