The widespread implications of poor metabolic health have been extensively studied and documented in recent years.
Conditions such as brain fog, fatigue, infertility, digestive problems, hormonal issues, skin problems, and low libido are all common symptoms associated with this state of health.
However, it is essential to understand that just because something is widespread does not make it normal or healthy.
In my experience working with thousands of individuals across the globe, I firmly believe that for people to achieve optimal mental and physical well-being, there can be no room for shaming, over-restriction, or unhealthy obsessions of any kind.
To truly thrive, we must all feel supported, satiated, and nourished in both body and mind.
However, the current “anti-diet” social media message has taken a counterproductive approach, claiming that there is no such thing as bad food, and that intuition alone should guide our eating habits.
While I wish our collective or individual intuition was sufficient to maintain optimal health, the average person faces too many obstacles for this to be the case, as evidenced by the fact that only one in eight Americans is metabolically healthy.
The vast majority of metabolic health issues are caused, at least in part if not entirely, by the foods we eat and the foods we do not consume.
To assert that there is no such thing as bad food intentionally downplays a leading cause of illness for millions of people.
It’s simply not accurate.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 80 percent of those struggling with metabolic illness are unaware of their condition.
Yet, “anti-diet dietitians” maintain that health can be achieved by eating whatever feels intuitive without guilt.
While mindful eating is certainly a valuable practice, it can be extremely difficult to eat intuitively when your body is grappling with blood sugar fluctuations and inflammation.
Is this truly intuition or simply “hangryness”?
Is it intuition or hormonal imbalance.
The foods that are most readily available, heavily marketed, and subsidized are often the very ones that don’t nourish our bodies.
It comes as no surprise that Big Junk Food has joined in on the anti-diet movement.
General Mills—the maker of Lucky Charms, Betty Crocker, and Häagen-Dazs ice cream—has launched a nationwide campaign to warn against the evils of “food shame,” partnering with dietitians on social media to bolster their claims.
Yet, if we are indeed “loving ourselves” by regularly consuming certain foods without guilt, as per the “anti-diet/body-positivity” movement—many of those foods don’t reciprocate our love—and avoiding them is not “restrictive toxic diet culture,” but rather an act of self-respect.
Those who normalize the chronic consumption of foods that don’t nourish us are essentially enabling individuals to accept a lifestyle that doesn’t promote their health and well-being.
This truth can be delivered with grace and love, without resorting to shame or judgment.
Eating foods that don’t love you back doesn’t make someone a bad person, but it also doesn’t make them healthy.
As we begin to heal our bodies with nutrient-dense, nourishing foods, our bodies naturally start to crave what is best for us.
This “body intuition,” much like a muscle, requires time and effort to develop.
Until then, the concept of “intuitive eating” as it is currently promoted on social media is not a reliable way to pursue health.