jellybeyreads reviewed Intuitive Eating, 4th Edition by Evelyn Tribole
Review of 'Intuitive Eating, 4th Edition' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
4.5 stars
I accept that diet culture is real and that its consequences include eating disorder. I accept that ED treatment should be uncoupled from weight loss. What I'm looking for is a book to recommend to friends and family who are willing to learn more, but are currently still heavily invested in diet culture, when I want them to understand why they need to stop saying "but has she even lost weight?" about someone recovering from an ED. What I want from such a book (followed by a note identifying whether I feel this book met that criterion):
-an appeal to basic respect for all people, regardless of their body shape (yes)
-an acknowledgement that not all people are currently at their optimal weight (sort of - they point out that we have no way to know what any individual's actual optimal weight is, so it's a moot point) …
4.5 stars
I accept that diet culture is real and that its consequences include eating disorder. I accept that ED treatment should be uncoupled from weight loss. What I'm looking for is a book to recommend to friends and family who are willing to learn more, but are currently still heavily invested in diet culture, when I want them to understand why they need to stop saying "but has she even lost weight?" about someone recovering from an ED. What I want from such a book (followed by a note identifying whether I feel this book met that criterion):
-an appeal to basic respect for all people, regardless of their body shape (yes)
-an acknowledgement that not all people are currently at their optimal weight (sort of - they point out that we have no way to know what any individual's actual optimal weight is, so it's a moot point)
-an acknowledgement that not being at our optimal weight can contribute to negative health outcomes (sort of - they point out that extreme underweight (e.g. in typical anorexia) is harmful, but they hesitate to claim that extreme overweight could also be harmful)
-a convincing argument that intentionally attempting to achieve a particular weight (or weight range) through behavior change is not just futile, but actively harmful to our health (yes)
-a comprehensive summary of peer-reviewed research showing that, since 1969, studies consistently find that 90-95% of people who intentionally lose weight by dieting regain it within 6-24 months, that 24 months is not "long-term" when examining weight maintenance, and that a truly long-term study of 5 to 10 years would show even higher rates of weight regain (yes)
-a discussion of "cognitive restriction" and its negative health consequences (they sort of hint at this)
-a definition of "diet", including an explanation for why Weight Watchers IS a diet, even in its current formulation (yes)
-an acknowledgement that the fundamental difference between intuitive eating/eating disorder treatment and prescriptive diets is the goal/philosophy/motivators for behavior change (weight-neutral self-care vs. weight loss), NOT in the lifestyle recommendations (eat a "varied" / "balanced" diet, get more exercise/movement) (indirectly)
-an acknowledgement of the tension between HAES's recognition that lifestyle choices play only a small role in our overall health outcomes and simultaneous expectation that people to work toward lifestyle changes (no - but they are adamant that people should not begin to explore lifestyle changes that impact their nutrition or exercise choices, until they have FULLY recovered from disordered eating and diet culture, and SHOULD NOT explore these things if it triggers relapse)
-an acknowledgement that in our society as it exists, complete with fatphobia and diet culture, profound social inequality, inaccessible child care options, oppression and marginalization of essentially every social group except rich cis/het white men, and a pathological obsession with the virtue of work, asking people to do the work of body acceptance and intuitive eating takes time and energy that many, many people simply don't have, and will not have without widespread social change (yes)
One of the things I'm looking for in my dream recommendation book, which I fear I just might not find, is a bigger discussion of binge eating disorder in particular, and explicit advocacy that all of these principles apply for ALL higher-weight people, even people we might think of as "morbidly obese". It is NOT OUR JOB to arbitrate whether or not someone else's body is "the right size" for intuitive eating, because EVERYONE'S body is "the right size" for intuitive eating. However, because so many of these books are explicitly anti-diet and reject diet culture language, they tend not to differentiate between groups of higher weight individuals. I wish also that the authors of this book had specified that there is no particular weight range for which intuitive eating is more or less likely to result in weight loss. They do note that "intuitive eating may or may not result in weight loss" but I really wish they were clear that this applies to ALL intuitive eaters, regardless of weight.
Anyway, I think this might be the book to recommend.
