What’s the Perfect “Diet” for me?
Alright, there are so many controversies in the diet & nutrition world that make it difficult to decide what & how you really should be eating. There’s a very good reason for this, it’s that we are all unique, and each of our bodies are different. There is no “perfect diet” or “right diet” that is appropriate for everyone. Nutrition isn’t a one size fits all product. Each of our bodies have different needs, metabolize foods differently and we all have different goals that we may be working towards. Some goals include weight loss, reducing inflammation, enhancing performance and energy, building muscle, increasing cognition, and enhancing and supporting specific systems such as kidneys, lungs, liver, brain, blood vessels, heart etc.
Conducting clinical studies on specific diets is difficult because everyone responds differently. Nutrition is all about finding the right lifestyle for YOU. That’s right, food is a lifestyle, there’s no “quick & dirty” diets that are going to magically bring lasting health to you and allow you to go back to eating the unhealthy foods you were before. Nutrition is a commitment to a healthy life. Sure, there are short term diets that can really benefit people for specific reasons. An example of this is a ketogenic diet for traumatic brain injuries or concussions. But, most of these therapeutic diets are short term treatments for recovery before adopting or going back to a sustainable, long term nutritional lifestyle.
Some general examples of long term nutritional plans that can be useful in certain conditions (again, depends on the individual):
DASH diet for hypertension/high blood pressure.
MIND diet for cognitive decline or the chronic phases of brain injury.
Anti-inflammatory diet for any inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, chronic pain, Crohn’s disease, colitis, lupus, etc.
Elimination diets for those experiencing unidentified food reactions and sensitivities.
Low glycemic diet for diabetics, ADHD, chronic infections, cancers.
These are just a few generalized examples of many therapeutic lifestyles that can benefit specific health conditions. I really have never resonated with the term “diet,” because for me, this signifies a quick fix with a short term goal in mind. Many individuals will go on a diet to lose weight in x amount of weeks. And sure, it may help them lose that initial weight, but if they go right back to eating how they previously did, chances are they will regain the weight back or gain even more. This is often due to your body’s change in metabolism. Think about it this way: if your body is used to getting so many calories and energy per day, then you take away that amount, it confuses your metabolism. Your body goes into starvation mode. Initially in this starvation mode, your body starts burning fat to get the energy it needs, initially allowing weight loss and a drop in body size. Then when your body starts getting all those calories again once the diet is over, it holds onto them by storing the sugars as fat when it can. This is because your body doesn’t know when it’s going to get enough calories again, so it stores up for later.
This is an over-simplified explanation of what the body does and how your metabolism changes, but I’m just trying to draw a bit of a picture here. Your body goes into starvation mode, and then it will go into storage mode once it’s not starving anymore. Dirty, short term diets do not lead to sustainable health goals. You need long term commitment to a healthy lifestyle that fits your life. Short term diets may help you look or feel good in the short term, but they aren’t necessarily bringing you to optimal health.
It’s important to remember that everyone is unique and each body has unique needs. Nutrition plans should always be individualized to each person and their specific needs, goals and health. This is what I do for my patients as a naturopathic physician. I believe that food is medicine and I know that food plays an unequivocal role in our health and it is therefore part of every treatment plan I give each and every patient of mine.
It’s also important to remember that perfection is not the goal here. In general, you want to eat healthy most of the time, but you must treat yourself and indulge and enjoy the foods that bring you joy and satisfaction. I try to teach the 80:20 rule. This is where 80% of your nutrition should consist of healthy foods for you and 20% should be enjoyable foods or beverages that you eat occasionally.
If you have any questions or would like to speak about how getting on a personalized nutrition plan would be beneficial for you, please book in for an appointment or contact me.
**Disclaimer: this information is intended for educational purposes only. This is not medical advise, always consult a licensed naturopathic physician or other health care practitioner before starting any treatments.