I often get asked by both consumers and health professionals, if Intuitive Eating can be used for people with medical conditions. Generally, yes! 

It's possible to integrate health recommendations for your condition, while being attuned to the experience of your body, which in a nutshell, is the ability to distinguish between emotional and physical hungers, and respond appropriately. It also includes:

• Seeking pleasurable and satisfying eating experiences

• Pursuing enjoyable physical activity, ...

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I get a lot of questions about counseling strategies I use to help my patients eat. Sometimes, I call what I do "upside-down nutrition"—because on the surface it doesn't seem to make sense. I use different technques to help a patient feel safe and move forward in recovery. One of these techniques is "mindful distraction"—here's a recent example.

Q. My friends are worried
that I exercise too much, but I think exercising keeps you healthy. Is there
such a thing as exercising too much?

A. There are indeed many
health benefits from exercising regularly.  But there is a dark side to exercise, which is often missed
because it’s so revered in our culture. 
Excessive exercise can lead to injuries or be a component of an eating
disorder. 

Many people believe ...<< MORE >>

Copyright © 2010 by Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD  Published atwww.EvelynTribole.com

 

Rights to Reproduce: As long as you leave it unchanged, you don’tcharge for it, and you include the entire copyright statement, you mayreproduce this article. Please let us know you have used it by sending awebsite link or an electronic copy to Etribole@gmail.com. ...

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Q. First off, I have read and re-read Intuitive Eating 3 times! I was chronic dieter for roughly 10 yrs, so your book continues to help me on my road to freedom.  I was wondering if it is acceptable to eat dessert for dinner, if that is what I truly want?  Such as a brownie sundae...I'm not talking every day, but as a once in a while thing. Thanks in advance for your help!

A.  The journey of Intuitive Eating is about creating a healthy relationship with food mind and body—where you truly become attuned to your inner self.  ...<< MORE >>

Q. I have noticed that food companies are using more palm and palm kernel oils. Aren’t these saturated fats unhealthy too?  What’s your take on tropical oils?

A. Many food companies have made a quick switch to tropical oils, in order to reduce or eliminate the trans fatty acids in food.  (Trans fatty acids are created when food processors add hydrogen to oils.  These oils are called hydrogenated oils.)

 It’s important to keep in mind that classifying fats as merely "saturated" or "polyunsaturated” does not accurately indicate their impact on the body.  Rather, it's ...<< MORE >>

Q. As a big fan of your O-3 book, I'm wondering what your thoughts are about a fish oil supplementthat I recently purchased, which consist of 100% Norwegian fish oils. Two capsules contain 1600 milligramsof omega-3s: (700 mg of DHA, 700 mg of << MORE >>

Q. Can Intuitive Eating be used if you have both diabetes and bulimia.
Could you please tell me whether you've had patients with these two
problems at the same time and how did they respond to Intuitive Eating?


A. When you have an eating disorder, Intuitive Eating is ultimately a goal, but you'll need guidance from an
experienced team that specializes in eating disorders (physician, therapist and dietitian).  Hunger and
fullness cues are not accurate when you are in the midst of an eating
disorder.  Diabetes can make it even more complicated.  For example,
elevated blood sugars can cloud thinking and make it difficult to ...<< MORE >>

Q.  I'm doing a good job eating gluten-free (I have celiac disease), but I'm confused about lipsticks—do I need to look for gluten-free lipsticks and cosmetics?

A.  As you know celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder, which is treated by eating a gluten-free diet.   The core issue is ingestion—making sure that no gluten enters your body via your mouth (and GI tract).  Eating tiny amounts of gluten are significant (such as accidental gluten ingestion from a shared peanut butter jar or licking stamps).  In short, anything that touches your lips needs to be gluten-free.

So in the realm of cosmetics, the answer ...<< MORE >>

Q. I am 16 years old and trying to follow your Intuitive Eating principles.  (I've been a big time calorie-counter.)  While I am able to eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full—I'm eating more calories now and I'm worried that I'm doing something wrong.  Actually,  I'm scared that I might gain weight (I was eating 1500 calories/day).  I also run on the girls cross-country team.

A. While you didn't say that you were dieting, limiting your food to 1500 calories/day is a form of dieting, especially for your activity level. Restricting your eating/dieting can lead to bigger ...<< MORE >>