3 Food Swaps for Eating Disorder Recovery

3 Food Swaps for Eating Disorder Recovery

Eating disorder recovery is a combination of nutritional counseling and rehabilitation and therapy. As eating disorder dietitians we work with individuals to help them re-nourish themselves, change the way you think about food, reduce anxiety around eating, and improving body image.

Over the course of eating disorder treatment we may suggest adding in, swapping or taking out certain foods for various reasons. Each phase of recovery has unique nutritional requirements. Sometimes these requirements are based on needs, GI health, medical needs, or more psychological concerns.

All foods are welcome during eating disorder recovery, but there may be some foods that have added benefits for you through this process.

3 Food Swaps for Eating Disorder Recovery

1. Swap 🍿 for potato chips

Popcorn is yummy but in order to eat enough you have to eat quite a large volume, which could cause you to under eat, feel bloated, or feel too full. Potato chips are still a carbohydrate but have the added benefit of dietary fat, which is essential for absorbing certain vitamins (only one of the many insanely important functions of dietary fat). You also wouldn’t need to consume as large of a volume which is more digestion friendly. Fiber is great but not in the beginning stages of recovery.

2. Swap Non-fat dairy for full-fat dairy 🥛

As I mentioned before dietary fat has a ton of insanely important functions so why would you skip out on it in your dairy? Dietary fat is our biggest form of back up energy, important for hair, skin, and nails to grow, helps maintain body temperature, source of essential fatty acids needed for hormone production, adds flavor and taste to food, increases satisfaction, and helps control blood sugar. Our body needs quite a bit of it so let’s keep it in our dairy.

3. Swap cauliflower rice for 🍚

Cauliflower rice is a vegetable and not a grain/carbohydrate and your body needs more carbs than it does vegetables. Skipping out on carbs will leave your body with low energy causing it to slow down and skip out on essential tasks it just doesn’t have the energy to do. This slows down the physical healing process that needs to happen in eating disorder recovery. And yes even if all your labs and tests are normal you still likely have physical/internal healing that needs to happen.

In need of more support navigating eating during eating disorder recovery? Click the button below to set up an appointment with one of our dietitians.