Eating Problems….what?!!!

There is a term that floats around there that I don’t like very well-Eating Problems.

  The media likes to use this term, trainers and dietitians like to use this term, even doctors like to use this term.  Telling a friend, patient, or client that they have an eating problem is not only unfair, but untruthful and misleading.  Eating is not problem, it is a necessity.  We cannot continue to exist without eating or consuming nutrients that this act provides us with.  Therefore, if eating is necessary to sustain life it is impossible to have an eating problem.  What we as credentialed people  don’t want to tell our patients/clients is exactly what they need to hear…they have decision-making problems. 

Food is not the problem, the decisions they make to eat what you eat, how much of it to consume, and why or what motivates you to eat the way you do for your body to be in bad condition, these are the problems that we need to focus on and address.  We as professionals that deal with people that are suffering from weight, confidence, and possible emotional issues, like to dress it up and not make it sound too harsh.  Why?  Because we don’t want to hurt our patients’ feelings.  As professionals, our communication to our patients/clients shouldn’t be modified or softened just to save the ego or personal feelings of the individual that is in need of help or that is asking for help. I understand that everyone’s feelings are important and should be respected, but when speaking to someone who needs to make a life change so that they can enjoy a much longer life than their current behaviors will allow, the truth needs not only to be said without censorship, but with conviction and caring.  If the truth is never said it will never be heard.  Consequently, that individual that so desperately needs to be advised properly will never truly understand they are the captain of their ship and they can change course (it’s never too late) and experience life as a completely different and much more enjoyable and rewarding journey. 

Although it is through the act of eating that some people express and alleviate their stresses we cannot focus on eating as the problem.  It is because of this popular terminology that when I express to people who are eating twice or three times a day is not the healthiest choice in the world and that they should eat several more “meals” a day that internally they panic and are terrified that if they do eat more often during the day that they will blow up to a size that will dwarf their current condition.  It is a very common reaction and one that I have seen more often than not.   I try to explain the nuts and bolts behind why it works and why they should comply but by the time that I have finished I find that they stopped listening and “eat more” and didn’t even hear the “often” ending to the sentence. 

I try to find out why people make the decisions that lead to the unhealthy choices in eating that have led them to walk through my door and ask for help.  It is only through that exploration that I can find out why my clients are where they are at the moment and it also helps me map out how we can better help them. People make horrible choices in eating for many choices, here are just a few:

1. Laziness: they are too lazy to cook, or prepare meals ahead of time.  Because of this they go to fast food restaurants, vending machines, they skip meals, or just eat whatever is within reach. 
2. Stress: we all have our ways of coping with stress.  Some people drink (not a good choice), some people discuss their problems openly with their friends or partners, some people exercise, a lot of people eat.  The food has the same reaction in their brain as do some drugs that people can buy on the street.  I know there have been many times in my life I decided after a bad day that a pint of Chunky Monkey (by Ben & Jerry’s….one of my favorite sinful delights) would be just the thing to pick me up and improve my mood.  Unfortunately, after the five minutes it took me to eat the pint, my problem was still their and I still felt stressed. 
3. Social reasons:  because  we are out to eat, or with friends we tend to make our choices based not only on what’s available but also what our friends may be eating.  If they order dessert, we may feel a little pressure to do the same.   This can also be said about how much alcohol is consumed during a meal in a social situations.

There are a myriad of reasons why people make the decisions to eat in a way that is unhealthy and detrimental to their future, but in my experience, those three that I stated above are the most common.  By taking the “Problem” tag off  of eating, not only will we more effective in the quest to assist those that are in need of help, but we can also open their minds up to the new information that has come out over the last fifteen or so years that states that increasing the frequency of meals and decreasing the size of meals that we eat, might just be the strategy that they need to implement to change their entire life. 

Let’s get rid of “eating problems’.  They don’t exist.  Let us as professionals dedicate ourselves to the true needs of our patients/clients and help them understand that just as their current condition is the result of a pattern of continuously making poor decisions regarding their eating practices and habits, they can just as easily create a new pattern and begin to make new and better decisions that will lead to a healthier, much more comfortable, and happier life.

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