Does weight affect health?
For many years, the scientific and medical communities assumed the answer to this question as an obvious yes. After all, studies show correlations between higher BMI (body mass index) and various medical conditions, one of which—PCOS—is the topic of today’s episode.
When we look at studies showing a correlation between weight and PCOS or other medical conditions, two key questions arise:
1. Does weight cause the condition, or is there a third variable that influences both weight retention and the condition?
2. Are the treatment recommendations based on this association helpful or harmful to the patient?
In this episode, Lauren Hirschhorn-Tieu shares her experience as someone diagnosed with PCOS and prescribed a rigid weight loss diet. She discusses the negative impact of the diet on her quality of life, eating patterns, social life, and self-perception. She describes the shame, the belief that her body was somehow “different”, and the lack of substantiated impact the diet had on her PCOS.
When Lauren talks about the meal plan she was prescribed, we also briefly touch on censorship, trigger warnings, and the impact of sharing specifics about food restriction. We settle on sharing the specifics and allowing you, the listener, to decide whether you want to listen and to process your reactions if you choose to engage.
I debated whether to cut this from the episode. On one hand, in the context of our conversation, the particular snack Lauren was prescribed was legitimately not important. On the other hand, it touches on a broader question about the recovery environment we create: To what extent are we responsible for monitoring ourselves to shield one another from potentially painful or triggering information, versus sharing our stories openly and in enough detail to bring them to life while also validating, owning, and processing our reactions to each other?
Lauren is a non-diet, HAES-aligned registered dietitian and owner of Note to Self Nutrition LLC. Lauren started her career in the clinical side of nutrition, working in hospitals and skilled nursing facilities, which provided her with a solid medical foundation and a deep understanding of the complexities of the body and the medical field. She now combines that experience with her HAES®-aligned approach to help clients navigate medical conditions like diabetes, chronic kidney disease, and hormonal imbalances, all while supporting their relationship with food and their bodies.
Having her own history of struggles with nutrition and body image has shaped Lauren’s gentle approach to nutrition therapy. She deeply understands the grief that comes with a changing body and the pressure to fit into societal ideals. She also recognizes that her own lived experience is just one part of the story, and she continues to learn from the diverse clients she works with.
At the heart of Lauren's work is a desire to help clients reconnect with their authentic selves—the person they were before diet culture took hold. She believes that the joyful, carefree parts of ourselves are still within us, waiting to be rediscovered.
Lauren’ nutrition practice: https://www.notetoselfnutritionllc.com/
Elka’s binge eating recovery program: https://elkacubacub.com/
