Fresh Focus #54: Myth – Eating Perfectly

We are back with the sixth and final episode of the Fresh Focus podcast’s Myth Busters series. We’ve explored so many topics over the course of the past five episodes- from carbohydrates, to metabolism, to gluten, dairy, the scale, and protein in vegetarian diets. We are rounding out the series with a myth that is a big misconception when people come into the world of nutrition- and that is in order to be healthy, it is necessary to eat “perfectly” 100% of the time.You heard that right! The fact that you need to eat perfectly is entirely a myth. It’s just not true. And on top of that, there isn’t anybody who expects you to eat perfectly healthy all the time- not even dietitians or dietetic interns do. After all, we are all human and we all have foods that we absolutely love that may not be as nutrient dense.When you put pressure on yourself to eat absolutely perfectly and tell yourself you can never have, say, pizza, you are more likely than not setting yourself up to crave those foods that you deem off limits- even more often than you would otherwise. This concept is explained in psychology as the Ironic Process Theory, first theorized by Daniel Wegner in 1987. This episode will walk you through an exercise in Ironic Process Theory and talk more about how it applies to nutrition.While it is undeniable that food is an important part of health, it’s also important to remember that our health is made up of many different dimensions- including mental health, emotional health, intellectual health, and more. Choosing foods that fuel your soul every so often may be just as important as choosing foods that fuel your body.If this episode strikes a chord with you, go ahead and ask your registered dietitian to talk to you about the concept of intuitive eating. It may be just right for you!