The Truth About Bacon

I know people, including myself, are quick to pass judgment without really getting to know a person.  One thing I'm very aware of that people judge me about are my beliefs about food.  Why? Because I'm a dietitian.  A number of my roommates have openly admitted that they were worried about living with me because they thought I would be commenting about their food choices.  One person I recently met even asked me if I counted calories and measured my food.  Even once people learn my philosophy on eating, I still get negatively judged because many still think there is some secret way to eat.

Secret:  I have only counted calories and measured food for homework, and eating was never more of a chore than it was then. It sucked the fun out of eating.  Although that was homework, my professors taught us that it is not realistic to expect people to be so rigid about their food intake.  There are many other ways to teach someone how to have a balanced diet.  

One of my roles at work is having dietary sessions with families so that they can learn how to support their loved one in recovery.  Occasionally, the parents are very much against our approach to teaching normal eating. Our approach is intuitive eating (ie eat when you're hungry, stop when you're full, don't limit any type of food from your diet, and don't diet).  I had a mother in session like that this week.

This mother was so against the concept of "no good or bad food."  She rolled her eyes and grabbed her hair at the roots with both hands to express her frustration with this concept.  She argued that we can't teach that a 100-calorie cookie is just as healthy as a 100-calorie apple.  But I was able to say something that clicked with her.  I explained that the focus isn't on nutrition because these girls are obsessed with nutrition and they already know enough about nutrition.  They already know what vitamins and minerals are in different foods.  The reason we tell them there are no good or bad foods is because they think they are bad for eating the "bad" food and good for eating the "good" food.  After that, she said, "Okay, thank you for explaining.  That, I get."  Hopefully, that conversation planted a seed for her to try to change her beliefs.

I’m not a dietitian that goes against all science.  Many people do think I’m crazy.  But I think it wasn’t until this point that I was able to articulate our philosophy in such a way that it made sense for someone who believes so strongly in good food and bad food.  I still support the fact that we need the vitamins and minerals found in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy, and various sources of protein.  But eating some sweets and high fat foods does not cancel out all the benefits that these nutrients provide our bodies.  And eating those foods in appropriate portions doesn’t cause sudden weight gain, as some clients believe.  Some argue that we are putting “chemicals” into our bodies.  Those same people, however, are often addicted to diet soda and have no qualms about eating sugar-free Jello.

This woman argued she never craves broccoli, but she craves chocolate and other sweets, so how could I teach people to honor their cravings?  I pointed out to her that someone would not intuitively want sweets all day because we get sick from eating too much sugar.  She was actually able to realize that sometimes, a salad does actually sound good.

Some people will need more guidance than intuitive eating in order to know what normal portions should look like, especially when it comes to "forbidden" foods.  When I teach them that they can give themselves permission to eat what they want, they take the power away from food and put it into their own hands.

And the truth about bacon is...it never tasted so good with my all-you-can eat French toast today!