Are You Ready to Create Healthy Eating Habits in 2026?
Constantly tempted by fats and sweets, either at home or away? Do you know perfectly well what healthy eating looks like, yet you fall for those sales on cookies and chips as often as Wile E. Coyote falls for the Road Runner's same old tricks?
Me too. Tired of being bested by inanimate but fattening objects, I finally consulted a nutritionist and did some research into why people overdo it on foods that call to us without (usually) providing real nutrients or even necessarily satisfaction. Most of all, I wanted to find out how to stop this cycle.
A good idea? Mindful eating. | Credit: Getty
"We aim for you to be confident to make food decisions that satisfy your body and also produce less stress for you. That is the ultimate goal," said Leah Haggard, MS CNS LDN. She's the nutritionist I turned to at the virtual consultancy Nutrition Hive.
The Junk Food Problem
Lots of studies show why empty calories are bad for us. "Added sugars in the form of sugar-sweetened beverages have been linked to stroke, depression, and dementia," board-certified internist Austin Perlmutter, MD, coauthor of "Brain Wash," wrote in Psychology Today. "Excess dietary added sugar also contributes to the development of over-inflated fat cells, which are also believed to promote more inflammation in the body that may damage the brain." Best to avoid "white bread, cookies, candies, etc.," he wrote.
"Study after study shows that dieting and food restriction for the purpose of weight loss leads to more weight gain."
(White pasta, too. Whole grains provide fiber and essential nutrients stripped away in processing, as authorities from the Mayo Clinic to the American Heart Association have long told us.)
Okay, but how? The U.S. diet industry tops $90 billion, including new prescription drugs. Its ads are tempting, but "there is not a single study that shows that weight-loss dieting is sustainable," Intuitive Eating founder Evelyn Tribole told "10% Happier" podcast host Dan Harris. "Study after study shows that dieting and food restriction for the purpose of weight loss leads to more weight gain."
Ouch! So if junk food is bad for you and dieting doesn't work, how are we supposed to fight off the equally formidable U.S. snacking industry, the largest worldwide?
Mind Games, Food Edition
Remember that cycle I mentioned? Haggard calls it the guilt / restrict / binge cycle. For me, it looks like buying a bag of candy or container of chips on the theory of having it last a week — then munching half of it over the next 24 hours because it's there and yum.
I won't be that stupid again, I always say. This has gone on since a prescribed medication, to put it scientifically, set off a major sweet tooth. In the early '00s. (It was right there in the long page of fine-print warnings.) When you really want something — a candy bar or six; a soda; a second bowl of pasta — and something or someone says you can't have it, that thing becomes overwhelmingly distracting, Haggard explains.
This is the scarcity mindset, and it's a big problem with official diets, which prohibit certain foods. Or maybe it's just you saying, "If I avoid those cookies and stick to 'healthy things,' I'll be fine."
Haggard suggested referring to maligned foods like bacon, cupcakes and pizza as "energy dense" rather than "bad." Bodies need energy, after all. They just don't need a diet that pushes away the nutrients in vegetables, fruit and whole foods — and foods high in both nutrients and energy, such as nuts and seeds, lean proteins and dairy, whole grains, beans and olive oils.
With the most tempting food for you — it's different for everyone — think, "I've had that, I know that, I don't have to have that this minute."
Practice habituation, Haggard advises. With the most tempting food for you — it's different for everyone — think, "I've had that, I know that, I don't have to have that this minute." Nibble at the item very slowly, mindfully, taking in its look, scent, taste and texture while noting your own emotional state. Are you anxious? Distracted? Annoyed? Something else? Satisfied with what you're eating? Why or why not?
After days or weeks of doing this, your attitude toward this tempting food will likely calm; the relationship should change.
A Quick Guide for a New Approach
Meanwhile, expert guidance for handling food situations at home and away, in the new year and beyond:
• No dieting. "It only reinforces the scarcity mindset," says Haggard. In the podcast, Tribole encourages us to rethink our "food rules," wherever they come from, because they may be causing problems instead of solving them.
• Stop snacking out of boredom. Find a substitute that works for you. Clients of Tribole's have curated puppy or baby llama videos to turn to when tempted by chips or candy. Some people do a quick meditation, enough to distract. (For ideas, search "30-second meditation" online.)
• Slow down consumption. Breathe deeply. Eat one bite at a time and fully chew each bite, Haggard advises. Go back to habituation: Are you stressed? Hungry? Preoccupied? How does the food look, smell, taste? What is the texture, temperature? Are you satisfied?
• Plan for an event or meal out. The old advice holds: Eat sensibly first, at home, so you don't overdo it later. "When you're ravenous, you're less present and you'll eat quicker," says Haggard. And probably less-sensible foods, too (see next item).
• Normalize leftovers. If possible, set aside some of your meal or dessert to take home. "That will reinforce that you don't have to cram it all in now," says Haggard.
• If goodies are in your face, move away. Parties and receptions offer trays full of bite-size desserts, bowls of chips, plates of warm cookies. Literally turn away and talk to someone. Remember the scarcity mindset — it's trying to fool you into thinking you must grab these things.
• Beat the "special food/drink" idea. It's your niece's 25th birthday — everyone gets cake! You're on a cruise, and the captain sends over Champagne and chocolates — can't turn them down, right? Yes, you can. You're in charge of you. If you'll feel bad later, don't let someone else overrule you now.
• Nibble before shopping. Grocery shopping on an empty stomach makes me go off-list and leads me straight down the candy aisle. A meal or even a few whole-grain crackers will avert that, says Haggard.
• Try a mindful-eating journal. Include hunger and fullness levels before and after meals; emotions and how they affect your choices; cravings (not just food but comfort, relaxation, entertainment, etc.); satisfaction and enjoyment after eating. Look for patterns.
• Practice self-compassion. "There will be times you will eat past fullness or eat a bit more dessert," says Haggard. "Decreasing guilt and shame can help to decrease the cycle."
By our age, we do not have to have a piece of cake just because someone says we do.
Can My Results Work for You?
I accumulated all this wisdom over weeks of research and a series of sessions with Haggard, then put it to real-life testing. Early results:
• Eating before shopping works. Unscientifically, I went off-list about 90% less.
• Mindful eating is a good idea. It's not instant; it takes practice. After all, it's fighting a lifetime of pretty mindless eating. I've especially got to avoid lunch at my desk while staring into a computer.
• I turned away! Boy, is it hard to ignore a bowl of chips or a hot apple pie. But you know, I've had those before. They're great. I don't have to have more this instant. And now I'm on the other side of the room, ignoring them.
• Yup, the "special food" idea is nonsense. By our age, we do not have to have a piece of cake just because someone says we do. As Tribole suggests, let's come up with better ways to celebrate people than consuming calories.
• Boredom snacking is tough to beat — but not impossible. For me, 30 seconds of stretching, which is useful anyway, makes a great distraction.
• Self-compassion, yes. Isn't this always worthwhile?
