When I take a call from a potential client, I often get questions such as these. People want to work on their overall diet but have an ingredient or food that they don’t feel comfortable having as part of their diet. They may have read somewhere that a specific ingredient is linked with a type or cancer or a certain food causes inflammation of the stomach lining.
My approach when working with clients is to meet them where they are. I like to explain at this point that while I say people “can” eat anything in moderation, I’m not saying they “have to.” For most of the clients that I work with, the big focus points are: 1) Are you meeting your body’s nutritional needs 2) Are you doing so in a balanced way so that you’re likely meeting the different vitamin/mineral/nutrient needs?
If a person is doing these two things without consuming a certain ingredient they’re uncomfortable with, then that’s great! My desire is to help a person work on their goals in a way that feels comfortable for them in the long run.
When there might be a concern
- Cutting out a whole food group as opposed to a certain ingredient- I know for sure that none of the food groups (protein, carbohydrates, fruits/vegetables, fats) are bad as a whole, so this would be a red flag for me that something else might be going on for this person. This is why I insist on a full nutritional assessment for all new clients where we can discuss your motivations and intentions for different foods.
- Having too many ingredient restrictions- this can make food selection a very arduous task and eating out almost impossible. While I’m never going to ask someone to eat something they don’t feel comfortable with, I do recognize that this can be very difficult to follow. We want eating to be as simple as possible and as peaceful as possible.
If you have a diet restriction, whether from a doctor or your own personal experience, and you’re wondering if you’re still nourishing your body adequately, a dietitian can be a great place to start to check this out. I’d love to help! You can reach me at stephanie@ayalanutrition.com.