Managing PCOS Through a Non-Diet Approach

Every woman who has PCOS knows the struggle. Imbalances in hormones and metabolism present daily challenges with blood sugar regulation and chronic low-grade inflammation. PCOS is not a lonely struggle either, for it affects 1 in 10 women of childbearing age.  

For someone who is frustrated with her PCOS, trendy diets may offer a glimmer of hope: perhaps the carb-free keto diet or grain-free paleo diet will alleviate these symptoms and help me lose weight? Though these approaches seem attractive, there is little evidence that prohibitive diets work, particularly over time. Completely cutting out carbs or fats doesn’t have immense health benefits, and indeed, restricting intake can actually lead to a stress response from the body.  

When it comes to dieting, the bottom line is that the diets fail, not the individual. Their restrictive nature makes it inherently impossible to maintain in the long-term. It’s natural for the body to desire the types and levels of food it normally receives. Furthermore, a uniform, prescribed diet approach to health for everyone is simply unrealistic, nor feasible. Rather than cut and restrict intake to improve health, it’s far more important to diversify food sources and get sufficient levels of nutrients. 

This mantra is echoed in the principles of non-diet frameworks, which are significantly better for our physical and mental health. Both Intuitive Eating (IE) and the Health At Every Size (HAES) approach advocate for rejecting the diet mentality and embracing self care health promoting behaviors instead of restriction. With these frameworks, people are empowered to listen to the signals the body sends, and learn how to properly address those signals. 

IE shows potential for people with PCOS. In one web-based study, a representative sample of 120 women with PCOS completed a survey about dietary behaviors and self-efficacy. Results indicated that 89% of respondents had previously tried traditional diets. But the most interesting result was that a significant, positive relationship existed between high adherence to IE and confidence in maintaining healthy habits, like trusting hunger and satiety signals. The authors suggested that more sustainable, beneficial changes in diet are possible when people follow the IE framework.  

Like IE, the HAES approach can be tailored to women with PCOS too. It condemns the idea that weight status is synonymous with health and encourages followers to focus more on what works for them. This means freely eating the foods that help manage PCOS symptoms, and paying more attention to ovulation changes, blood sugar levels, and mood than the number on the scale. 

IE and HAES offer real, achievable solutions to living with PCOS. Unlike diets, these frameworks celebrate individuality and value body knowledge. Learning to be aware of the signals the body sends, the foods that taste good, as well as the movements that ease symptoms is a sustainable and effective way to live with PCOS. If you’re interested in learning more about identifying these things for yourself, get in touch with a HAES dietitian specializing in PCOS and discuss how to apply non-diet frameworks to your lifestyle.

Benefits of Intuitive Eating

Whether you are new to intuitive eating or have been an intuitive eater for many years, getting in touch with your body and your internal cues is perhaps the most beneficial thing you can do for both your physical and mental health. We all know how mentally and physically draining dieting can be. Meal planning exact portions, weighing food, and counting calories. Feeling like you can’t enjoy your favorite foods, or have fun in social settings because your diet is so limited. Dieting is a mental mind game that nobody enjoys playing. On top of that, dieting is also physically exhausting! Trying to live and thrive on a calorie deficit just leaves us feeling irritable, moody, and tired all the time. Intuitive eating introduces a whole new perspective on health and wellness that is energizing, refreshing, and sustainable long-term. Intuitive eating is one of the best things you can do for both your physical and mental health. 

Dieting doesn't only drain your energy, it drains your wallet as well! Think about how much money you could end up spending on various diet plans and weight loss products. The health and fitness industry is currently valued at over 2.3 billion dollars. These companies prey on our insecurities in order to target us with overpriced, gimmicky weight loss products that aren’t sustainable and aren't focused on our health as a whole. When you embrace intuitive eating, you reject the mindset that you need to rely on some kind of rigid diet plan to achieve optimal health and reach your goals. Trust yourself, and your body, not the companies making false promises in order to sell their product. 

Perhaps the biggest benefit of intuitive eating is that it is flexible, it works for you and your lifestyle. You don't need to worry about points or calories, counting grams of carbs or proteins, or buying special diet foods. When you learn to eat intuitively, you get to truly live your life to the absolute fullest; never feeling like you have to deprive yourself or miss out on social settings because you are limited from your diet. When you approach food from a dieting perspective, food becomes an enemy and every meal is a battle zone. Dieting sucks the enjoyment out of food and eating. But eating should not be so complicated and frustrating. When you approach food from an intuitive eating perspective, meals become an enjoyable way of honoring and taking care of yourself and your body. Instead of trying to force yourself to not desire certain foods, or trying to limit yourself to tiny portions, you get to truly enjoy the food and the atmosphere around you. 

Have questions about becoming an Intuitive Eater? Book a free discovery call below.