When ‘Filling Foods’ Fall Short

If you are here, you may have tried popular dieting programmes such as Slimming World, which help people to load up on "free", high water-content foods (like fruits and veggies, etc).

Without generalising, while this kind of approach helps some people, for others it can be tricky to have such an emphasis on eating "filling foods". Let's look at 6 possible reasons below...

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Full = fulfilled?

Filling up on barely any calories sounds great! But many people come to me with similar symptoms after following fullness-led, low energy density diets:

1. Loss of body trust

   Eating to being overstuffed, rather than cues, can become habit and can lead to total mind/body disconnect.

   
   

2. Over focus on volume instead of satisfaction

   Physically full but not emotionally or sensorily satisfied, which can also cause overeating or binge eating.

   
   

3. Shame or guilt around nutrient-dense foods

   Foods like nuts, oils, cheese, or avocado may be perceived as “bad” or “dangerous” when they are extremely nutritious and satisfying.

   
   

4. Digestive discomfort and bloating

   Large quantities of fibre-rich foods can trigger symptoms in those with IBS, acid reflux, silent reflux, or sensitive digestion.

   
   

5. Reinforcement of an all-or-nothing mindset

   Either “on plan” or “off track” - even over the course of a normal day that's perfectly healthy!

   
   

6. Potential to override emotional awareness

   Eating large volumes of food to manage difficult feelings may be unintentionally reinforced under the guise of “free” or “healthy” eating.

   
   

Low energy density foods do help people to feel fuller and regulate appetite and energy intake with much less effort. But without any context, people can feel deprived and off balance fairly quickly. We want to find a middle ground!

If you'd like to understand more about how energy density works, read our article Harnessing Energy Density to find out more!

Lizzie