Self Expansion Podcast

Trauma-Informed Nutrition: A Comprehensive Approach to Mental Health and Recovery

In a recent interview, Dr. David Wiss, a registered dietitian nutritionist with a Ph.D. in public health, shared valuable insights on trauma-informed nutrition and its role in mental health and addiction recovery.

Understanding Trauma-Informed Nutrition

Dr. Wiss emphasizes the importance of recognizing the impact of trauma on eating behaviors and overall health. He states, “Trauma-informed work involves understanding that change is hard and there are other barriers for people to make health-related changes other than just motivation and cognitive processes.”

The Biological Impact of Trauma

When discussing trauma-informed nutrition, Dr. Wiss explains the concept of biological embedding of adversity. He notes, “We know that people that are exposed to trauma have altered reward… it changes the way that reward is evaluated and that value is assigned so it makes people more susceptible to drug and alcohol use, more susceptible to food use disorders.”

Nutrition’s Role in Mental Health Recovery

Dr. Wiss highlights the potential of trauma-informed nutrition in addressing mental health issues. He mentions, “We have 7 randomized controlled trials that show that nutrition can improve depression and depressive outcomes.” This underscores the importance of integrating nutrition into mental health treatment plans.

The Challenge of Ultra-Processed Foods

In the context of trauma-informed nutrition, Dr. Wiss discusses the impact of ultra-processed foods. He states, “People’s reward systems have been conditioned by the ultra-processed food to where eating real food is no longer pleasurable.” This presents a unique challenge in implementing nutritional interventions for those with trauma histories.

Practical Applications of Trauma-Informed Nutrition

Dr. Wiss offers practical advice for implementing trauma-informed nutrition:

1. Focus on consistency: “I think for a lot of people just kind of starting a regimen and getting into a routine is just not to be understated.”
2. Create safety through routine: “Once we establish some consistency the body starts to feel like it’s safe.”
3. Gradual changes: “Let’s just create a signal that’s consistent. And then once you do that, the nervous system recovers and you land and then you could say alright, now let’s start.”

The Wise Mind Nutrition App

To make trauma-informed nutrition more accessible, Dr. Wiss developed the Wise Mind Nutrition app. He describes it as “a place to do some work, some healing work” that integrates nutrition, mental health, and recovery principles.

Dr. Wiss’s work in holistic nutrition represents an important step in understanding the complex relationship between nutrition, mental health, and addiction recovery. By promoting a nuanced, individualized approach to eating that considers trauma history, he offers hope for more effective, personalized strategies in mental health treatment and addiction recovery.