Eating Disorders and Disordered Eating

Eating disorders and disordered eating

Source: Butterfly Foundation

Clinical eating disorders are medically diagnosed conditions, but they represent only one part of the broader spectrum of issues related to body image, food, and eating. Eating disorders encompass a wide range of thoughts and behaviors surrounding these areas.

Statistics

Clinical eating disorders affect an estimated 1 million (4%) Australians at any given time (Deloitte Access Economics, 2015). When combined with disordered eating, eating disorders impact 16.3% of Australians (Hay, Girosi, and Mond, 2015).

Common Eating Disorders

Most common eating disorders are:

• Anorexia Nervosa (AN)

• Bulimia Nervosa (BN)

• Binge Eating Disorder (BED)

• Other Specified Feeding/Eating Disorder (OSFED)

How dietetic services help with eating disorders?

Dietetic services take a collaborative approach, working alongside other healthcare professionals such as GPs and psychologists, to ensure comprehensive and long-term care for individuals dealing with eating disorders and disordered eating. They address the intricate relationship between food, emotions, and physical health in a compassionate and evidence-based manner.

People with eating disorders and disordered eating often develop unhealthy behaviors rooted in body dissatisfaction and negative nutrition influences, like pursuing thin ideals, skipping meals, eliminating certain foods, or adopting food rules and rituals. Dietitians provide support, education, and guidance to help individuals overcome these distorted thoughts and behaviors.

Why working with a dietitian?

Dietitians are medically trained nutrition professionals and the only professionals qualified to provide individual dietary consultation at the moment (Click here to read about the difference between a dietitian and nutritionist). Dietitians are trained to provide medical nutrition therapy and one-on-one personalized dietary advice, taking into consideration one's lifestyle, dietary habits, preferences, and goals to tailor nutrition strategies.

The topics dietitians might talk to you about:

• The recovery process from an eating disorder

• Self-compassion

• Negative effects of eating disorder behaviours

• Metabolism and nutrition needs of a human

• The dieting cycle and how to break it

• A general healthy balanced diet

• Importance and ways to eat regularly and adequately

• How to manage and alter your eating disorder behaviours through behavioural and environmental changes

• Build a healthy relationship with food

• Identify and challenge some feared foods

• Identify and challenge some food rules

• Social eating and enhance social life

• Eating according to hunger-fullness cue

• Build flexibility in eating

• Intuitive eating

What does working with Timeless Dietetic dietitian look like?

• Before the first consultation:

  • You will be invited to fill in a survey before the consults, including your health history, family history, current situation, goals

  • For elite athletes: You might be asked to provide a training program, body composition assessment (if available) and food diary

• In your first session, your dietitian will:

  • Discuss and understand your goals, living situation, lifestyle, potential motivators and barriers.

  • Perform assessment on health indicators, training schedules and goals, usual dietary intake.

  • Provide professional feedback on your diet, and identify areas that can be improved to help achieve your goal.

  • Discuss the most relevant nutrition topic that can help with the current situation and those you are interested in.

  • In collaboration with you, set small but impactful nutrition goals, homework and challenges.

  • Recommend what else you can do in the future and a recommended review timeframe if you would like to continue.

  • Provide you with a tailored nutrition information package to takeaway.

• In subsequent sessions, your dietitian will:

  • Review the effectiveness and practicality of previous goals/homework/challenges.

  • Review and track any progress indicators.

  • Reassess any changes in health indicators, training and dietary intake.

  • Discuss the most relevant nutrition topics and those you are interested in.

  • In collaboration with you, adjust the previous intervention that did not work well or develop a new strategy.

  • In collaboration with you, develop new strategies to improve your health and progress.

  • Provide you with a tailored nutrition information package to takeaway.

Work with Us

---

Other Eating Disorder Concerns

---

Our Blogs and Recipes