Top 10 Confessions of a Renegade Dietitian

I have been a proud member of The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (formally The American Dietetic Association) since 1978.  However, I find that I don't think like many of my colleagues.  Yes, I am a renegade in various ways.  I am a true renegade when it comes to the many diets and food related misinformation that permeates our culture dominated by the media.  I am a renegade against the fat/body shaming that is touted by much of the diet and fashion industry.  I cringe at the artificially thin body types promoted by some in the dance, gymnastics and cheer leading world.  Don't get me started about the eating disorder behaviors that are passed off as normal "making weight" requirements for boys and men in the wrestling arena!  I could go on rambling, however, I am going to summarize my thoughts by listing a few of my top 10 "renegade" confessions.

1. I believe calorie counting is a waste of precious time and energy.  A calorie is merely a unit of energy required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree Celsius.  Unless you want to carry a bomb calorimeter around with you in which to blow your food up prior to eating, you will never know exactly how many calories you are consuming.
2. I predict that requiring the caloric content to be included on menus and menu boards will not enhance the health of our country or contribute to a decrease in obesity.  The accuracy of the caloric content of any given menu item cannot be guaranteed.  Research shows that less than 30% of people actually look at the calorie listing (for some who do it could actually be detrimental - the eating disorder suffers). Cities who have had this requirement enforced for a period of time (e.g. New York) have not been able to document solid beneficial outcomes.
3. Clean eating is a form of elitism and disordered eating, in my opinion.  We have kidneys and a liver for detoxing our body.  Many countries who barely wash their food, don't know what a toxic cleanse is, or have no concept as to what "organic" means have lower infant mortality rates than the U.S. Many of those countries have a life expectancy as long or longer than we do.  I define "clean eating" as washing your food and your hands.
4. There is no one food that should carry the label bad or unhealthy.  One may consume an overall unhealthy diet or an overall healthy diet, however, neither is defined by one food, one meal or one day.
5. I don't believe what and individual's BMI or weight gives a clear indication regarding their health and it surely does not define who they are as a person.  Why did we ever begin weighing human beings?  Produce and livestock, I get that!  I have wondered if their is a connection between slavery and weighing people other than what I observe in my clients on a daily basis.
6. The scale is a hunk of metal.
7. Participating in regular activity/exercise should be about self-care, not calorie burning.
8. Dieting is not only useless, it can be harmful on many levels.  Many archived blogs address this issue.
9. God gave us taste buds in order for us to enjoy our food.  Diets encourage joyless, automated eating.
10. One can be thoughtful and aware of their nutritional intake without being obsessive and rigid. 

Join me in becoming a renegade against the artificial pursuit of thinness, calorie counting and anything else that might rob you of a peaceful relationship with food, eating, weight and exercise!

What Makes a Diet a "DIET"?

How many times have you heard someone (maybe yourself) say "I don't diet ... I am just eating healthy, clean, organic, etc."?  I want you to consider how this can become a diet.  How does dieting evolve?  What does dieting really mean and is it harmful?  Since we can make just about anything we do with food a diet, this is worth examining.  One of my clients came in the other day worried that she was making intuitive eating another diet.  Believe me, it can happen!

Let's start by looking at the original definition of the noun "diet".  According to the Merriam - Webster dictionary the word is derived from the Middle English word diete, from Anglo French, from Latin diaeta, from the Greek root word diaita.  The word came on the scene in the 13th century and literally meant a way of life.  It was also used to describe what a plant, person, or animal eats.  Nothing about food/calorie restriction, no moral or legal pronouncements of "good" or "bad".  We have adopted a rather restrictive, obsessive and imbalanced definition of the word diet.  If a diet is truly a way of life it should give life ... not limit life.  Weight Watcher's claim to fame is that they are not another diet.  They are promoting a lifestyle.  Really?  Is that why Weight Watcher members weigh their clothing before attending a weigh-in to ensure that they are wearing their lightest apparel?  How about saving all of your WW points up for a binge in the evening of Oreos and ice cream?  That does not sound like a way of living that would enhance any one's well being.  I am sure that Dr. Oz would tell you that he does not diet.  Yet, he promotes rigid dietary rules and has been quoted as saying "eating should be automated and joyless".

So, what makes a diet a DIET?  A diet in our current societal terms sucks the life out of you.  You have to micromanage your food intake to completely eliminate foods you genuinely enjoy, it limits your relationships and social interactions, and it robs you of peace of mind.  If you are bound to rules about exercise and/or food choices .... you are on a diet.  A way of life, a healthful lifestyle is not black or white.  It allows you to go for a good average nutritional intake and activity level.  There is no guilt or shame.  No perfectionism in how you pursue taking care of your body and health.  When my client voiced concerns that she was making intuitive eating a diet, she meant that somehow she had bought into the belief that she could go the rest of her life without ever eating unless she was hungry.  No sampling of foods at Costco, no eating a bit of a friend's birthday cake because she had just eaten lunch, and certainly never eating some chocolate when sad.  In other words, she would fulfill Dr. Oz's goal of making eating joyless and automated.  This is the total antithesis of intuitive eating.  A healthful way of living involves balance, not ultimatums.

Taking all of this into consideration, are you on a DIET or a diet?
Wishing a wonderful life in the middle ground,
Reba

National "Dieting is Useless and Dangerous (DUD) Week"

Since National Eating Disorder Awareness Week occurs every year around the end of February to the first week of March (this year it is February 23rd - March 1st), I propose that we initiate a National Dieting is Useless and Dangerous Week.  We could call it "DUD Week".  That is what diets are ... duds!  The research is still out on what methods are most effective in preventing eating disorders.  However, we do know that dieting and the drive for thinness can contribute to the development of eating disorders.  By getting out the clear message that dieting is useless and dangerous we could possibly decrease the number of those suffering from eating disorders and disordered eating. 

My friend and colleague Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD has stated that she believes the diet industry should be forced to be forthcoming about the failure rates of diets.  I agree.  If there are warning labels on wine bottles, why not warning labels on Nutrisystem diet packages?  Or, perhaps a disclaimer on the door as someone enters a Weight Watcher's meeting?  There is a report in the April 2007 issue of American Psychologists, the journal of the American Psychological Association, that states that while dieters may lose weight initially, that about two thirds of people on diets regain more than they lost within 4 or 5 years!  This research was done at UCLA and was the most thorough analysis of dieting to date.  More than 31 long-term studies on dieting were analyzed.  Another study done in 2007 came to the conclusion that "95% of all dieters will regain lost weight within 1-5 years" (Neumark-Sztainer, Haines, Wall, & Eisenderg, 2007).  Need more evidence to show that dieting is useless and dangerous?  About 35 % of "normal" dieters progress to pathological dieting.  From that group, 20-30% will eventually develop eating disorders (Shisslak, Crago, & Estes, 1995).  Sometimes research seems far away from real life.  However,  we are talking about thousands of people who suffer emotionally, relationally, and physically from dieting every year.

Just this past week I had a dozen or so clients who have become causalities of dieting.  One of the saddest was a 15 year old girl who came in for an initial consult for treatment of her bulimia.  Her mom started taking her to Weight Watchers at age 9.  While there was some temporary weight loss, she swung into sneak/binge eating and gained the weight back.  At age 11 mom carted her back to Weight Watchers to "get fixed" because she had once again gained weight.  After this round of dieting she developed anorexia nervosa and now has progressed to bulimia.

I know I am preaching to the choir.  If you are reading this blog you probably already know that dieting is useless and dangerous.  Please spread the word.  We really do need to be activists against dieting and the diet industry.  There needs to be truth in advertising enacted.

Thank you for reading and please share your thoughts and experiences.
Reba

Eating Philosophies: Dr. Oz vs. Julia Childs

A few months ago a People magazine landed in my office mail box.  A free issue had been sent in hopes that I would place it in the office suite reception area.  Those of you who know me are aware that I would not purposefully expose my clients to print media that promotes artificial thinness, dieting, etc.  So, my intent was to just take it home to throw in my recycle bin.  Well ... I just had to take a peek.  I justified the action by telling myself that I needed to know what my clients are being exposed to when their issue arrives in their mail box  (I hear you snickering!)  I truly was appalled on SO many levels.  But, the kicker was the article about Dr. Oz.  Much of what he promotes stuns me but his statement that he thinks eating should be "joyless" knocked my socks off.  The author of the article made the comment after observing Oz eat that "It was the most efficient and joyless eating that I have ever seen".  When the media started reminding us that if Julia Childs had lived she would have celebrated her 100th birthday on August 15, 2012, I started thinking how diametrically opposed her philosophy regarding eating was to that of Dr. Oz.  Thus, this blog was birthed!

Dr. Oz was more rational when he first started his T.V. medical career.  However, rational and reasonable will not sell books or give you multiple television shows on major networks every week.  He has progressively started touting ridiculous claims like "french fries are the most fattening food on the face of the earth", and "eating should be automated and joyless".  In the article I cited above he admitted that "when I celebrate I always overeat".  When they showed a picture of the inside of his fridge .. I knew why!  Clearly the guy eats in a very rigid, restrictive manner.  He has not developed any internal regulations with food and when presented with "celebratory foods" vs. his yucky looking green drink and flax seeds he goes ballistic.  Sound familiar?  As we have talked about in many of the blogs, restriction breeds binge eating.  He is looking gaunt and weak.  I am wondering what he is aiming for with his austere approach to food and eating.  Eternal youth?  Reaching the century mark?  Who wants to live to be 100 years old if you can't go to a friend's home to eat or truly enjoy what you eat and drink? 

Ahhh .. let's move on to a happier topic.  Julia Childs LIVED and I mean LIVED to be 92 years old.  She once said "Life itself is the proper binge".  Don't you love it?!  Here are some of her cheery and insightful quotes regarding enjoying food:

• "I think one of the terrible things today is that people have this deathly fear of food"
• "Everything in moderation ... including moderation"  (I love that one!)
• The only time to eat diet food is while you are waiting for the steak to cook"
• "I would rather eat one tablespoon of chocolate russe cake than 3 bowls of Jell-O"
• Small helpings, no snacking, a little bit of everything ... and have a good time!"

What a refreshing way to approach eating.  I think Julia was an "intuitive eater".  I would choose her as a dinner companion over Dr. Oz any day of the week.  We can care for our bodies, have good energy and be fit without eating "joyless and automated".

Here's to finding the middle ground with food, eating, weight and activity!   And, here's to you Julia!  Bon appetit and rest in peace.