Does food choice affect mood, energy level, and quality of life? Are some foods healthier than others? Do whole foods, processed foods, and ultra-processed foods impact the body differently? What constitutes a healthy diet—if such a thing even exists?
In the eating disorder recovery community, these questions have become highly charged and controversial. Many professionals in the field, having seen firsthand the harm caused by restrictive weight loss diets, adopt an "all foods fit" approach, emphasizing that any and all foods can provide nutrients and fuel for the body. Others argue that ignoring the potential negative effects of highly processed foods—and the ways in which profit-driven motives, rather than consumer well-being, influence their production—does a disservice to those whose bodies are sensitive to excessive food additives.
In this episode, Rebecca Prolman approaches these questions with nuance and compassion. She shares her experience of altering food choices to manage small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), a rare condition that significantly compromised her ability to function in daily life, and left her unable to remain awake past mid-day. She discusses making dietary adjustments while staying in touch with your body's signals rather than overriding them—and approaching these in a way that is wholesome and kind rather than anxiety-provoking.
Rebecca is a licensed marriage and family therapist specializing in complex trauma and eating disorders. She approaches eating disorder treatment from a holistic, trauma-informed perspective.
As a survivor of the troubled teen industry, Rebecca specializes in working with other survivors and serves as an expert trauma consultant for an attorney seeking justice for those affected. She also provides educational courses on healing from complex trauma, which can be found on her website,
https://www.rebeccaprolman.com/
Articles referenced in episode:
On food additives banned in European countries that are allowed in the US: https://www.everydayhealth.com/diet-nutrition/why-are-some-food-additives-that-are-banned-in-europe-still-used-in-the-us/
Ultra-processed foods and addiction: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/food-can-be-literally-addictive-new-evidence-suggests/
GMOs: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3791249/
Pesticides: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11664077/
Seed Oil Health Risks: https://health.clevelandclinic.org/seed-oils-are-they-actually-toxic
Food Dyes and ADHD: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9052604/
