I’ve been asked several times if you can practice Intuitive Eating if you have a food allergy or dietary restriction. As an anti-diet, registered dietitian nutritionist, I wholeheartedly believe that there should be no rules around food. However, I do understand that some people may need to or choose to avoid certain foods for their health and safety. Some examples include: 

• Food Intolerances

• Food Sensitivities

• Food Allergies

• Diabetes, CHF, Kidney Disease

• Vegetarian, Vegan

Living With Food Allergies

Many people that have food allergies have learned from first-hand experiences that food is truly life or death. Many of my friends with severe food allergies bring their epi-pens with them wherever they go and instruct us on how to use them if necessary.

Most of the time, these friends won’t eat out or eat at specific events or occasions because they don’t know what is in the food and don’t want to take a risk. They have been there and done that. They’ve eaten something that caused an allergic reaction and they were sent to the hospital.

Food allergies can lead to a lot of fear and uncertainty around food, which can lead to an unhealthy relationship with food. I am not saying that is 100% guaranteed but they can correlate. 

So, the first step in Intuitively Eating with food allergies is to assess if your restriction is truly necessary. We all know “gluten-free or dairy-free” diets are ~trendy~, but if you don’t need to be GF or DF you may be harming yourself more than you think.

I have a dear friend, Martha Morgan, the owner and chef of Allergy Dragon, and we’ve talked extensively about food allergies as I have learned a lot from her. Martha has celiac disease and has a child with 33 food allergies. So she knows her stuff!

Martha tells me this quite often, “Why would you ever choose to be gluten-free? There are so many amazing foods with gluten and it’s a lot of work to be gluten-free.”

If you don’t have an allergy or intolerance to gluten or dairy, how is that restriction serving you? That’s a good question to ask yourself. Cutting out those food groups could lead to decreased nutrients and vitamin deficiencies if not supplemented properly.

In addition, making sure that your restrictive diet is accommodated at special events or restaurants can add a lot of worries and mental stress. So, asking if you need to live by that restriction is an important question to start with.

If you answered yes, you do need this restriction to live, then please avoid those foods or ingredients you are allergic to. There are so many more products and replacements nowadays for specific foods that you may be able to make some of your favorite foods with allergen-friendly ingredients.

If you do feel low or struggling with your diagnosis, then working through your food allergy with Intuitive Eating may be more helpful than you think. 

Intuitive Eating With Dietary Restrictions

Intuitive Eating is about listening to your body when it comes to food. So let’s say you lactose intolerant. Can you drink milk or have ice cream? Absolutely! I believe many people still do even though they are lactose intolerant, but they need to ask themselves a few questions first.

How does that typically make you feel afterward? Does lactose make your stomach feel completely terrible? Does it not hurt your stomach as much? Does it put you in a terrible mood? These are questions to think about and can be applied to other food intolerances or allergies as well. 

Of course, if you have a severe peanut or tree nut allergy you don’t have a lot to “play” with how it makes you feel when you eat said allergen. However, you know that, so you make the decision not to eat those foods and instead eat foods that make you feel good.

Tips for Balancing Dietary Restrictions

Keep A List

Keep a list of foods that are allergen friendly and that do make you feel good! Flipping that mindset of scarcity to abundance can help you during those hard times and remind you that there are lots of food that make you feel good and that tastes good.

If your food allergy or dietary restriction causes you frustration, that is okay. That is normal and you are not alone. It takes a lot of effort and diligence and some days you may just be tired. But there is more to you than your food allergy. Don’t let your restriction or allergy define you! Remember there is still a lot you can eat, so return to that list of foods you enjoy and can eat as often as you’d like. 

Keep Safe Foods On Hand

Honoring your hunger and listening to your fullness cues applies to anyone, allergy or not. So have some of those safe foods or foods that do make you feel good on hand. Allowing ourselves to get ravenous never ends up good.

We tend to overeat and leave ourselves stuffed and frustrated with how much food we just ate. So, listening to our bodies and paying attention to those cues that signal hunger may help with binge eating and eating past fullness.

Final Thoughts

Those are just a couple ways that Intuitive Eating and food allergies can coincide with each other, however, I’ll be the first to admit that I do not understand the frustration or exclusion that many people feel when it comes to dietary restrictions and food allergies.

I don’t have a food allergy so I do not 100% understand how that feels and I want to be open about that. As a registered dietitian, I love learning more about food allergies and how I can educate myself to better provide care to my clients with food allergies or restrictions.

In the next blog post, I’m asking Martha some questions about living with food allergies. She has a lot of great tips and tricks to balance dietary restrictions, daily life and everything in-between. You don’t want to miss it.

Chat with Elizabeth

Elizabeth is a registered dietitian helping Kentuckians find a healthier, fuller life. She’s been in your shoes and can help you with your health goals. If you want to discuss how the Intuitive Eating approach can benefit you, send a message.