Diet rules don’t just live on your plate—they live in your head and your history. We invited food freedom coach and holistic wellness expert Sloane Elizabeth to unpack how fear-based nutrition, viral trends, and moralized labels push smart people into smaller, more anxious lives—and how to step out of that loop with clarity and calm.

We start by taking a hard look at diet culture’s favorite tactics: intermittent fasting as identity, carb and bread panic, and the halo of words like natural and healthy. Wendy shares a personal story about hidden allergens in a “simple” bar, reminding us why label literacy matters without spiraling into obsession. From there, we redefine healthy as personal and flexible—where taste, allergies, and sensitivities count, and where forcing “perfect” foods undermines trust. Sloane maps out a model that fuses evidence-based nutrition with spirituality, so choices are guided by both facts and felt safety.

The conversation digs into family scripts like the clean plate club and using food as reward, showing how scarcity and people-pleasing shape overeating and urgency. Sloane shares her own journey from perfectionism and control to intuitive eating, explaining why the real first step isn’t macros—it’s the subconscious. By addressing root beliefs around worth, scarcity, and trust, you create change that sticks and watch it ripple into work, relationships, and self-care. We also flag red signs for entrepreneurs: constant food thoughts, purity-driven label checks, skipped events due to body worry, and rules that sound like can’t or must.

If you’re ready to stop outsourcing your choices to trends and start listening to your body with compassion and skill, this one’s for you. Tune in, take what serves you, and test it gently in your next meal. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs food freedom today, and leave a review to help others find the show.

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Connect with Wendy Manganaro:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendymanganaro1/