Sue Zbornik, an accredited practising dietitian and author of Find Your Happetite, presented to the group ways to help clients learn to trust their bodies – and appetites – again.

“If your eating is no longer easy and natural, or if you have problems with food, eating or weight, you have likely lost touch with your true appetite or what I like to call your 

‘happetite’”, Ms Zbornik said.

“As children we easily connect with those natural drives – for food, for fun, for activity.

“But as adults we can disconnect from our natural appetite for a variety of reasons whether that’s emotional, physical or mental.”

The workshop, organised by the University of Newcastle Department of Rural Health and Tamworth Rural Referral Hospital dietetics department, was devised to support local dietitians by offering tools and self-awareness advice to work with their clients who are struggling with eating and weight management. Ms Zbornik, who is an expert in the symptom management of eating problems, in particular, eating disorders, told participants that our bodies know what is best for them to eat, how much to eat and when to eat. 

“Relearn how to listen to your body and its signals for hunger and satiety,” she said. “Eating to your ‘happetite’ is much different than depriving yourself and your body with another diet”.