(0:41) Welcome
Hello Paleo View listeners!Stacy is coming to you from Central OregonSarah's mom has been following along with Stacy's travels via social media and loves the amazing family bonding they are havingStacy shared on their latest adventures and the incredible experiences she is sharing with Matt and the boysOne of the things that Stacy did before leaving for her trip was to listen to a podcast on intuitive eatingThis is something she thought she understood in concept, but she wasn't aware that there are specific rules around the practiceShe wanted to share this information with Sarah so that they could discuss her concernsIt is important for Stacy and Sarah to address what the concepts are that are helpful and good when listening to your body when trying to embrace a non-diet cultureI.e. looking at living a sustainable life longterm, not in an on-again, off-again, diet rollercoasterStacy and Sarah eat the way that they eat for longterm health; they focus on nourishing their body so they can be healthyHowever, they also understand that socially and emotionally food can drive humansThere is nothing wrong with this, as long as we are aware of our longterm goals towards healthWe can apply this still to intuitive eating without going over the edgeSarah also didn't realize that intuitive eating was actually an anti-diet frameworkFor Sarah, she had equated the phrases 'intuitive eating', 'mindful eating' and 'listening to your body' as all essentially the same thingShe had used these phrases interchangeably to talk about a concept that is ultimately body awarenessSarah has a high degree of body awareness that was hard earnedIt is a practice of mental health piece that has gone along with Sarah's Paleo/AIP journeyThis has gotten her to a place where she really understands her body's signalsNow that Sarah understands that intuitive eating is its own thing there are some things that need to be cleared upThere are some very important factual details that Sarah needs to shareWith this particular anti-diet framework there are some things that are not rightSarah does agree with some of the points, but there are some really important scientific backed details that Sarah's needs to addressBut first, before we get to the discussion on intuitive eating, a word from our sponsorThis week's episode is sponsored by EverlyWellEverlyWellis an at-home lab testing company that offers a variety of tests, ranging from Food Sensitivity to Metabolism, to a Thyroid Test and Vitamin D
The tests are private, simple and all processed through certified labsAll you have to do is head to EverlyWell.com, choose your tests, and they’ll be shipped directly to your doorstepThen, once you complete your sample collection and send it back into EverlyWell’scertified labs, they will process your sample and send you your results via EverlyWell’ssecure online platform within just 5 daysEverlyWelltakes all of the guesswork out of lab testing and puts the power into your hands to complete a range of important health tests all from home
To check out EverlyWell visit: https://everlywell.com/thepaleoviewUse code 'ThePaleoView' for 15% offFor more on Sarah's and Stacy's thoughts on EverlyWell, check out this podcast episode(13:40) Where Intuitive Eating has it Wrong
Before Sarah goes on her soapbox on where intuitive eating has it extremely wrong, she wants to cover the official trademark details on what this practice actually isFrom their site:“Intuitive eating is a non-diet approach to health and wellness that helps you tune into your body signals, break the cycle of chronic dieting and heal your relationship with food. From a nutrition professional perspective, intuitive eating is a framework that helps us keep nutrition interventions behavior-focused instead of restrictive or rule-focused.”“Intuitive eaters give themselves unconditional permission to eat whatever they want without feeling guilty. They rely on their internal hunger and satiety signals and trust their body to tell them when what and how much to eat. They know when they want to eat veggies and also when they feel like having dessert (and don’t feel guilty or have any regrets with either choice).”Conceptually Stacy loves the idea of intuitive eating, but the problem is that in practice this can go terribly wrong when someone is not in tune with their bodyOn the podcast that Stacy listened, the podcast host informed a listener that lethargic and bloated aren't words that foods can make you feelThese are sneaky diet culture wordsFoods are simply energy in, energy outThey can't contribute to you feeling bloatedThis is where Stacy had her 'whoa whoa whoa' momentShe is in full support of the belief that we need to listen to our bodies and not be on a diet rollercoasterHowever, foods can contribute to how your body feelsPart of intuitive for Stacy is learning these things, but that is not the definition of this formal movement and programThere are concepts from this that Sarah wholeheartedly believes inBehavioral modification is actually a really important aspect of successful weight loss maintenanceYou can't just throw someone on a diet and exercise program without addressing emotional health and behaviors associated with food and lifestyleThis is absolutely part of the healing processWhere Sarah completely disagrees with this practice is with this idea that food cannot have a physical consequence for peopleThere is a ridiculously huge body of literature that proves otherwiseThese studies prove that food can have negative consequences on the body beyond allergiesThis includes things like feeding the wrong strains of bacteria in the gut and altering hormone systemsOne of the implications of this is that people are giving themselves permission, unconditionally, to eat whatever they want without feeling guiltyThis includes this group of manufactured modern "foods" that are so tasty that they trigger eating for pleasureThis is a very well studied field of scienceHyper-palatable foods override satiety signals and alter dopamine response to food (leading to opportunistic overeating)These are typically foods that contain carbohydrates, fat and some kind of flavor enhancer such as fatThese foods are engineered to be so rewarding on a dopamine levelWe are unable to tell if we are full/satisfied when consuming these foods because they are designed to be hyper-palatableThey make it impossible for our neurotransmitters to do their job because they override our ability to tell if we are hungry or notThis is well documented in humans and in animal studiesThese foods drive the overeating behaviors that are unhealthyHow can you behavior modify if you are continuing to give yourself unconditional permission to eat these foods that make it impossible to listen to your body and modify behaviorAn example of this is your dessert stomach on ThanksgivingAs a consumer, if you were to say that you will intuitively eat the amount of this thing that is appropriate for you if you let go of diet culture and allow yourself to live in this moment and enjoy this food, that it would be physically impossibleThis food has been modified to enhance your appreciation of it so that you eat more and more and moreYour body is not able to intuitively tell you that you are doneFor most people that comes with salty snack and dessertsHyper-palatable foods are defined as:High energy densityCombination of carbohydrates and fatFlavor enhancers (salt, MSG, additives, artificial flavorings)The table that Sarah referenced: The studyon how these addictive foods work in our body
There is no amount of hyper-palatable food that is safe or won't have this effectThe more of it you consume, the more you will enter into this vicious cycle of overeating behaviors, which is a precursor to obesity and binge eating disorderOne of the classic properties of hyper-palatable food is a really extensive ingredient listThe danger of triggering this dopamine reward center with hyper-palatable foods is that eventually the reward system becomes bluntedSo you need more and more of the food to get the rewardStudies are showing the same changes in dopamine response in people with obesity and binge eating disorder as you see in drug addiction and alcoholismThis is because of the continuous consumption of this and how this impacts your dopamine signals over timeTo the point where we are not listening to our bodies and we have created an addiction to these hyper-palatable foodsSarah completely agrees with the idea of addressing mental health issues and associations with foodA lot of Sarah's personal journey has been about healing from a history of binge eating disorder and her very unhealthy relationship with foodSo much of her journey has been addressing her emotional responses with food and her behaviors around foodSarah doesn't believe that you can achieve healing while saying that you can eat anythingStacy and Sarah 100% agree that diet culture is very detrimentalHowever, what Stacy and Sarah want people to think about longterm is where are you trying to get to with your healthThis is where they want to focus their choices every day How you make a choice today should leade to the vision that you have for the futureThe more whole food, real food choices that you make, the more you will be able to listen to your body and respond appropriately to those signalsAm I hungry right now? Or does this taste good?It is so important to understand the gray areaThere are so many black and white rules out there and programs that people want you to followYou think the rules are easier when you 100% know what you are allowed to doBut this is not reality, it is not a longterm sustainable way to liveWe have got to come to terms with the idea that we are in charge of the things that make us feel our bestIt is not about assigning an emotional definition to a certain foodWhat is good for you, may not be good for meIt takes so much time, and this is still a journey that Stacy and her family are on as they navigate what foods work best for them(33:44) Break the Rules Mindset
It is so important to not think of the way we eat as a set of rulesIf you define a diet based on the foods you do not eat that doesn't make the diet healthy or notWhat makes a diet healthy is what you put in your mouth, not what you avoid putting in your mouthThis is one of the reasons why Sarah has worked so hard to create very thorough educational resourcesSarah feels that in public health we are missing these kinds of resources that teach what is in foods that the body needs and what is in foods that can undermine our healthIt is important to get away from rules and get more into a solid foundation of health and diet educationThere are still universal truthsNutrient sufficiency is an important aspect for every individualPaleo and AIP are not the only frameworks to hit these nutrient goalsThere are multiple ways to structure a framework to work for peopleThis is where we hit grayThis requires that you understand what works for your own body by experimenting while keeping the principle of nutrient sufficiency in mindAll human beings need adequate sleep on a consistent basisHumans do not thrive in a chronic stress environmentWe have to avoid prolonged periods of being sedentaryThere are a lot of different ways that we can be activeIt is simply about moving your body throughout the bodyAgain, this is the gray - recognizing that there are these universal truths and that you have this amazing opportunity to really understand your bodyDetox your body from the things that prevent you from listening to your bodySarah's biggest criticism of intuitive eating as an anti-diet is that it makes space for these things we call food that completely undermind the principles in which they are based(39:45) When You Are Struggling to Get Results, How to Troubleshoot
The first recommendation is to take a solid look at what you are eatingIs there something that you are eating that might not be working for youIs there something you are not eating that your body really needs?Are you eating some nutrient dense foods?Or might you be missing a really important nutrient?You can do a three-day food journalSarah recommends using an app like Cronometer or MyFitnessPal to take a look at the micronutrient detailsAlso, take a look at lifestyleAre you getting enough sleep?Are you proactive in terms of stress management?Are you including activity every single day, but avoiding overtraining?Are you working on human connection?Are you getting outside into nature?There are certain underlying factors that are common that cannot be addressed with diet and lifestyle aloneIn these scenarios you can:Work with a functional medicine providerDoing testing with EverlyWellto really understand when, where and how a medication, supplementation, short-term intervention, or a change in diet and lifestyle would help you achieve the results you are after, where professional guidance is neededStacy notes that this is where you have to understand that there comes a point when food may not be the reason why one struggles with weightWhen you feel like you are doing everything right, there are things that are happening on a deeper level that prevent you from achieving the results you are working towardsThe recommendations that Sarah is about to share is the opposite of where intuitive eating is goingIntuitive eating is saying, look your diet isn't working for you so go ahead and eat whatever as long as you are "listening" to your bodyWe see in alternative health communities in general where we keep eliminating more and more foods when we don't get the results we are working towardsThis is why there are fad diets right now that are very popular right now that have a very limited collection of foods that are going to dietary extremesThese are not healthy practices and they are not scientifically validWhen you take a look at the common barriers that are straightforward to test forward, and when you work with an integrative or functional medicine practitioner to help manage these things it can be relatively straightforwardAnd looking at these pieces can make all the pieces of the puzzle fit togetherTo determine where to start, take a look at your symptomsDo food journaling to capture these detailsHere are the most common barriers:Food Allergies and IntoleranceIgE, IgGPossible Food SensitivitiesFODMAP SensitivityHistamine SensitivitySulfite SensitivitySalicylate SensitivityOxalate SensitivityHormone ImbalancesAdrenal fatigueHypothyroidismSex hormone imbalancePersistent InfectionsParasitesH. PyloriEpstein-BarrLymeGut Health ProblemsPoor digestionSIBOSevere Nutrient DeficienciesVitamin DAny essential vitamin or mineralWhen one is showing signs of resistance to weight loss, people tend to then adopt a more extreme diet strategySarah would call the intuitive eating, antidiet still an extreme diet strategyIt is like the extreme opposite of the rules-based one, but it is still getting off course in terms of how food impacts health because it is not just energy in and energy outIt is human nature to be attracted to these more extreme approachesIf nutrient deficiencies are the thing holding you back from health, cutting out more foods or embracing junk food and not feeling guilty about it, are not going to approach that will correct a nutrient deficiencyIf anything these approaches will magnify that deficiencyChanging our food is not always going to be the solutionThis is why Sarah thinks increasing our education around health topics so that more people really understand the universal truths about diet and lifestyle, where all the gray areas are, where you have flexibility vs. the need for self-experimentation, and where to troubleshoot in a smart wayWhether you embrace dietary rules or are anti-rules, neither of these paths are the solutionThe solution is a more thorough education for everyone(1:00:23) Closing Thoughts
Working towards ideal health is an ongoing journey, that changes based on the various seasons of lifeNothing is staticYou can be doing everything right one day and wake up the next not feeling your bestThat is not a personal attack on you, it is not because you did something wrong that you need to feel guilty aboutIt's a sign and a symptom for you to say, ok let me listen, let me test, let me do these things to work towards feeling my bestIf you want rules, ask yourself is this going to help me feel my bestFor Stacy it is difficult because it is part of a community that she understands and genuinely gets it - diet culture is awfulHowever, she is not on board with the idea of walking away entirely from the idea of health and working to personally define what that means to youSarah reiterated that it is so important to remember that the goal isn't to get to thin, the goal is to get to healthyThere was so much about intuitive eating that Sarah was hugely on board with when she was first reading up on itHowever, her enthusiasm hit a wall when food quality was completely disregardedFood quality DOES matterWe have to nourish our bodiesIt is not an everything in moderation - this is not what our bodies needWe can implement our dietary choices to make room for treatsWe don't need to feel guilty about making choices that are suboptimal Yes, let's ditch the diet culture mentality, but it DOES matter what we put into our bodyFood absolutely can make us feel bloated and lethargicWe are programmed to celebrate with food, to socialize with food, and bond over foodTo say that any emotional response that you have to food means that you have a mental health issue that needs to be addressed is wrongHowever, Sarah does agree with the fact that addressing our unhealthy attachments to food and our mental health issues around food is an important part of our health journey Stacy thinks that intuitive eating is appealing to those who are desperately searing for something to feel better; who are struggling emotionally and physically This program puts them on an unintentional roller coaster that is just as bad for them as what they were doing beforeYou have to know your body and to find the foods that nourish your bodyTo learn more and fine-tune your approach to healthy living, be sure to check out EverlyWell Ultimately Stacy and Sarah want to educate you and provide you with tools that will help you live your best life
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