Food Confidence Podcast

 In this episode of the Food Confidence Podcast, we talk to Jillian Tholen, a non-diet Registered Dietitian who specializes in disordered eating, eating disorders and sports nutrition. We talk about Jillian’s experiences in the world of sport, and how that lead to her interest in working with athletes, and also her passion for intuitive eating and Health at Every Size. Jillian shares some tips to help parents and caregivers, on navigating the world of sports and exercise for their children and for themselves, including joyful movement, body talk, and “picky eating”. She provides tips for coaches on how to foster a helpful team culture, shares some statistics on the prevalence of disordered eating with athletes, and some thoughts on how to prevent problematic eating behaviors in sport.

Jillian can be found at @jillian.rd on Instagram and at her website http://jillianrd.com

Jillian’s recommended resources:

https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/

http://www.myedin.org/

https://medium.com/lane-9-project

In episode six of the Food Confidence Podcast we talk to Leah Hackney, a Registered Dietitian and Certified Specialist in Pediatric Nutrition. Leah shares how she came to be an Intuitive Eating and HAES (Health At Every Size) -informed practitioner, and how she applied these philosophies when working in an in-patient setting at a Children’s hospital. She talks about how she has seen weight-stigma show up in the clinical setting, and how parents and caregivers can advocate for the health of family members if and when a weight concern is brought up. We also talk about our own experiences in using positive food and body language as a way to help foster health and wellbeing. Finally, Leah shares some perspectives on the intersections of health and social justice, which we learn is can often be a factor that is overlooked in both individual and public health initiatives.

Show notes & recommended resources

1. Love it, Like it, and Learning it language - https://veggiesandvirtue.com/blog/beginners-guide-to-love-it-like-it-learning-it

2. Karen Washington on Food Apartheids: https://www.guernicamag.com/karen-washington-its-not-a-food-desert-its-food-apartheid/

3. Health at Every Size by Linda Bacon: https://lindabacon.org/health-at-every-size-book/

In this episode we talk to Erin of Food Science Babe, a food scientist with over 10 years of experience in both the conventional and organic food sectors. Erin shares myth-busting information on Facebook and Instagram to help her audience learn about food production, marketing, and agriculture. We talk to Food Science Babe about some hot-topic issues: conventional vs organic food, genetic modification, and the misinformation and fear-based marketing around these topics. As a food scientist, Erin is able to speak to the different types of genetic modification, the safety of foods on the market, and some of the environmental concerns that we often hear around farming practices. The objective of this episode is for our listeners gain an understanding of another side of the food conversation that we don’t often hear in mainstream media or marketing. In exploring some of the science behind conventional and organic food production, our hope is that you can feel more freedom and ease when you’re making food choices for yourself and your family. 

Show notes & links:

Food Science Babe: https://www.facebook.com/foodsciencebabe/ & Instagram: @foodsciencebabe

Street Smart Nutrition blog post on Arctic Apples: http://www.streetsmartnutrition.com/arctic-apples-field-tour-2017/ 

Pesticide Residue Calculator: https://www.safefruitsandveggies.com/

Food Evolution documentary: https://www.foodevolutionmovie.com/

Food Science Babe's recommended resources:

Sci Moms: https://scimoms.com/

Biology Fortified: https://biofortified.org/

Genetic Literacy Project: https://geneticliteracyproject.org/

Farm Babe: http://thefarmbabe.com/

The Farmers Daughter: https://www.facebook.com/TheFarmersDaughterUSA/

TDF Honest Farmer: https://www.facebook.com/tillamookdairyfarmer/

AG Daily: https://www.agdaily.com/ or https://www.facebook.com/agdailymedia/

In this episode, we talk to Jennifer Wiessner, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Sex Therapist who has a practice in Southern Maine. In addition to her practice, Jennifer is a speaker and writer, and hosts workshop for parents and caregivers on raising sexually healthy kids. In the episode, she speaks about the current state of sexual education in the country, why sex education is a human right, and ideally should start at home. From Jennifer's years of work in this area, she realized that the majority of adults did not get comprehensive sexual education from caregivers as children or teens. Despite it being a potentially uncomfortable conversation for both parents and child, Jennifer believes that it is a necessary and navigable topic to discuss with children as they grow. We talk about what and how to use language to convey positive body and sex information, as well as educating kids about consent, and aligning sex education with your family values. 

Show notes:

Jennifer Wiessner, LCSW & Sex Therapist: https://jenniferwiessnerhealthysexuality.com/

NYT Article on state of sex education in the US schools: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/21/us/colorado-sex-education-in-schools.html

Jennifer's Recommended Resources:

It's Not The Stork book by Robie H. Harris: https://amzn.to/2XSeMez

Birds and Bees and More by Sandra Caron: https://amzn.to/2XUNjZQ

Cory Silverberg: https://www.corysilverberg.com/what-makes-a-baby

Consent for Kids (Youtube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3nhM9UlJjc

Amaze: https://amaze.org/

You Daughter's Bedroom: https://amzn.to/2Wc8OER

Spare me the Talk: a (Girl/Guys) Guid to Sex, Relationships, and Growing Up: (boys) https://amzn.to/2GGtgHA , (girls) https://amzn.to/2GVmDkT

The Girl's Body Book: https://amzn.to/2XPzdc0

The Boy's Body Book: https://amzn.to/2GIDWFD

In this episode, Jenn and Andrea talk to Dana Suchow, an award-winning speaker and educator whose work revolves around the prevention of eating disorders in children. An eating disorder survivor herself, Dana is passionate about working with parents and caregivers, to help give them the tools to raise body confident kids. In this conversations, Dana defines 'diet culture' and how it shows up in our lives, and subsequently in the lives of children. We talk about how parents and caregivers can help foster a health relationship with food and body, even if they themselves are struggling to find peace in their relationship with food and/or body.  Show notes: - Dana's website and contact info:  website: https://www.danasuchow.com/ instagram: @danasuchow facebook: @DanaSuchow - Free body image resources from Dana's website:   https://www.danasuchow.com/resources - NEDA Eating Disorder Awareness WeeL 2019 "Come As You Are" https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/get-involved/nedawareness - Brene Brown: https://brenebrown.com/

In this episode, Jenn and Andrea provide an introduction to two important concepts that will set the stage for the podcast going forward: Intuitive Eating and Health at Every Size. The ability to eat intuitively is something that everyone is born with, but that our environment disconnects us from over time. The book titled Intuitive Eating was written by two Registered Dietitians and originally published in 1995, and has gained momentum from both practitioners and individuals in recent years. Both hosts practice and assist individuals in this evidence-based framework as it has been shown to provide many physical and mental health benefits, while taking the focus off of weight and body size. Health at Every Size aka HAES is a philosophy that encourages health-promoting behaviors, while maintaining a deep respect for body diversity and body autonomy. Although the awareness of both of these ideologies is growing, they are still very much counter-culture to mainstream health and nutrition messaging. This episode provides an overview to these very nuanced topics,  as well as why we (Andrea and Jenn) believe Intuitive Eating and HAES are the way forward in healing our relationship with food and body. Show notes: - Intuitive Eating: https://www.intuitiveeating.org/ - HAES: https://www.sizediversityandhealth.org/content.asp?id=76 - Food Pysch podcast with Christy Harrison: https://christyharrison.com/foodpsych

Welcome to the Food Confidence Podcast! The first episode is an introduction to the show, how the podcast came to be, and the funny story of how the co-hosts became friends and colleagues. Andrea is a Registered & Licensed Dietitian, and Jenn is a Certified Health Coach and Chef. Although they both work in health fields, their educational backgrounds are quite different; Andrea coming from a traditional evidence-focused dietetics education, and Jenn coming from the wholistic health and culinary nutrition world. After meeting under circumstance having nothing to do with food, Jenn and Andrea kept in touch and eventually discovered they were very similar in their philosophies and approaches to health & wellness. 

The mission of this podcast is to inform and empower parents and caregivers in raising food and body confident kids. The podcast will serve as a platform to interview experts and discuss the ways in which we can all help the next generation become more resilient, healthy, and happy. Thank you for listening! 

Show notes:

- Instagram for the podcast: @foodconfidencepod

- Instagram for co-hosts: @andreapaul.rd and @jennifahbravo

- Email questions or inquires to [email protected]