Nourish: Repairing and Growing Healthy Relationships with Food

Food nourishes us in ways that go beyond calories and minerals. Often, in the field of nutrition and public health, we focus on food on the microlevel, and seek to improve intake of various nutrients to improve overall health. No doubt, nutrition plays a major role in our health and well-being, but how we come to eat what we eat is complex. Food is our culture, our community, our personality, joys, celebrations, and memories. Food is survival, it is pleasure, it is life. 

For some, the privilege of focusing on functional food choices is easy. For others, the context of everyday life takes priority. We all have a unique and personal relationship to food that has been shaped by our experiences. Sometimes, well-meaning attempts to promote healthy eating can cause harm, especially to individuals who have experienced hunger or trauma. Restriction, focus on weight, neglecting the feeding context, trauma, and food shaming can impact food choices and eating dynamics. 

The Nourish Training Series is one of the first of its kind offered in Arizona. It includes four separate sessions and conversations for professionals working with youth around healthy eating dynamics and how trauma impacts the feeding relationship. In the end, we hope that all who seek to encourage healthy eating do so with the intent to do no harm. 
The Nourish Training Series covers: 
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• How feeding relationships form, from conception through adolescence 
• How responsive feeding and relationships with caregivers support healthy feeding dynamics
• How various forms of trauma may impact eating and the feeding relationship
• Supporting recovery and healthy feeding behaviors without triggering trauma
• The harm done by focusing on weight and the impact of diet culture
• Empowering young eaters and consumers while respecting autonomy and healthy feeding dynamics

The next session will be held on May 14 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Arizona Community Foundation - Debi Bisgrove Community Philanthropy Center (2201 East Camelback Road, Suite 405B Phoenix, AZ 85016). Click here to learn more and sign up for the upcoming training, and we look forward to seeing there!