Mindful Eating Through the Holidays: A Science-Backed Alternative to Restriction

With the holiday season approaching, we want to offer a research-grounded alternative to the two most common holiday eating strategies: unrestricted indulgence and white-knuckled restriction. Both of these approaches are associated with worse health outcomes than a middle path that the nutrition science literature calls mindful eating — a practice of bringing full, non-judgmental awareness to the experience of eating. Far from being a vague wellness concept, mindful eating is backed by a growing body of randomized controlled trial evidence.

A meta-analysis published in Obesity Reviews found that mindful eating interventions were effective for reducing binge eating, emotional eating and weight in multiple study populations. The core practices are straightforward: eat without distraction (put the phone down and turn off the television), eat slowly and chew thoroughly to give satiety hormones time to signal fullness, tune in to hunger and fullness cues rather than eating to a plate or portion size and bring genuine sensory attention to what you are eating. These practices sound simple but require intention in a culture designed for distraction.

Applied to the holiday season, mindful eating means choosing the foods you genuinely love and eating them with full presence — rather than mindlessly grazing through every dish because it is there. It means knowing when you are satisfied rather than eating past fullness because the food is delicious. And it means approaching the holiday table with curiosity and pleasure rather than anxiety and guilt. At NutriGreene, we incorporate mindful eating principles into all of our counseling because the how of eating is as important as the what.

Sources

• Katterman SN, et al. Mindfulness meditation as an intervention for binge eating, emotional eating and weight loss: a systematic review. Eat Behav. 2014;15(2):197-204.

• Daubenmier J, et al. Mindfulness intervention for stress eating to reduce cortisol and abdominal fat among overweight and obese women. J Obes. 2011;2011:651936.

Ready to take the next step in your nutrition journey? Schedule an appointment at NutriGreene today. www.nutrigreene.com | (203) 429-4211 | info@nutrigreene.com