by Understanding how diet culture has shaped your lifestyle – from your eating habits to how you talk about your body – is a crucial first step in understanding its negative effects on your well-being. avoid your well-being, says Zumpano.
If you feel that the diet culture has negatively affected you, here are 6 ways you can change your mind from the diet culture and learn to treat your body and mind better, even in the face of body shaming and dietary scrutiny.
1. Talk to a Registered Dietitian, especially if you have a medical condition
If you feel that diet culture is causing struggles with food or weight-related issues, consider consulting with a registered dietitian, say Zumpano and Cordella.
This is an especially important step if you have diabetes, high blood pressure or other medical conditions that may affect your appetite, metabolism and physical activity. It is in these situations that participating in fad diets or other unhealthy trends in weight loss and fitness on social media or elsewhere may do more harm to your health.
“My No. 1 recommendation is 1 than see a dietitian,” says Zumpano. “We’re educated in nutrition, we can tailor people’s diets to their goals, and we’ll make sure you’re meeting all your macronutrient and micronutrient needs.”
Registered dietitians can take into account insulin, blood sugar levels, and triglycerides if you have diabetes or heart disease, for example. They can fine-tune your eating patterns in a medically supervised manner and help you with any nutritional goals you have.
If you need help finding a registered dietitian, consider using the Association for Size Diversity and Health’s (ASDAH) Health at Every Size provider directory. Note: The Health at Every Size trademark is owned by ASDAH.
2. Be skeptical of what you see on Social Media
Don’t believe everything you see on Instagram, TikTok, and other social media sites. Think critically about the content you’re watching and who created it, says Nasrawi. Social media platforms are often rife with brands trying to sell you something and influencers who are paid to promote certain products and lifestyles to you.
“Look at their credentials before you accept what they have to say if they’re giving nutritional advice,” says Nasrawi. “People can be motivated by sponsorships over the health of their audience.”
Or move away from all diet and lifestyle content on social media, Zumpano says. Instead, go to trusted, science-based organizations for credible information, such as the Cleveland Clinic or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, she recommends. If you have a medical condition, seek information from relevant organizations such as the American Heart Association or American Diabetes Association.
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3. Don’t Fall for ‘Quick Fixes’ or a One-Size-Fits-All Approach
Diet culture promotes a stark black-and-white stance on nutrition and body ideals – food is “good” or “bad” and you are “thin” or “fat”. This limited thinking doesn’t work, and it could damage your health in the long run.
Any person, company or diet that promises you to lose weight quickly or forces you to commit to strict calorie restriction or cut out entire food groups is not sustainable. “It is extremely dangerous to spread the message that there is only one universal way of eating that will solve everyone’s problems,” says Cordella.
“It has to be a lot more individual, and there are a lot of nuances that you have to consider,” explains Cordella. “We all have a unique makeup, so just because one diet works for one person doesn’t mean it will work for someone else.”
If you want or need to make weight changes, your goals should be slow, steady and sustainable. Remember: As previously mentioned, restrictive diets can lead to weight cycling patterns that are difficult to stop.
4. Choose Whole Foods, Not Diet Foods
Instead of skipping carbs or counting calories, build your meals around whole foods. It’s best to adopt an eating pattern that steers you away from packaged, highly processed diet foods as a general rule, says Cordella.
For example, instead of loading up on things like protein bars, low-carb crackers, or sugar-free ice cream, instead reach for nutritious whole foods like fresh fruits and vegetables, fish and lean meats, and nuts. , seeds, and olives. oil, recommends Cordella.
She points to the Mediterranean diet as a general guide to use when grocery shopping. It is important to note that the Mediterranean diet is not a restrictive or long-standing diet. Rather, it’s a heart-healthy eating pattern backed by science that focuses on nutritious plant-based foods in your diet. It also emphasizes eating meals with family and friends and enjoying conversation together.
There are many ways to incorporate these types of foods into your life, and there is no one right way to do it. These foods can be prepared in many different ways with different seasonings.
RELATED: 11 Easy Mediterranean Diet Recipes for Beginners
5. Reframing Food
It is important to focus your eating patterns and your mind on nourishing your brain and body rather than being as thin as possible.
One way to do this is to ask yourself if what you are eating makes you feel energized, helps you focus on work or exercise, and lifts your mood instead of making you sluggish, says Cordella. A holistic approach like this can help you reframe the way you look at food and weight, she says.
According to Zumpano, other important issues to consider, besides weight loss or the number on the scale, include:
- “How’s my mental health?”
- “How is my memory and consideration?”
- “How is my sleep?”
- “How well am I recovering from exercise?”
- “How’s my blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol?”
6. Work towards Body Acceptance
There are many different ways to practice body acceptance. For example, work on catching yourself anytime you engage in “fat talk” (talking about body weight or size in a negative or derogatory way) with yourself or with friends and family and replace these words with kinder, more complimentary thoughts about your body. .
Try not to edit your photos before posting them on social media, and realize that there are many different body types that are healthy, says Cordella. Or, instead of creating a goal to lose 10 pounds, consider a goal to strengthen and tone your body or to cook more at home instead of eating out.
Finally, understand that there are many factors in play when it comes to weight. Genetics, lifestyle, and socioeconomics are all moving parts that can play a role in one’s health journey.
“Believe that ‘healthy’ comes at any size, and doesn’t have to fit society’s expectations,” says Cordella.
RELATED: 7 Fat Talk Phrases to Stop Using Now
