Intuitive Eating Research 2016
I recently presented to a commuity group called Active Aging in St. George UT. The purpose of the presentation was to explain dangers of dieting and introduce a better approach to dieting called Intuitive Eating. This style of eating comes from a great book written by Evelyn Tribole, M.S., R.D. and Elyse Resch, M.S., R.D., F.A.D.A., C.E.D.R.D.
More and more research is now supporting Intuitive Eating to not only help yo-yo dieters but also in the treatment of eating disorders, childhood obesity, body image issues and more. It seems to be the hot topic at universities where a large majority of studies are spearheaded.
So if you have read the book and are intrigued with what new applications there are for intuitive eating, here are two of the lastest reports just this year.
This was basically a review of previous literature. They included twenty-four cross-sectional studies, published between 2006 and September 2015. Their results showed that intuitive eating was associated with less disordered eating, a more positive body image, and greater emotional functioning. The majority of participants in the studies were university students so generalizing to a larger population of female adults may not show similar results. What steps should they take from here? They expect studies that follow individuals over time may show if being trained in intuitive eating can reduce the likelihood of disordered eating and body image concerns, and promote women's psychological health and well-being.
If you have kids and want to avoid creating a picky eater read on. This was a study of 170 college students self reporting current behaviors of intuitive eating and disordered eating behaviors including the newly diagnosed Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) in adults. The students also reported childhood picky eating and pressure to eat through self and parent surveys.
The results showed that childhood parental pressure to eat, but not picky eating, predicted intuitive eating and disordered eating symptoms in college students. Learning helpful ways to encourage children to listen to their own hunger and fullness may help prevent future eating issues.
Restoring trust in your body's ability to communicate it's needs to you and improving your ability to honor those needs is a large part of intuitive eating. The second study shows that anxious mothers may benefit from learning to restore trust and respect in children's ability to identify how hungry or full they are. More on this topic to come....