Infocus: with nutritionist Victoria Dunn
Self Portrait
“Going to university and being surrounded by so much beautiful diversity, really enabled me to realise that physical appearance doesn’t count for anything. Kindness, motivation and intelligence will get me where I wanted to be in life.”
International couture model turned nutritionist and body image advocate Victoria Dunn is a freshly new mother to Lennon (4 months).
From the age of only 16, Victoria was scouted to model for a prestigious modelling agent IMG and from here spent her last days of high school in Paris, house-sharing with other adolescent girls who dreamed of making it big fashion industry. In this period of her life, a shared space of what should have been sisterhood, Victoria fell extremely sick.
This is a haunting read for those who have suffered from body dissatisfaction. A recent study released by The Age quotes, “According to data collected by Eating Disorders Victoria, about 16.3 per cent of the population experience eating disorders within their lifetime, with about 1 million Australians experiencing an active eating disorder at any given time. Of the one million, it’s estimated that 63 per cent of sufferers are female.
If you’ve lived with a compromised relationship with food and your body then you’ll know that shaking off it can feel like a forever task.
Victoria chats to us about battling demons, lack of support and how it’s triggering to love your pregnant body. This is a universal topic that I think, as birthing folk in some way, we can band to.
Butterfly National Helpline
1800 33 4673
Eating Disorders Victoria Helpline
1300 550 236
LifeLine Australia
13 11 14
Hello. Please tell us a little bit about your background before arriving at nutrition. Some challenges you have faced and how they manifested in your body?
I arrived at studying nutrition out of desperation to change the way I was treating my own body. When I was younger, the idea of ‘health’ meant being slim and following diet trends. I was so scared about certain foods and what they might do to my body, so scared they manifested into food intolerances. I decided I wanted more from my life, and I no longer wanted food to rule my thoughts and impact my decision-making, so I entered the world of studying nutrition at university. I was also told by a doctor that I may not be able to have children due to the damage I had done to my body, which only motivated me more to become a mother.
I worked in the fashion industry at a young age, which heavily impacted my idea of what health looked like. I worked internationally for IMG in Paris haute couture and NYC fashion week for brands like Celine, Max Mara and Oscar de la Renta. On the outside I seemed to be happy and successful, but on the inside, I felt so alone and was miserable. My food rules were so severe. My agents would get me into a bikini, take photos, then point out my imperfections. I was 16. I lived in model houses 7 other young women. There was even a scale by the front door, we were encouraged to weigh ourselves before walking out.
I left the modelling industry and decided to move to Melbourne to study. It was here I completed two bachelor's degrees and turned my health around. I think the environment is important for creating a healthy relationship with yourself and your body. For me, going to university and being surrounded by so much beautiful diversity, it really enabled me to realise that physical appearance doesn’t count for anything. Kindness, motivation and intelligence will get me where I want to be in life.
Do you feel like the modelling industry is changing, and some primary examples of how you see that change being implemented?
I definitely have seen some positive changes within the industry, mainly within independent brands and fashion labels. These brands have really paved the way forward for generating a change in body stereotypes and ideals. I love seeing untouched images, realistic body shapes and different ethnicities modelling clothes. That is who I want to buy from… it is relatable and honest, instilling body confidence rather than body shaming. There is still a long way to go. Sample sizes are still size 6, and e-commerce often have slim bodies modelling their clothes. Even without knowing it, these images can create messages to the receiver, resulting in body comparison and poor body image. I encourage people to find brands that support diversity! Some labels have one-size-fits-all, which I love (I have two pairs of bathers that are this… and I wore them before, during and now after pregnancy).
You recently moved to Brisbane to work at a specialised eating disorder retreat treatment centre. Can you tell us what kind of methods a centre like this offers patients
Wandi Nerida is the first residential eating disorder treatment facility of its kind, and the opportunity to work here meant I needed to have a big interstate move to QLD. I had just spent a year in lockdown in Melbourne, and then a year in the Adelaide Hills launching my nutrition business, but working within the field of eating disorders has always been a passion, so the move was a no-brainer. Before falling pregnant, I worked at Wandi 3 days a week and did online nutrition consultations 2 days a week.
At Wandi there are thirteen residential participants at a time, and they come from all across Australia. The waiting list is unfortunately extremely long, and hopefully more facilities like this one will appear in more states across Australia. The participants have a full week of structured treatment and activities, ranging from group therapy sessions, individual psychology and dietetic sessions, counselling, as well as art therapy, equine therapy, gardening and cooking classes. There is a chef who cooks three meals a day and three snacks, and the day's activities are centred around these meal times which are all consumed together with staff members. Participants are supported by staff members (ranging from psychologist, nurses, counsellors, dietitians, and those with lived experience of eating disorders) to properly portion out their meals and then consume them.
Some people love being pregnant and others not so much. What was your experience?
I talked a lot about this during pregnancy over on my Instagram as the feelings unfolded. I believe sharing honest stories can be so powerful, not only to help yourself but to hopefully help others. I was waiting to feel that ‘pregnancy glow’, and when I did not feel it, I was initially harsh on myself. My inner dialogue was saying I was ungrateful and not making the most of this potentially once in a lifetime experience. I was ashamed that I did not love my pregnant body, especially since I had worked hard to improve my body image some years before. I did not expect to feel self-conscious about a growing body in clothes, not helped by social media which seemed to endorse women who could maintain their figure throughout pregnancy and still manage to dress amazingly.
At the start, I did not want to buy any pregnancy clothes, wanting to save money and wear clothes that I owned that were loose and free-flowing. For context, I love wearing jeans and pants, I feel the most myself in them. Learning to dress in skirts and dresses seemed like I wasn’t being true to myself or to my own style. This may sound silly, but I think that was the most significant adjustment. I deleted social media accounts that made me feel negative about myself and followed new ones that inspired me, I opened up to other women and listened to their experiences, I bought clothes in bigger sizes and cut off the tags (to remove any reminders or body comparisons), I practised mindful movement and when I felt a negative thought come into my head, I would shift my focus onto something constructive and worthwhile (like meal planning for the week ahead).
Three words to describe your birth?
Transformative. Exhausting. Amazement (for the human body and for midwives).
The love that you feel for your son is like….
No other. Feelings of unconditional, uncontrollable, infinite amounts of love.
Breastfeeding hunger is real and we love that you openly share some of the meals you love to make on social media. Can you tell us a few pantry items and things that grab and go but also healthy you’d recommend every new mum have in their fridge/pantry?
I had grand plans for my postpartum time, hoping I would cook warming foods filled with bone broth and spices to aid in energy and healing but I live in QLD and Lennon was born in the middle of Summer, so naturally those foods were not appealing for me. I craved smoothies, salads and baked goods, the things we are told to ‘avoid’ in the postpartum period. As a nutritionist, and now as a mother, I have completely switched what I would recommend to other mothers… I get it, we need fast, easy, enticing food that will make us feel good but also practical and filling.
Things you will always find in my pantry:
Single-serve chickpeas in olive oil Edgell (no brine = no need to strain! Add straight to your salad or slice of toast for a protein hit).
Chocolate almonds (rich in magnesium and will not spike your blood sugar, and just simply delicious).
Tahini (use as a dressing, bake with it, dip in vegetables, or serve with hard-boiled eggs for a fast and nutrient-dense hit of good fats, iron and calcium).
Eggs (scrambled eggs or an omelette is such a fast and satisfying meal… also filled with choline essential for mums and bubs brain)
Bananas (frozen and fresh… for smoothies, baking, or chopped up with PB on toast).
Red lentil pasta Keep It Cleaner (it tastes the closest to the real deal and is much higher in protein than regular wheat flour).
Buckwheat soba noodles Spiral Organic (takes less than 5 minutes to cook and you have a nutrient-dense meal that tastes great hot or cold also means you can come back to your bowl later if you have an unsettled bub).
Pepitas/pumpkin seeds (my favourite source to add to every meal! I love toasting a batch with sea salt, olive oil and maple syrup! I’ll snack on these all day a great source of magnesium, zinc and are good fats).
Brown rice chia seed crackers Ceres Organic (I will always have something in my pantry that I can quickly dip into hummus or to have with some avocado).
Motherhood means you can be a notorious meal skipper (guilty). Can you talk about the importance of breakfast, and what it does to your brain and body for the day?
Let's just start by saying coffee is not breakfast, and a starved brain is not a functioning brain. Eating a nourishing meal at the start of your day will fuel you for the tasks ahead. Food is fuel, and our brain requires glucose for energy (glucose = the body's preferred fuel source). If we do not have glucose available in the body, the body will convert stored forms of energy into glucose for our brain and muscles to use. This conversion also requires energy… therefore leaving your body in an energy deficit before the day has even really begun. If you have a low appetite in the morning, this could be due to a few different reasons… stress, low gastric enzymes, eating late at night (to name a few). If you are skipping breakfast because you have a family keeping you busy, then plan! You can make a smoothie the night before and store it in the fridge, or make a batch of bircher muesli or chia pudding on the weekend and portion it out into jars ready. Boiled eggs are also easy and you can eat them anywhere. Last resort I would recommend grabbing a piece of fruit and a handful of nuts (easy to eat on the run).
An easy recipe to fuel you for the day.
I am a big fan of soba noodles. They are quick to make and can be eaten any time of the day. The variations are endless! Once you get the base of soba noodles and your dressing, you can then experiment with different vegetables, protein and toppings. Some of my favourite combinations are tofu, mango & eggplant, or chicken, carrot & capsicum, or pumpkin, tofu & cashew.
Buckwheat Soba Salad Recipe
One- two serves
Ingredients:
100g buckwheat soba noodles
⅓ cup edamame (frozen & shelled)
¼ cup spring onion (green tips)
½ cup cucumber (chopped)
½ cup purple cabbage (chopped)
100g hot smoked salmon
1 tsp sesame seeds to top
Dressing:
1 tbsp cup mirin (or rice wine vinegar)
¼ wedge lime
2 tbsp hulled tahini
½ tbsp white miso paste
1 tbsp soy sauce (or coconut aminos for GF)
½ clove garlic (crushed)
2 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp maple syrup
1 tsp ginger (grated)
1 tsp sriracha (or fresh chilli)
Instructions:
In a jar, add the dressing ingredients, grating in fresh ginger and crushed garlic. Simply screw the lid on and shake the jar until well combined. Feel free to add some warm water if you need to dilute it.
In a pot, bring water to a boil. Cook the soba noodles as per packet instructions (usually around 4-5 minutes). Strain the noodles and rinse with cold water until the noodles are cool to the touch. Strain water completely.
Meanwhile, cover the shelled and frozen edamame with hot water and allow it to rest (I scoop out some of the hot noodle water once it has boiled).
In a bowl, combine the noodles with the sauce, then add in the thawed and strained edamame, chopped spring onion (green tip), cucumber, and thinly sliced purple cabbage.
Serve the soba noodles with smoked salmon (I love using Harris Farm smoked salmon to save on cooking time. It is ready to go) and add some sesame seeds.
Consume immediately as one meal, or divide into two portions and keep in the fridge for a grab-and-go option.
Follow Victoira’s journey here: