Over the past two years, sale of gluten-free foods has increased by an astonishing 66%, reflecting the current diet trend to eliminate whole groups of nutrients like gluten, sugar, dairy and carbohydrates from our diet.
While celebrity advocates of quitting sugar, paleo, detoxes, intermittent fasting and gluten free lifestyles are unlikely to admit that this way of eating can be dangerous, the truth is that these elimination style diets can have some nasty side effects.
In a recent interview, Aussie kitchen queen Donna Hay condoned diets that cut out whole food groups, suggesting they are simply ‘a new type of eating disorder’. Whilst celebrity chef’s are experts on cooking (and not nutrition), as an eating disorder specialist and a previous sufferer, I can confirm that she is right.
As elimination style diets are gaining popularity, so too is the incidence of Orthorexia Nervosa, an eating disorder that occurs when the desire to be healthy is taken to the extreme and becomes an obssession that controls your life. Making headlines recently is the story of Jordan Younger, who was the poster girl for clean eating with her blog, The Blonde Vegan, until her ‘healthy’, gluten-free, sugar-free and meat-free diet led to a full blown eating disorder.
The unfortunate truth is that restrictive eating and diets can actually be a precursor for an eating disorder. Unlike the flu, you can’t ‘catch’ an eating disorder but rather, eating disorders develop over time by consistently performing a set of behaviours (like dieting, restrictive eating) and adopting an unhealthy belief system such as “I am fat and ugly”.
Whilst some people are more susceptible to developing an eating disorder than others, experts in the field unanimously agree that it is dieting, restrictive eating and ‘food rules’ such as, “I cannot eat carbs after 5pm” or “I don’t eat any sugar” that cause eating disorders.
As an advocate of moderation and a beleiver that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to nutrition, it is clear that not all elimination style diets are unhealthy. When done correctly, mindfully and for the right reasons, cutting out sugar, refined carbs or gluten from your diet or fasting intermittently can actually be really beneficial for your health. These diets promote unprocessed whole foods, encourage less junk food consumption and suggest cutting out alcohol. When we commit to a particular way of eating, it can be highly motivating and help us stick to our good intentions when tempted by the junk food aisle. It is only when elimination style diets become dogmatic, restrictive and extreme that problems arise.
One of the key pillars of good health is variety. Eating a diet that includes a variety of foods in different colours ensures we are getting the wide range of nutrients that our body needs to thrive. When cutting out whole food groups, we are naturally decreasing the variety in our diet and therefore, the range of nutrients we eat.
The truth is that there is a fine line between healthy eating and disordered eating – and it is sometimes hard to know when you have gone too far. According to the National Eating Disorders Collaboration, there are a few telltale signs that healthy eating has become a problem such as fasting or chronic restrained eating (repetitive detoxes/cleanses), skipping meals, restricting a major food group such as ‘fatty’ foods or carbohydrates, unbalanced eating, binge eating and using diet pills.
The healthiest diet is the one we can stick to for the rest of our lives. If you are happy to live without any chocolate, wine, bread and pasta for the rest of your life, then my hats off to you. But for the rest of us mere mortals, including occasional indulgence food into our healthy eating plan is hardly a problem.
But if you do want to shift a few kilos and aren’t willing to compromise your health, simply follow these fad-free guiding principles for stack loads of health benefits:
Consume less:
• Fried food like potato chips
• Sweets and desserts
• Red and processed meat
• Alcohol
• Refined carbohydrates like white bread and rice
• Diet products like rice cakes with little nutritional value (and minimal taste)
Consume more whole foods including:
• Vegetables
• Fruit
• Nuts and seeds
• Legumes
• Dairy or dairy alternatives
Exercise regularly and be flexible with your eating plan. Life happens and not every day will be perfect. Make sure you enjoy the food you eat as you will be more likely to stick to it in the long term. If in doubt, ask yourself; “Can I do this for the rest of my life?”. If the answer is no, find another solution or speak with an accredited practising dietitian or health professional who can help you find a practical and healthy solution.
Rescu. Loves: This hilarious parody of manifesting a gluten intolerance. Watch for 7 minutes of hilarious tongue-in-cheek fun.
Image Credit: Carl Kleiner