When I first started seeing content about intuitive eating, I was immediately intrigued. I can’t be the only person who has noticed how extreme (and extremely confusing) messages about what we “should” be eating are.
One day we’re told to avoid carbs at all costs, the next we’re told to go plant-based, and then we're encouraged to just “eat clean”. We hear that we should never skip breakfast…before being told that actually, intermittent fasting may be the “best” eating approach out there. It’s exhausting, it’s overwhelming, and it’s so confusing.
Even the more seemingly moderate approaches, like “the 80/20 rule” or the concept of allowing “cheat days” involve so much mental gymnastics — and can certainly lead us into obsessive patterns around food.
And then came intuitive eating
Intuitive eating seems to be the trend that bucks all the others. The one that tells us that foods aren’t good or bad, that there’s nothing wrong with emotional eating, that a healthy lifestyle can include all foods, that we don’t need to obsess over calories or macros or timing our meals.
Intuitive eating, which is gaining traction on social media, is about freedom around food, about not moralizing the things we put into our bodies. And in a world of conflicting messages about what’s “good” and “bad” in the food world, it feels really refreshing to see these labels being stripped away.
But I have to wonder — is this approach to eating actually right for everyone?
Intuitive eating feels like the antidote to diet culture, which has been such a force (often an unhealthy one) in our culture. But perhaps the concept of intuitive eating pulls the wheel too far in the other direction — if perhaps there's a middle ground between the obsessive eating habits many of us have been lured into and this concept of total freedom around food.
I spoke with Anna Bohnengel, registered dietitian and fertility nutritionist, to learn more about what exactly intuitive eating is (like, how exactly does it differ from simply eating whatever you want?), whether it’s the right approach for everyone, and more.
What exactly is intuitive eating anyway?
“The idea behind intuitive eating is trusting your body around how much, what foods, and when to eat, rather than following someone else's rules and guidelines about what's best for your body,” says Bohnengel.
According to the expert, the core principles of intuitive eating include listening to your body by eating when you’re hungry and stopping when you’re full (while also allowing grace for human error which may lead to missing hunger cues or eating past the point of satiety), not labeling foods as “bad” or “off limits”, and not counting calories, grams, or specific nutrients.
“Instead, you tune into what makes your body feel good, and go with that,” says Bohnengel. “Inherently, intuitive eating is unique to each person. There are no other "rules" or parameters — there are as many different ways to eat intuitively as there are humans.”
So…is intuitive eating just eating whatever you want?
Let’s face it: Eating whatever sounds delicious — and only what sounds delicious — isn’t necessarily a recipe for giving your body all the nutrients it needs. While diet culture isn’t healthy, neither is eating purely for pleasure. But is this what intuitive eating is?
Not exactly, though it may seem like it. “The skeptics would say that if we could eat ‘whatever we want’ we'd stuff ourselves with pizza and ice cream,” says Bohnengel. “While intuitive eating can include these foods, (no food is forbidden) the premise is that when you really tune into what makes you feel your best, you'll naturally crave foods that make you feel good, in this second and in the longer term. Your body will crave nourishing foods.”
Sounds promising, but is the right option for everyone?
Well…no. At least not in Bohnengel’s professional opinion.
“While I do think it's a worthy goal for everyone to strive for, I find that many people are so disconnected from their bodies, that they initially need more education and structure to first actually feel how good it feels when you're adequately nourished,” says Bohnengel.
As the expert mentions, intuitive eating isn’t just about eating what tastes good in the moment, but also what best serves your body in the long term — and truly tapping into that isn’t going to be purely intuitive for everyone.
Bohnengel says intuitive eating may not be a great idea for athletes (who require more nutrients to support the physical exertion their bodies take on), people with blood sugar issues (who may need to eat more frequently or focus on getting enough protein or fats), people with histories of under-eating.
“What's tricky is that under-eating itself can suppress your appetite. Most women with disordered eating habits are NOT hungry,” says Bohnengel. “Short of disordered eating, if you have habitually been a light eater, your body learns not to expect more food, even when that's what would make you feel better.”
People struggling to lose weight may not have success with intuitive eating
Look, this is a complicated issue. On the one hand, diet culture has convinced us collectively that there’s only one “good” body type — which involves being very thin. That’s hardly a “healthy” ideal, and so much of the fear and obsession around food is directly tied to the idea that the smallest possible body is the “best” one.
That is, of course, not true. At the same time, the relationship between weight and health is not nonexistent. There’s a difference between wanting to be a certain weight for the sake of pure vanity and the sake of health and longevity, yet this fine line can be hard to find.
For people who may be better at serving their long-term health by losing weight, intuitive eating may not work — even though it can seem like the approach they’ve been waiting for.
“For some, like those who have spent too many years on restrictive diets, intuitive eating can be a breath of fresh air. It can free them from all the restrictions and allow space to heal their relationship with food,” says Bohnengel. “However, that might not also correspond with weight loss. And, as controversial or taboo as it may be to say this in some circles, I do think there can be a time and a place for a healthy approach to building muscle and shedding excess fat.”
Is food-neutrality a worthy goal?
This is up for debate…and may vary from person to person. Someone who has struggled to tune out the incessant messages of diet culture, for example, or suffered from disordered eating patterns, may be really well served by intuitive eating. But is a completely neutral stance always the right one to take where food is concerned?
“I would also caution that after living so many years in our fat-shaming, diet-loving culture, it's not so easy to turn off all the food biases, and truly take a neutral approach to all food. To TRULY view all foods as equal - candy corn as equal to kale - would take a lot of subconscious reprogramming! And in this example, I would have to question if that's really a worthy goal,” says Bohnengel.
In short? Even for an expert, this is still sort of a gray area.
Intuitive eating feels like the counter to diet culture
“I would not be surprised if the initial thought-leaders behind intuitive eating would also call it the opposite of diet culture. Certainly there IS a need for alternatives to the multi-billion dollar diet industry telling us to all look one specific way,” says Bohnengel.
But maybe it’s not as simple as replacing diet culture with intuitive eating, but rather finding a spot along the spectrum that is healthy for each person’s body, lifestyle, and mental state. Because ultimately, health is about so much more than the scale, and what works for one person won’t necessarily work for another.
“While I don't resonate with striving to incorporate any part of ‘restrictive diet culture’, I DO support a happy medium between pursuing health goals and intuitive eating,” says Bohengel. “I believe strongly in food as medicine and that with the right nutrition, we can improve hormone health and fertility, boost mental health, prevent disease so we can live longer, more vibrant lives, and so much more. I have seen nutrition do amazing things for people in terms of clearing up acne, soothing anxiety and improving sleep so they have more energy to fully live their lives.”
“Working on nutrition towards these goals is not the same as ‘restrictive diet culture’, but it DOES require paying attention to the balance of nutrients on your plate,” she adds. “Once you learn the foundations of how to eat in a way that supports your best health, that certainly does not necessitate counting calories or grams, and can be done in a way that starts to feel more mindful and intuitive.”
Zara Hanawalt is a freelance journalist and mom of twins. She's written for outlets like Parents, MarieClaire, Elle, Cosmopolitan, Motherly, and many others. In her (admittedly limited!) free time, she enjoys cooking, reading, trying new restaurants, and traveling with her family.