NUTRITION PERSPECTIVES: INTUITIVE EATING 1

Nutrition Perspectives: Intuitive Eating

Amber Nye

Salt Lake Community College

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Nutrition Perspectives: Intuitive Eating

Intuitive Eating is a novel, written by two registered dietitians, that has recently gained a

lot of traction in the nutrition world. Intuitive Eating focuses on ten principles that are designed

to help those who struggles with listening to the natural hunger cues that their bodies produce.

This book focuses on the struggles that many individuals have with food and the role that dieting

plays in this struggle. The goal of intuitive eating is to get the individual back in touch with their

bodies and learn to listen to what their body tells them it needs.

The ten principles of intuitive eating are as follows: 1-Reject the diet mentality, 2- Honor

your hunger, 3- Make Peace with food, 4- Challenge the food police, 5- Feel your fullness, 6-

Discover the satisfaction factor, 7- Cope with your emotions without using food, 8- Respect your

body, 9- Exercise- Feel the difference, 10- Honor your health- Gentle nutrition (Tribole & Resch,

2012, p. 21-30). These ten principles are designed to be followed in ordered and have no

particular time frame in which they are expected to be completed. Individuals are encouraged to

listen to their bodies and begin each step at a pace they are comfortable with. Most importantly,

this book stresses that intuitive eating is NOT a diet. Intuitive eaters are encouraged to eat

whatever they truly want and however much they feel they need without any restrictions.

The principles of intuitive eating have been gaining a lot of traction and media attention

since about 2005 when a professor from Brigham Young University published a study that gave a

lot of credit to the principles (Tribole & Resch, 2012, p. 281). Since that time there have been

multiple studies completed that seem to confirm the theories of Tribole & Resch. The principles

of intuitive eating have repeatedly been successful in helping individuals break the toxic cycle of

dieting. These same principles have also been successful in helping people recover from all types

of eating disorders.
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Intuitive Eating directly rejects the dieting mentality and encourages all individuals to

listen to what their body is telling them it needs. Tribole and Resch believe that all children are

born as intuitive eaters and that external factor can cause distorted eating views which make it

difficult for people to continue to eat intuitively (Tribole & Resch, 2012, p. 218). Intuitive eating

is essentially based upon the belief that our bodies have the innate ability to determine their

individual nutritional requirements.

I was excited when I saw this book on this list of choices for our research assignment. I

had heard positive things about this book from friends and was intrigued simply by the title as

well. I have never been a “dieter” but do try to pay attention to what I put into my body. This

principle was intriguing to me because I felt like it aligns with how I try guide my eating habits. I

have wanted to read this book and was glad to have an excuse and opportunity to finally make

the time to do so. I enjoyed reading the book because the principles seem natural and simple

which is a breath of fresh air with all of the massive amounts of nutritional information that is

being pushed on us daily.

Intuitive Eating is written by two women, both registered dietitians with numerous other

credentials. Evelyn Tribole is a registered dietitian, has a Master of Science degree, and has

written a number of books, and is a nutritional counselor (“Meet Evelyn”, 2019). The second

author is Elyse Resch. Resch is a registered dietitian, nutritional therapist, has a Master of

Science degree, is a Fellow of the American Dietic Association, and a Certified Eating Disorder

Registered Dietitian (“Welcome To Elyse”, 2020). Both of the authors have years of experience

working as nutritional counselors and therapists and have implemented the principles of intuitive

eating into their practices and the lives of their patients.

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This book was originally published in 1995, the second edition was published in 2003,

and the third edition was published in 2012. I believe that the information in this book is still

relevant today because, with each edition, new information has been added and adjustments have

been made to stay up to date with the current information. I feel that the themes in this book will

remain applicable, perhaps indefinitely, because they are simply general principles that are meant

to gently guide your eating habits. This book does not contain a lot of specific nutritional

information that could potentially become irrelevant in the near future.

Both similarities and differences can be found between Contemporary Nutrition and

Intuitive Eating text. One thing that differs between the two texts is the nutritional guidelines

they recommend following. In Contemporary Nutrition the MyPlate principle is taught. MyPlate

was created as a “visual representation of the advice contained in the 2015-2020 Dietary

Guidelines for Americans” (Wardlaw et al., 2018, p.49). Principles taught by MyPlate include:

“Enjoy your food but eat less” and “Make half your plate fruits and vegetables” (Wardlaw et al.,

2018, p. 49). Trying to regulate what, or how much, an individual should eat directly contradicts

the principles taught in Intuitive Eating. Intuitive Eating preaches that “The key to abolishing the

pattern of restrain and subsequent overeating is to give yourself unconditional permission to eat”

(Tribole & Resch, 2012, p. 83). The authors of this text believe that no food should be off limits

and that no restrictions should be put in place regarding an individual’s diet. They believe that

telling yourself things like “half of your plate should be fruits and vegetables” can result in guilt,

overeating, or restrictive eating.

The principle of exercise is a point on which Contemporary Nutrition seems to agree with

the literature in Intuitive Eating. When addressing excise, Contemporary Nutrition reminds

readers that “Overall, physical activity should be enjoyable and safe for each individual”
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(Wardlaw et al., 2018, p. 47). This important because, although recommendations regarding

physical activity are made, they stress that the most important factor is the enjoyment. Intuitive

Eating agrees on this point saying, “Focus on exercise as a way of taking care of yourself”

(Tribole & Resch, 2012, p. 187). The text warns of the dangers of using exercise as a gateway to

weight loss. This practice can cause an individual to feel pressured to workout intensely to the

point where it is no longer enjoyable. This might lead to injury or burnout which would

ultimately lead that person to “give up”. Both texts agree that simply maintaining and enjoyable

exercise routine will result in the most health benefits.

Nutrition in children is another point on which Contemporary Nutrition and Intuitive

Eating seem to agree. Contemporary Nutrition talks about the high energy requirements of

children and the fact that they have very small stomachs. It reasons that, because of these two

factors, children should not be expected to eat three scheduled meals a day. They suggest that it

better to “Let hunger-not the clock- guide the timing of meals and snacks” (Wardlaw et al., 2018,

p. 684). Contemporary Nutrition also recommends that you plan ahead in order to have healthy

snacks available (Wardlaw et al., 2018, p.684). Intuitive Eating agrees that children should be

allowed snacks between meals and should not be taught to ignore their hunger signals. The

authors believe that parents should allow children to snack and that you should “have healthy

snacks readily available for when your child gets hungry between meals” (Tribole & Resch,

2012, p. 233).

The principles taught in Intuitive Eating were very new to me. I have always been taught

that there is absolutely a “right” way to eat and that you should constantly be striving to only eat

“good” foods. Guilt surrounding the consumption of unhealthy foods has always seemed normal

and expected. Reading Intuitive Eating was extremely interesting because it suggested eating in a
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way that does not necessarily conform with the traditional nutritional guidance you hear from

nutrition experts. Intuitive Eating stresses that no food should be off limits, you should allow

yourself to eat whatever foods your body craves.

I plan on working to incorporate these ideas and principles into my lifestyle and diet

because that concepts seem to really make sense. I have personally witnessed the repetitive

failure of dieters and the misery that results from failed dieting attempts. The principles that are

taught in Intuitive Eating seem more natural and easier to incorporate into my life. I feel

encouraged by the fact that there have been studies conducted that back these principles and add

to their credibility. I think that overall, I like that the principles in this book focus on being

satisfied with, first, your eating habits, and then, eventually, all other aspects of your life.
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References

Meet Evelyn. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.evelyntribole.com/meet-evelyn/

Tribole, E., & Resch, E. (2012). Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Program That Works. St.

Martin’s Press.

Wardlaw, G., Smith, A., Collene, A., & Spees, C. (2018). Contemporary Nutrition: A Functional

Approach (5th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Education.

Welcome To Elyse Resch's Official Website - Intuitive Eating Co-author. (2020) Retrieved from

http://www.elyseresch.com/