In this episode of Holistic Health Radio, host Sarah Liz King explores the difference between true food preferences and those driven by eating disorders. Through a series of self-reflection questions, she helps listeners determine whether their food choices stem from personal enjoyment or from restrictive rules imposed by an eating disorder. Sarah emphasises the importance of examining emotions, physical and emotional satisfaction, openness to new foods, comfort in social situations, and whether food is chosen for nourishment or as a means of controlling body weight.
Episode Transcript
Sarah Liz King (00:00:05) – Hi everyone, and welcome back to Holistic Health Radio. I’m your host, Sarah Liz King. I’m an exercise physiologist and health coach, empowering women to find their healthy balance with food, fitness and their bodies. Through my 1 to 1 and group coaching programs, I help women regain their periods, find food freedom, have a healthier relationship with exercise, and improve body confidence. Now today is an Ask Me Anything episode, and I’m going to go to today’s listener question, which is how do you separate a true food preference from an eating disorder driven food preference? Now, this is a very common conversation that comes up with clients all the time, so I thought it would be very helpful to address it in a podcast episode because differentiating between a true food preference and an eating disorder driven food preference or kind of like a fear or a rule requires a lot of self-reflection and a lot of introspection. So instead of giving you concrete, this is how you tell the difference between one and the other. I’m actually going to be giving you some questions to reflect on that will help you determine for yourself whether it is a true food preference or more of an eating disorder preference.
Sarah Liz King (00:01:34) – And the first one is the question What are my thoughts and emotions surrounding this food? Do I genuinely enjoy it or do I feel anxious, guilty or fearful when consuming it at all? If you feel like you genuinely love it when you eat it and there’s no kind of like, I guess, labels attached to it, then it’s probably a true food preference. But if you notice, there’s a lingering amount of guilt or anxiety attached to eating that food, then you might kind of label it as a food preference, but it might be more of an eating disorder preference as a result of wanting to avoid some of those more challenging thoughts and feelings that happen when you eat it. But just know over time as you continue to expose yourself to those more fearful foods and break your food rules and kind of. Rigid approaches to eating that you will be able to really tell the difference between your own preferences and eating disorder, different preferences. So that is the first one, kind of thinking about what emotions are attached to the experience of eating this food.
Sarah Liz King (00:02:48) – The second question, which is really good for self reflection and differentiating between a true food preference and an eating disorder driven preference is are my food choices based on personal preferences and values, or do they align with strict rules and restrictions more determined by what my eating disorder is telling me? Right. And you can kind of ask yourself and get a pretty good idea of the answer straight away. The third thing I want you to reflect on is how do I feel physically and emotionally when I eat this food? Do I experience satisfaction and pleasure, or do I feel compelled to compensate or engage in disordered eating behaviors in any way? Right. That might kind of give you a clue as to whether it’s a true food preference or an eating disorder driven preference. Obviously, if you’re really feeling like you need to engage in some kind of disordered eating behavior before afterwards, that might be kind of a clue that you might be avoiding something that is more of an eating disorder kind of preference. Right. The next question is, am I open to try new foods and exploring a wide variety of flavors and textures, or do I tend to stick to a limited range of foods due to kind of fears or the need for control? Right.
Sarah Liz King (00:04:22) – Again, the common theme is, is this something that I’m flexible with or is this something that I am rigid and fearful around? The next question. And of course, you can pause this episode in any time. If you need to go back to the question I just said and write it down in your journal, the next question is do I feel comfortable eating this food in social situations or does it cause anxiety or an urge of isolating myself? Right. So if we know that we are happy to eat it in an open environment with anybody around and it doesn’t really cause us to feel shame or guilt around it, it’s probably a true food preference rather than something wrapped up in our eating disorder. The next question is am I choosing this food because it provides nourishment and supports my overall well-being, even if it’s a fun food? Or am I using it as a way to manipulate or control my body weight, shape or size? That one is pretty clear cut and you can probably get a good indication as to whether the foods that you’re wanting to consume or guess limit are related to true food preferences or eating disorder preferences.
Sarah Liz King (00:05:42) – Now, this one, I think is probably the most telling of them all, which is how do I respond if the food is not available or if I have to deviate from my usual choices? Do I experience distress or rigidity or a sense of a loss of control? And again, all of those really strong negative emotions can really give us an indication that maybe that preference is still really wrapped up in that eating disorder mentality. And the lucky last one to reflect on to help you get a better indication as to whether it is a true food preference or an eating disorder wrapped up in their kind of preference. Is are there any specific rules or beliefs that I associate with this food? Are those rules based on accurate nutrition information, specifically that you’ve heard from an eating disorder specialized practitioner? Or are these beliefs and thoughts driven by the eating disorders or diet culture’s influence? By spending time honestly reflecting on these questions, you will gain so much insight into the motivations behind your food preferences and identify any eating disorder driven thoughts or behaviors.
Sarah Liz King (00:07:08) – Now, as with all Ask Me Anything episodes, this one is short, sharp and sweet. If you did really enjoy listening, be sure to give it a thumbs up if you are watching it on YouTube. Or again, you can leave a five star rating and review if you are listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and if you have any questions that you would like to contribute and get answered on the podcast. Be sure to look out for my question box or simply slot into my DMS with your question and I will happily answer them on an upcoming episode. Until next time, guys, you know the drill. Keep looking after yourselves and I’ll be back very soon with a new episode that you can wrap your ears around.
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