GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — We all know it’s important to eat a balanced diet, to stay healthy, but with all of the choices available to us, including time constraints, sometimes making the best choices are not that easy.

Lori Kehoe, the director of the eating disorder services at West Michigan-based Sanford Behavioral Health, pointed out a few things to consider as you try to keep your New Year’s resolution to eat healthier.

“One of the main concerns that we look at is the timeline of when the eating disorder began and more times than not, we see that the eating disorder began with a diet,” Kehoe said. “Wellness really includes nourishing the body and moving the body with joy because, of course, our purpose in feeling good is to do what we’re meant to do on this planet, right? To have a fulfillment, a fulfilling job, a fulfilling career, et cetera. So we really promote wellness rather than healthy eating. So the mindset is that we don’t restrict, that all foods fit.”

She said you should think about a “balanced, healthy diet throughout your day.”

“Balance and kind of veering away from thinking that some things are good and some things are bad in terms of food,” she said. “Balance, balance, balance and moving your body and being joyful and doing things that you enjoy.”

If someone has an eating disorder, Sanford Behavioral Health looks at the reasons why.

“What is really going on there that is causing you to really harm your body, either by restriction or by overeating?” Kehoe explained. “Once … the client is really able to look at why they do what they do, we can help them make the necessary changes toward helpful habits in their life.”

If someone is developing the beginning stages of an eating disorder, there are warning signs.

“It becomes a pattern. You’re isolating from others, from your family. You’re not going to family functions. You’re not going to restaurants with your friends. You’re not socializing the same way,” Kehoe said. “The denial is very similar to substance use disorder. So there are a lot of correlations between those two illnesses. So we really look for patterns over sometimes a short period of time, you can tell that an eating disorder is in full swing.”