Our bodies are amazing, they are designed to protect us from famine. However, under eating has become “normal” for us as a society. Under eating effects our mind and body, this was demonstrated in the Minnesota Starvation Diet.
The Minnesota starvation diet was set up in 1944. It was done to establish the effect of famine, post war. It was started with 12 weeks of 3200 calories per day and then they implemented starvation phase where they cut the calories by half. Here are some of the symptoms they experienced.
- Strength and energy decreased.
- They become obsessive about food (even though they had never done this before)
- Increased irritability
- Increased depression
- Felt dizzy and lethargic.
- Higher rates of body dysmorphia
It is important to note that these men chosen for this diet, were healthy individuals.
The men then entered recovery phase and struggled. Even months after implementing the original number of calories They then added 800 more calories more than the original amount. The men still struggled for months.
Imagine the damage we are causing in our bodies by just not eating enough.
In Anti-diet by Christy Harrison, she explains that “weight stigma has been linked to an increased mental health conditions like disordered eating, emotional distress, and depression. She also says that there is abundant scientific evidence that shows weight stigma is also an independent risk factor for physical-health outcomes like diabetes, heart disease.”
Susan Hyatt shares in her ted talk “If we want a better world, we need to kill diet culture. “That by the time we are in our 40’s we will have dieted 61 separate times and wasted 31 years of our lives.”
Eating for self-care.
How can we do this? By learning to listen to our body. By learning what our body needs and fulfilling those needs. Understanding that those needs. Do you know when you are hungry? Do you know when you are full? There is a lot of focus that needs to be placed internally. For me the first signs of hunger are light-headedness, increased anxiety, and a struggle to concentrate. If I don’t fulfil my hunger further, I will sometimes get a headache, rumbling tummy and sometimes even nausea. Sometimes a food diary might be helpful to understand these signals and I know; I don’t mean downloading an app to log your food in order to get smaller (intention is vital here). A diary for self-care, to know what feels good and what doesn’t. For instance, garlic makes me feel nauseous and have a stomach cramps. It took a couple of occasions of looking into what I ate on those to figure it out. We are all different and our bodies process food differently.
Part of eating for selfcare involves finally making peace with food. An understanding that foods have no moral value. (This is part of the intuitive eating journey). Understanding that food is food. Deprivation and restriction can lead to binge eating. The only foods you shouldn’t eat are any foods that you have an allergy or an intolerance to. Or that you don’t like. I am sure you have heard the saying “eat the rainbow.” This is because your body benefits from eating a variety of foods. Self-awareness and compassion are vital in eating for self-care.
Perhaps you forgot your lunch for the day, grabbing a burger from the café instead of your planned meal might have triggered you in the past. It might have brought up feelings of guilt or even discussed. I know when you are in diet culture how easy this can happen. Eating is always better than skipping a meal, (no matter what meal it is.). It’s being ok with not having veggies at every meal. Its eating carbs and not having negative feelings after. It could be speaking up when you are hungry even if no one else is.
Health benefits of intuitive eating:
- lower rates of anxiety,
- lower rates of depression,
- less feeling out of control of food,
- less body shame.
I don’t want you to miss another second of your life. I don’t want you to double think that bikini at the beach or not eat at that party because you are not feeling great in your own skin.
Life is too short!
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