The anti-diet diet

When we set out to lose weight, the first thing most of us do is cut calories. The cupboards are cleared of our favourite snacks. The ice-cream is turfed out lest we're tempted after dinner. The salmon is ordered at the pub instead of the schnitzel. But what if we had our approach the wrong way around? What if, instead of taking things off our plates, we added things to them?

- WORDS by ASHLEIGH AUSTEN

That's the approach dietitian and chief executive of FOODIQ Global, Dr Flávia Fayet-Moore, recommends. “The problem is, if the outcome that we’re looking at as a measure of success is weight, then we’re seriously missing the point,” she says. “With improved nutrition, you can see effects on your energy, mood and sleep within days or even hours – whereas weight is just one number, and not the sole measure of health.”

The problem with diet culture

Diet culture has conditioned us to believe that thinness equates to health, and that the only way to achieve it is through restriction. It’s the reason so many women can rattle off the calorie counts of common foods, why carbs are seen as villains, and why we feel “good” when we’re hungry, as if discipline was the ultimate badge of honour.

Dr Fayet-Moore says this thinking overlooks the body’s nutrient needs. “When women restrict, they’re often cutting out foods that are rich in nutrients our bodies need for mental health, energy, immunity and digestion. There’s not a single system in the body that’s not affected by nutrition.”

Research supports this. A study in BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health found that chronic calorie restriction was linked to increased symptoms of depression, while a meta-analysis in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism found that repeated dieting can disrupt hormones, slow metabolism and increase the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Think more, not less