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, which rejuvenate the body and feels good, not to pay penance for eating or burn the most calories.

• Coping with feelings without using food, respecting your body, and so forth.

• Elevated blood sugars from diabetes and related syndromes, can cloud thinking and make it difficult to be attuned.
• Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), can interfere with satiety cues because of insulin resistance.
• Anxiety, Chronic Pain, and Fatigue can distort satiety cues-from nausea to lack of appetite.

If your "satiety meter" is not working accurately, you might feel off-kilter. If you have trouble identifying hunger cues, you might have difficulty identifying low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), which is crucial if you are taking medication for diabetes and related conditions.

You will likely benefit from some type of self-care eating routine. This might mean working in conjunction with a health care team specializing in the particular medical condition and attuned eating. Check out this great example, from the Diabetes and Mindful Eating blog written by Michelle May, MD and Megrette Fletcher, M.Ed., R.D., C.D.E

In my next post (Part 2), we'll look at the issue of "unconditional permission to eat", which stumps many people when it comes to medical conditions.  In essence, How do you Make Peace with Food, if you have celiac disease, diabetes or food allergies?

Copyright © 2010 by Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD  Published at http://www.EvelynTribole.com

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