One in four Poles want to change their eating habits. Why do we keep falling into the trap of miracle diets?

We want to be healthier, have more energy and simply feel better in our own bodies. Meanwhile, as many as 63% of Polish women and men struggle with excess body weight³. At the same time, there is a growing need to do something about it and achieve lasting results. The latest Multi.Life platform survey shows that improving the quality of life (health, peace, energy) is the greatest motivation to learn new things for almost half of us (48%). Interestingly, quality dietary education is high on the list of desired skills. One in four respondents (28%) admit that this year they would like to learn the principles of conscious and healthy eating⁴.

Despite good intentions, we are still tempted by quick solutions. As many as 78% of respondents decided to use restrictive fasting despite being aware of its harmfulness. The result? The statistics are relentless: after drastic calorie cuts 80% of people return to their starting point⁵.

– Returning to the initial weight is not always the result of a lack of willpower. After restrictive diets, the body produces less satiety hormone, and this condition can persist for up to a year after the weight loss is completed. The body then does what it was designed to do. It defends itself against energy loss, i.e. it accumulates calories and demands their replenishment. Then a growing feeling of hunger appears. The yo-yo effect is not the only disadvantage of strict diets. When they are not selected in accordance with our needs, lifestyle or health parameters, they can cause a lot of serious damage to the body. Strict diets also affect our mental condition. When dieting becomes another source of stress, and the lack of mental preparation clashes with the logistical barriers of everyday life, the body naturally seeks refuge in emotional eating – explains Klaudia Socha, psychodietician, Multi.Life expert.

The key to success is not another “miracle diet,” but understanding how we eat and lowering the threshold for entry to a healthier lifestyle. The first step to change should be a real check of how we compose our meals and the opportunity to consult it with a reliable specialist. Only equipped with this knowledge can we look for tailor-made solutions.

– We can clearly see that an all-or-nothing approach rarely works. Changing habits should happen without unnecessary pressure, in accordance with our daily rhythm. The most effective path is one that lowers the entry threshold. Instead of a revolution, we need a simple structure: a set of up-to-date research, information on the level of physical activity and what usually ends up on our plate – all this should be consulted with a specialist who will select realistic goals and tools that will ease our logistical burden. Often, it is the lack of support and being overwhelmed by daily responsibilities that causes us to abandon healthy resolutions. Building a new relationship with food requires understanding of our own mistakes and the understanding that small steps, supported by reliable psychodietetic knowledge, are much more valuable than a momentary surge – emphasises Klaudia Socha.

This is why more people are looking for support in technology. Applications that allow us to consult a problem with a clinical dietitian, monitor our lifestyle, scan meals, or plan our shopping and menus are a good way to achieve lasting change. Modern solutions, such as the Multi.Life platform offered by employers, provide a ready-made support system that relieves us of the burden of tedious planning. Its creators emphasise that such tools as foodlog, a calorie counter based on meal scanning, access to clinical dietitians, and a meal creator that develops individual diet plans make healthy choices simpler and more intuitive. – It is important that these solutions take into consideration individual parameters such as age, gender, level of physical activity and variability of goals. Technology allows us to update them on an ongoing basis, which is very important when designing meal plans, for example – emphasises Klaudia Socha. The ability to consult our doubts with a specialist and the use of substantive educational materials allows us to build habits consciously and at our own pace.

Dietary education is becoming a key element of our everyday life. It is no longer just a fad, but a real need to improve the quality of life. It’s no wonder that courses related to diet and psychodietetics were among the most frequently chosen on the Multi.Life platform last year, confirming that as a society we have matured enough to look for solid foundations instead of drastic sacrifices.

– A healthy lifestyle, including eating, does not end when we leave our private sphere and enter work. Constantly cultivating established habits is not everything. What and how we eat fundamentally determines how we function, also in the professional environment. The importance of this topic in the eyes of employees and awareness of primary prevention naturally also draws employers’ attention to practical tools in the area of nutritional education – says Klaudia Socha.