Lately I have been thinking about this idea of “trade-offs” in making food choices.

I think a lot of us find making trade-offs or compromises to be a natural/intuitive way to navigate health/wellness decisions in a number of areas of our lives.

A common example might be sleep. If you’re like me, maybe you value getting good-quality sleep, but from time to time you sacrifice your sleep in order to have a fun/later night hanging out with friends because you also see this as important for your emotional health and overall experience of fun/joy in life. Or maybe at other times you sacrifice sleep to travel, to provide emotional support to a friend or family member, or to get some sort of urgent/important task done.

Part of one of my key health values (good sleep) is sacrificed to some extent to support my some of my other health values (good relationships, fun, spontaneity from time to time, travel, etc.).

Another example that comes to mind is with toxic exposures. I do my best to limit my exposure to certain toxins and take a number of actions to do so. In my life this looks like using a water filter, running an air purifier in our home, buying products without certain chemicals or fragrances in them, avoiding moldy/musty buildings whenever possible, and buying mostly organic food. At the same time, I know I could go crazy trying to avoid toxic exposures at all costs, so I accept that I will do my best within my limitations/reality of the world we live in and not overly stress about it. I sacrifice some of my desire to  totally avoid toxins in order to exist/function in the world!

What is interesting to me about this idea is how many of us struggle with this idea of trade-offs or compromises when it comes to food and nutrition.

You may feel like…

• You have to eat the “healthiest” food at every opportunity
• You are harming your health whenever each food choice isn’t “perfect”
• You feel anxious eating foods from a restaurant or that a friend made when you don’t know exactly what’s in it
• The only or “best” way to make a food decision should always be based purely on nutrition factors

What I’ve found in working with clients and in my own personal experience is that whenever we so overly fixate on “nutrition in the name of health,” our overall health (physical health included) suffers.

We may think we are being healthy by “not compromising on nutritional quality ever,” when this all-or-nothing approach actually tends to lead to a decline in nutritional health AND overall health.

I am all about nutrition and physical health.

I am NOT all about overly fixating on nutrition/physical health to the point of obsession and destruction to other aspects of health.

(What’s more, these “other areas of health” (emotional, relational, etc.) also impact physical health!  Hence, I do not recommend ignoring them for the sake of “physical health”).

We can think of nutrition as it relates to physical health like an arrowed continuum like the one shown below. Many of us may think that we can endlessly skew towards “perfect nutrition” with no consequences whatsoever.

Going back to the sleep example, I find many of this recognize/accept this reality more easily in other facets of our health/wellness.

If I endlessly skew to the right towards “perfect sleep” by NEVER compromising on my quest of the best sleep ever at all times, I will likely experience a number of consequences, given the reality of the trade-offs in health decisions. 

The health consequences of not acknowledging trade-offs in my pursuit of perfect sleep at all times may be:

• Worsened emotional health because I never go and do anything fun that interferes with my sleep; worsened relationships because I never sacrifice sleep for a friend/family member’s emotional needs (I’m not saying don’t have boundaries on your sleep even with family/friends, I’m simply saying that taken to an absolute extreme this can affect relational/emotional health)
• Worsened mental/emotional health because I am now obsessed with getting the best sleep possible at all times, which ironically worsens my sleep and also my physical health (due to being stressed by my all-or-nothing approach, not sleeping quite as well because I am so high-strung about my sleep, etc.)

Most of us end up making these sorts of trade-offs in order to give credence to the other values of our lives (such as relationships, emotional health, not being overly obsessive, to in general “live life,” etc.) and we accept things like we can both value our sleep / get good sleep most of the time, AND we can sacrifice it from time to time (even as part of a well-rounded approach to health).

What are some potential health consequences of pursuing (non-existent) “perfect” nutrition at all costs? 

When we don’t approach food/nutrition choices in a way that honors trade-offs, there are a number of possible health consequences. The main consequence being a disordered relationship with food, which then affects overall health/well-being. 

Potential mental/emotional health consequences:

• Extreme chaos or extreme rigidity around food (may look like the binge/restrict cycle, continual restriction, compulsive eating, etc)
• Thinking about food all the time
• Obsessing over food decisions (try to make the “right” or “best” choice)
• Higher stress levels (even thinking about this pursuit of “perfect nutrition” causes me to feel stressed…)

Potential physical health consequences:

• Hormone imbalance
• Blood sugar imbalance
• Malnutrition
• Unhealthy weight loss or gain
• Loss of period
• Other physical symptoms associated with disordered eating (feeling cold, tired, skin changes, etc)
• Lack of nutritional variety (therefore lack of vitamins/minerals, imbalanced gut microbiota, etc)

Other potential consequences:

• Lack of relational support (quest for “perfect health” will likely impact socializing with others)
• Impact on spirituality (such as relationship with God; food/nutrition/health/body size as an idol in one’s life)

Some thoughts on making trade-offs when it comes to food/nutrition decisions:

While I don’t think there is one “right way” to go about making food decisions, I will offer a few closing thoughts for you to ponder.

Focus less on making the “right” food decision, and more on making a peaceful and healthful food decision. 

The “right” food choice is likely not a bowl of kale salad at every single meal. I love a good kale salad loaded with plenty of delicious and nutrient-dense toppings, but fixating on nutrition 24/7 with food choices is only going to backfire and harm overall health.

What might it look like to focus less on this misguided idea of the “best” food choice, and MORE on feeling grounded and peaceful in making your food choices?

How can you consider all aspects of your health and well-being, in order to make truly healthful choices?

Consider your values, and ask yourself which health values you intuitively want to lean into more right now. 

Sometimes with food choices, you might lean into nutrition more heavily. Other times you might forgo some nutrition knowledge and lean into something that would enhance your emotional, relational, or mental health more. That being said, these categories aren’t mutually exclusive either. (i.e., enhancing mental/emotional health also enhances physical health).

Sometimes I have a larger dessert even when I am full after dinner because it sounds/looks good and I feel like enjoying it.

Sometimes I say no to dessert being offered to me because I am too full and want to digest/have something smaller later on.

Sometimes I choose a nutrient-dense salad, sometimes a bag of chips… I don’t see these choices as “better” or “worse” at face value. To me, it’s more about what health trade-offs are going to support overall health. I can’t know just by looking at someone’s food choice (i.e., a kale salad or a bag of chips) what is really the healthful choice for that person in that moment.

Lastly, consider the big picture of your food and nutrition choices.

I think it’s common for people to overly fixate on *each* individual food and eating decision. Many of us may have experience feeling panicky over eating another brownie, or feeling guilty for feeling overly full from lunch.

When you are feeling this way, how can you step back and consider your food patterns over the course of a day, week, or month?

This way of thinking can, again, help take the pressure off of making some sort of “right” food choice and instead free you to tune into your overall intuition and overall health when it comes to food.

One additional brownie is not going to derail my overall health. My endlessly obsessing about this is!

When we relate to food in a healthy way, incorporating both nutritional wisdom and fun/joy in eating, our eating choices tend to balance out and our nutrition needs largely get met.

What might it look like for you to “compromise” more in your desire to make *perfect* food choices, in order to truly enhance your health?