What You Need To Know About Mindful Eating

Written By: Sarah Poling, RD, LD,

Senior Dietitian

Do you experience daily or chronic anxiety? Body distress or dysmorphia? Food fears or worries about eating “unhealthy” food? Or feel like you’re in a constant state of fight or flight? Most of our clients experience a few of these once or multiple times a week with symptoms that range from digestive issues and fatigue to nutrient deficiencies. The Karuna Dietitians believe in whole body wellness and one of our favorite practices to recommend to help heal from eating disorders, disordered eating, chronic dieting, and body image distress is mindfulness. Mindfulness practices have been proven to help heal your nervous system and allow you to more easily shift out of dorsal vagal (danger/hyperarousal) and into the calmer nervous system state of ventral vagal (window of tolerance).

What is Mindfulness?

Mindfulness practices have been studied for decades and we’re becoming more aware of how impactful these practices are for our overall health and wellbeing. Mindfulness can be described as “attending to one’s present moment of experiences, thoughts, and emotions with an open, non-judgemental approach”. We can see how this approach lends itself to healing your relationship with food, body, and movement and ultimately leading to cultivating sustainable healthy routines and lifestyles free of deprivation and criticism.

Mindful eating isn’t a diet with a set of rules to follow nor is it focused on weight loss; instead, it offers skills and support that promote whole-body and mind wellness. Mindful eating focuses on: 

• Slowing down to be fully in tune with all the tastes, smells, and textures of the food in front of you
• Acknowledging responses to food (likes, dislikes, or neutrality) without judgment
• Becoming aware of physical hunger and fullness cues to help guide your decisions to begin and end eating 

Benefits of Mindful Eating

New and emerging research is pointing to and suggesting many health benefits to practicing mindful eating that simply put, dieting cannot produce or offer. These benefits include:

• A renewed sense of hunger and fullness
• Improved self-esteem
• A sense of empowerment 
• Stress reduction
• Improved digestion
• Increased satisfaction with food with less obsession
• Improved body image and less body distress

Tips to Start Practicing Mindful Eating:

Ready to start feeling better in your body with less negative physical symptoms? Here are some tips to start practicing mindful eating today:

• Eat slowly – Take small bites and chew thoroughly. You can try setting a timer for 20-30 minutes and working your way up to meals that last longer. Eating slower can help you enjoy the sensory experience of eating and aid in digestion.
• Eliminate distractions – Turn off your t.v., put away your phone, and avoid other distractions. Distractions can make it harder to be mindful of your eating experience and how fast you’re eating. 
• Engage your senses – Take time to notice the food’s smell, taste, sight, and texture. You can also take a moment before eating to practice gratitude.
• Cook mindfully – Focus on the details of what you’re cooking and take time to consider all the people involved in bringing this meal to your table. This can help you feel more connected to the food you’re eating.
• Be aware of your hunger cues – Before, during and after eating notice and pay attention to emerging and shifting hunger to help guide your decisions of when to begin and end eating. Mindful eating can be a powerful practice in managing binge eating.

Are you ready to learn more about mindful eating and want support from an experienced Dietitian? Reach out to Karuna today for a free intake call!

References:

Nelson, Joseph B. “Mindful Eating: The Art of Presence While You Eat.” Diabetes Spectrum, vol. 30, no. 3, 2017, pp. 171–174, spectrum.diabetesjournals.org/content/30/3/171, https://doi.org/10.2337/ds17-0015.

Pike, Alyssa. “The Science behind Mindful Eating – Food Insight.” Food Insight, 24 Apr. 2019, foodinsight.org/the-science-behind-mindful-eating/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwqf20BhBwEiwAt7dtdZL2aaXBJvrYrSu9XUy_rpyW1KhJDbFY5GbMxSFix55tH1yNTqAqThoC0YAQAvD_BwE. Accessed 5 Aug. 2024.

Ekern, Baxter. “Intuitive Eating in Eating Disorder Recovery.” Eating Disorder Hope, 27 Feb. 2020, www.eatingdisorderhope.com/blog/intuitive-eating-eating-disorder-recovery-how-use-it.