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Mindful Eating at Home

Jill Verchota-Luce, MPH, RDN, LD, IFNCPHealth Management Consultant

May 2020

Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC

On the menu today:

• Mindless eating triggers

• Strategies to help you eat

more mindfully

• Healthy eating at home

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Take a Pause.

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Mindful Eating Core Principals

Being aware of…

1. Nourishment foods provide

2. Choosing enjoyable and nutritious foods

3. Acknowledge food preferences nonjudgmentally

4. Recognize and honor physical hunger and fullness

5. Using wisdom to guide eating decisions

Source: Lily Hills, The Mindful Eating Method

https://www.todaysdietitian.com/newarchives/030413p42.shtml

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Mindful eating can help you:

• Cut down on portions

• Avoid stress eating

• Reduce post-meal gas, bloating, discomfort

• Enjoy food, not associate your eating with shame

https://www.fammed.wisc.edu/files/webfm-

uploads/documents/outreach/im/handout-

MindfulEating-Final.pdf

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Mindless Eating Triggers

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Mindless Eating Triggers: Stress

Stress

↑ cortisol “Stress

hormone”

Crave ↑ fat, ↑ sugar foods

Eat unhealthy foods

↑ dopamine & adrenaline

↑ cravings; eat more to satisfy

Tryon MS, Carter CS, Decant R, Laugero KD. Chronic stress

exposure may affect the brain's response to high calorie food cues

and predispose to obesogenic eating habits. Physiol Behav.

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Mindless Eating Triggers: Environment

• Family

• Friends

• Packages

• Plates

• Names

• Numbers

• Labels

• Lights

• Colors

• Shapes

• Smells

• Containers

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Mindless eating triggers:

Extra LARGE stale

movie theater

popcorn with butter

Wansink B, Kim J (2005),”Bad Popcorn in Big Buckets:Portion Size

Can Influence Intake as Much as Taste”, Journal of Nutrition

Education and Behavior, 37,112-120.

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Mindless eating triggers:

Bottomless

soup!

http://www.brianwansink.com/bottomless-bowls.html

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Mindless eating triggers

Seafood filet

Red beans with rice

Chocolate cake

Succulent Italian Seafood

Filet

Traditional Cajun Red Beans

with Rice

Belgium Black forest

Chocolate Cake

Wansink, et al. (2005). How descriptive food names bias sensory

perceptions in restaurants. Food Quality and Preference

Volume 16, Issue 5, July 2005, Pages 393-400 Retrieved online at

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S09503293040009

41

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Mindless eating triggers

Narrow, 22 oz. glass

Short, wide 22 oz. glass

Wansink, B. et al. (2005). Shape of glass and amount of alcohol poured:

comparative study of effect of practice and concentration. BMJ. Retrieved

online from http://mindlesseating.org/pdf/Pouring-BMJ_2005.pdf

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Mindful Eating Strategies

https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2006/04/19/eating-more-enjoying-

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Overcome Triggers: mindful eating at home

Make space for: undistracted

mealtimes, food prep

Weekly grocery trips – stock

cabinets with healthier options

Pre-portion snacks and meals

Make fruits and veggies visible

Healthier take-out and delivery

options

Use smaller plates and bowls

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Mindful eating core principals

Being aware of…

1. Nourishment foods provide

2. Choosing enjoyable and nutritious foods

3. Acknowledge food preferences nonjudgmentally

4. Recognize and honor physical hunger and fullness

5. Using wisdom to guide eating decisions

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Food tracking

• What?

• How much?

• When?

• Where? & With

Who?

• What you’re

doing?

• How you’re

feeling?

• Hunger/fullness?

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/why-keep-a-food-diary-2019013115855

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Electronic tracking tools

• MyFitnessPal

• See How You Eat

• MealLogger

• MyPlate

• Ate Food Diary

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Rate your hunger: 0-10

0 = Starving

1 = Physically hungry

2

3

4

5 = Satisfied

6

7

8

9

10 = Thanksgiving stuffed

https://www.fammed.wisc.edu/files/webfm-uploads/documents/outreach/im/handout-MindfulEating-Final.pdf

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“Am I hungry?©”

Why do I

eat?

When do I

want to eat?What do I

eat?

How do

I eat?

How much do

I eat?

Where do I

invest my

energy?

https://amihungry.com/

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Change your biochemistry

1. Close your eyes

2. Sit up tall

3. Smile

4. Place hand on heart

”I’m not hungry

now, but when I

do feel hungry,

I’ll eat!”

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Slow down at meals

• Pause before eating

• Set a timer

• Eat with non-dominant

hand

• Take small bites and

chew thoroughly

• Wait 15-20 minutes

before refilling your

plate

https://www.fammed.wisc.edu/files/webfm-uploads/documents/outreach/im/handout-MindfulEating-Final.pdf

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There’s an app for that!

• Am I Hungry? – Tune into hunger cues to eat more

mindfully and less emotionally

• Insight Timer, Headspace and Calm – Guided

meditations

Washington Post article: Apps take a mindful approach to eating,

activity. 9/18/2019.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/wellness/instead-of-

tracking-calories-and-steps-try-these-5-mindful-

apps/2019/09/16/b58f05f2-d62e-11e9-9343-

40db57cf6abd_story.html?wpisrc=nl_sb_smartbrief

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Try it out at home for 3 days

• Pause.

• Am I hungry?

• Rate hunger before, during and after each meal for 3

days using a scale of 0-10

• Include any physical cues you’re feeling

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In Summary: Mindful Eating Strategies

• Self monitoring

• Stress management

• Stimulus control

• Problem solving

• Cognitive restructuring

• Social support

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Healthy Eating at Home

https://www.fda.gov/food/food-safety-during-emergencies/shopping-food-during-covid-19-pandemic-information-consumers

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Easy pantry meals

• Chili (traditional or white) and soups

• Pineapple BBQ chicken

• Burrito bowls

• Turkey taco skillet

• Pasta with olive oil & frozen veggies or marinara sauce

• Teriyaki chicken rice or stir-fry of your choice

• Garlic noodles with broccoli and protein of choice

• Fish and roasted potatoes

www.budgetbytes.com

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Make your Fruits & Veggies Last!

Fresh:

• Potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions - cabinet

• Cabbage, carrots – refrigerator drawer

• Winter squash – countertop

• Celery – wrap in foil

• Apples, oranges, grapefruit – refrigerator

• Herbs – in water

• Greens – paper towel

Frozen:

• Spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, peas, corn, green beans

• Pineapple, mango, melon, berries

https://www.wellandgood.com/good-food/how-to-keep-herbs-fresh/

www.budgetbytes.com

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Free cooking apps

• Project Foodie

• SideChef: Recipes & meal planner

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Free cooking websites

• https://www.deliaonline.com

– Go to: How to cook

• https://www.thekitchn.com/

– Go to: Sign up for cooking school

• https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/techniques

• https://cooking.nytimes.com/

– New! Self Quarantine recipe page

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Take action!

• Focus on one goal at a

time

• Select 1-3 small habit

changes

• Commit to the change

• Keep the plan relevant

• Relapse plan

Q&A

Thank you!

Jill Verchota-Luce

Jill.Verchota-Luce@MarshMMA.com

763-203-3176

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