Canadian registered dietitian, Abbey Sharp, is breaking down diet culture and nutrition myths one TikTok at a time. Now, she's taking her science-backed fight to her brand new podcast. 

Over a decade ago, budding health blogger Abbey Sharp came across a video from a popular YouTuber that stopped her in her tracks. “She was making a breakfast of 12 bananas and six mangoes,” says Sharp. “In the comments, there were hundreds of girls saying, ‘I’m doing this diet, and I still don’t look like you.’” 

Though the Toronto-based registered dietitian’s entire mandate has always been about busting nutrition myths, she was taken aback by how this concerning advice was getting through to so many young people. This A-Ha moment made her goal—of using her training to provide scientific-backed information to combat harmful diet and food claims—even more clear.

Over the past few years, Sharp has become the voice of reason through her blog, YouTube channel, and, more recently, TikTok. The dietitian has amassed more than 865,000 followers on the platform, and is well-known for reacting to and breaking down harmful nutrition myths from other creators’ videos.

But in a day and age that is rife with misinformation, how does she cut through the noise and resonate with viewers? 

“People try to dig for a nugget of truth in these sensationalized claims,” says Sharp, noting that many “extreme” diets are based on a one-off study or a mischaracterized headline. “You have to empathize with folks who buy into pseudoscience and see them as victims of diet culture.” 

Now, Sharp is stepping into the audio realm with the launch of her new podcast, Bite Back With Abbey Sharp.

With well-known guests like comedian Kris Collins (@KallMeKris) and holistic nutritionist Sarah Britton, the weekly podcast delves into topics like weight loss, mental health, and body positivity, while giving listeners the tools to fight distrust in science. “The goal is that you walk away from listening to an episode with the evidence to rebut the latest nutrition fad and think about it critically,” she says.

Get a taste of Sharp’s science-backed tips and tricks below.

3 Nutrition Myths Explained By Abbey Sharp

Are all carbs bad?

This is a resounding no. “While foods may not be nutritionally equal, food isn’t good or bad,” says Sharp. “If we start dichotomizing food as good and bad, it puts us into a scarcity mindset.”

Rather than subtracting food from your diet, such as carbs, Sharp advocates for simply adding more nutritionally-dense ones to your meal. “Dressing up your naked carbs with protein, fibre, and healthy fats will keep you more satiated.”

Does skipping meals help with weight loss?

Skipping meals, also known as intermittent fasting, isn’t a magical solution to losing weight. 

“When we skip a meal, we kind of suck at making up for it,” says Sharp. “It can work for those who don’t have an appetite in the morning, but for a lot of other people we just end up eating more at the subsequent meal.”

Once you reach a higher level of hunger, you’re less likely to mindfully put together a meal and could end up reaching for easy but less filling options.

Should I detox my body with a juice cleanse after a period of indulgence, such as a vacation or the holidays?

“If we have healthy lungs, kidneys, and liver, if we breathe and sweat, we are detoxing every single day,” says Sharp. “We don’t need to do anything special to detox the body.”

Any sort of cleanse, including a juice cleanse, will put you in a calorie deficit and get your insides, well, moving. But it can also enable a cycle of “restrict-binge-repent-repeat” that can have the opposite intended effect on your body. 

During these high-indulgence periods, Sharp’s advice is simple — try to eat normally. “It’s the holidays; these things are going to happen. Don’t restrict, punish, or try to save up all your calories; that will always backfire.”

If you’re feeling extra full the day after a big meal, fuel your body with fibre and water, and go for a walk.

Abbey Sharp's Nutrition Tips

Go-to balanced breakfast

The base of Sharp’s favourite breakfast is an unexpected hero — cottage cheese. “I was a fan of cottage cheese long before it was trendy,” she says. 

She recommends mixing this high-protein ingredient with berries or kiwi, hemp hearts, and a handful of cereal. If you have bread on hand, a dollop of cottage cheese and drizzle of honey also makes for a tasty brekky.

Adding more vegetables to your diet

Sometimes it can feel hard to get all the veggies you want into your diet. Throw a handful of frozen spinach or kale into a smoothie or leftover noodles, or try out one of Sharp’s favourite hacks:

“I maybe have red meat once a week, and I stretch it out by adding minced mushrooms,” she says. “It has a similar consistency to ground beef.” This half-and-half mixture is a tasty way to inconspicuously add more veggies into your meal.

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