Deepak Chopra, MD, made a powerful comment about the consciousness we bring to meals, which, in turn, has strong implications for both weight and well-being. He said, “When you look at nutrition from a purely scientific point of view, there is no place for consciousness. And yet, consciousness could be one of the crucial determinants of the metabolism of food itself.” Exactly. The newly identified seven overeating styles discovered by Larry Scherwitz, PhD, and Deborah Kesten, MPH, revealed that the mind-body-spirit consciousness you bring to meals—what Scherwitz and Kesten call Whole Person Nutrition—not only influences the way in which food is metabolized, it has a powerful impact on your weight.
What’s your overeating style?
Are you a food fretter? A task snacker? An emotional eater? Or do you typically “flavor” food with all—or none—of the overeating styles? The seven overeating styles researchers discovered during their research on weight loss revealed new insights into why so many of us overeat and gain weight—and then, what we can do about it. As you’ll see, the reasons you overeat and gain weight include not only what you eat, but also how, why, when, with whom—even where. The overeating styles are:
Fast Foodism. A donut or sugary cereal for breakfast; a McDonald’s double-burger with fries for lunch; and a supersized pizza for dinner. Add several servings of soft drinks throughout the day, and you have a profile of the fast food cuisine that is strongly linked with overeating, overweight, and obesity.
Emotional Eating. If you often eat to manage your feelings and to self-soothe—in other words, for reasons other than being hungry—it’s likely you’re an emotional eater. This means you turn to food to relieve emotional tension, or as a distraction from emotions that may be making you feel uncomfortable.
Food Fretting. Good food, bad food. Legal food, illegal food. Sinful food, pure food. The food fretting eating style is overly concerned about and focused on food, as well as projecting moral judgment onto what you and others should eat.
Task Snacking. Some call it “multitasking”; the French call it “vagabond eating”; many others in America think it’s “normal.” However it’s perceived, if you often eat meals or snacks while doing other things, it’s likely the “task snacking” eating style is increasing your odds of becoming overweight or obese.
Unappetizing Atmosphere. You may find it amazing to consider that the atmosphere in which you eat may make a difference in whether you overeat and gain weight, but it does. This overeating style includes both the physical environment that surrounds you while eating, as well as the psychological, emotional atmosphere.
Solo Dining. This overeating style reveals that eating with others can be balm for body, heart, and soul. As your eating style shifts from a “me” mentality to a “we” awareness—you’ll be taking yet another step toward fulfillment and weight loss.
Sensory Disregard. A sensory and spiritual relationship to food, eating, and the dining experience may be the most overlooked aspect of overeating and ensuing weight gain. This overeating style means you don’t typically take the time to savor flavors and truly taste and appreciate the food before you.
Following are the antidotes to the seven overeating styles; in other words, it is the Enlightened Diet in action; a comprehensive, “whole person” nutrition program and way of eating that will empower you to experience food and dining as a symphonic masterpiece.
The Enlightened Diet in action
Turning to The Enlightened Diet for weight loss is not theory, it’s not wishful thinking; it’s about being proactive, taking action, and making a commitment to changing your relationship to food (meaning, the awareness you bring to all aspects of eating and meals). Ultimately, it’s about an eating practice for the whole person—and for a lifetime. To reap the rewards now, here is an overview of the seven “ingredients” of the Enlightened Diet. Look them over carefully, for having an intimate understanding of each one is pivotal to changing your consciousness around food and in turn, overcoming overeating, overweight, and obesity.
Fresh Whole Foodism (Rx for Fast Foodism):
Replace a diet of mostly processed, denatured, or fast food, by choosing fresh whole food in its natural state as often as possible.
Appetite-Based Eating (Rx for Emotional Eating):
Rather than eating because you’re experiencing cravings, deep hunger, or negative emotions, eat only for pleasure, when you’re feeling feel-good feelings, and when you have a positive desire and inclination for food.
Enjoying Food (Rx for Food Fretting):
Replace dieting and eating by number (counting calories, figuring fat grams, etc., with perceiving food and the experience of eating as a social, ceremonial, sensual pleasure.
Mindfulness Eating (Rx for Task Snacking):
Replace multi-tasking while eating, by bringing moment-to-moment nonjudgmental awareness to each aspect of the meal.
Appetizing Atmosphere (Rx for Unappetizing Atmosphere):
If you typically eat in a jarring or stressful atmosphere—such as in your car or while working at your computer—chose to din in psychologically and aesthetically pleasing surroundings more often.
Social Dining (Rx for Solo Dining):
If you typically eat at a “table for one,” seek out food-related experiences you can share with others.
Sensory Delight (Rx for Sensory Disregard):
Do you typically eat quickly, not tasting your food or even realizing you’ve eaten? If so, commit to savoring flavors when you eat.
Mehmet Oz, MD, describes the Enlightened Diet this way: it “helps you move from the failings of dieting hard to the bliss of dieting smart.” Larry Dossey, MD, believes it “works because it is more than a diet. It is a groundbreaking approach that nourishes all of you—body, mind, and soul—each time you eat.” And David Riley, MD, writing in the medical journal, Explore: The Journal of Science and Healing—where the research article on The Enlightened Diet was published—believes it “could signal a paradigm shift in the field of nutrition.”
Reaping the rewards calls for implementing the antidotes to each overeating style on a daily basis. By “setting your table” this way, you will be empowered to create an action-oriented plan that turns overeating into optimal eating; in other words, you’ll have the tools—and consciousness—you need to “diet” successfully for a lifetime.
Deborah Kesten, MPH is a nutrition and health researcher, educator, author, and health coach. You can discover more about eating for weight loss and wellness in her books, The Enlightened Diet: 7 Weight Loss Solutions That Nourish Body, Mind, and Soul, The Healing Secrets of Food, and the award-winning Feeding the Body, Nourishing the Soul. Visit her at www.Enlightened-Diet.com to take the FREE “What’s Your Eating Style? Quiz, and to learn more about her Whole Person Nutrition Program and coaching options.
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