It probably seems a little weird that a DIETitian would be talking about something called a NON-diet approach?
Well, it’s probably helpful to clarify which definition of the word DIET I am talking about here.
When referring to a non-diet approach, I mean ‘diet’ in terms of the foods and ways of eating that a person may engage in for ‘health’ or weight-management reasons. Oh, and I put health in inverted commas there, because for most people going on a diet for ‘health reasons’ usually means to generate weight loss (because in our culture weight loss = health improvement).
Based on this definition of a diet, the non-diet approach is a way of working which removes that emphasis and pressure to eat for weight loss. Instead, it embraces the Health At Every Size® paradigm, intuitive eating and mindfulness.
The non-diet approach respects the fact that the body knows best when it comes to food, eating, nutrition, movement, rest, weight and self-care. Non-diet approach clinicians work with people to help them reconnect with that internal wisdom, so they can identify which individual health-related behaviours will best help them to optimise their health and wellbeing.
It is a gentle approach that focuses on reconnection, the individual experience and skill building. It places importance on both physical and emotional health. The non-diet approach is not prescriptive and aims to help move people away from feeling like they need to hold weight and health in tight control, to feeling calm and equipped to make choices from a place of self-care and respect for the body they live in now.
Why take a non-diet approach to health?
Because it can help you:
- reconnect with your body’s internal signals of hunger, fullness and satiety;
- enjoy eating all food without feeling guilty or anxious;
- find the type of movement you find enjoyable and sustainable;
- feel more comfortable living in your body;
- decrease the risk of chronic diseases or manage existing ones with kindness;
- ditch dieting and the weight cycling that tends to come with it, and as a result improving markers of health (things like blood pressure, blood glucose levels, cholesterol etc);
- respect the body you have now and want to take steps to care for it
What’s the problem with wanting to diet for weight loss?
Nothing. Part of the Health At Every Size® philosophy is body autonomy. So, it is entirely up to you if you wish to pursue weight loss.
However, it has been well established that diets and dieting behaviours such as food restriction, energy restriction and excessive exercise don’t achieve the desired outcome of losing weight and keeping it off long term.1
In fact, most people who go on a diet regain the weight they have lost (and then some) within five years.2 In addition to this, people engaging in dieting behaviours are more likely to have poorer mental and physical health, experience more body dissatisfaction and are at risk of experiencing disordered eating.
A Comparison of the Non-Diet Approach and Weight-Loss Dieting
So, what say you? Non-diet approach or weight loss dieting?
References
- https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/guidelines-publications/n57 (specifically the evidence answering the question How effective are lifestyle interventions in maintaining weight loss in adults? on page 160)
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17469900
Great explanation of what is meant by a “non-diet” approach. I see the term (along with weight neutral and intuitive eating) being used outside of this context and it’s confusing. Many feel a non-diet approach is the same as letting yourself go or giving up and quite the opposite – it’s got health and well being in mind, but takes the emphasis off of weight!
Thank you Cara! It is quite frustrating when the non-diet approach, HAES and intuitive eating are used incorrectly. So, hopefully, this article helps to clear up some of that confusion.
Nina,
I love how you’ve explained the non-diet approach here.
I teach these principles in my programs and have managed to switch the diet mentality in the women that come to me, it’s very rewarding.
Keep up the great work!
Thanks Isabella.