A Sensitive Approach to Teaching Nutrition:  Dealing with Disordered Eating

by M. Allison Williams, Ph.D.
Physical Education Department
Grove City College

I also teach nutrition in a large lecture at a Christian liberal arts institution.  First I have to echo the previous comment that related eating disorders to an issue of control.  I have talked to counselors and psychologists to help me understand the root causes of eating disorders.  There is seldom a single cause of any eating disorder, rather it is a multilayered pathology leading to a need for efficacious personal control.  Food is simply an easily accessible tool for those suffering from eating disorders.

Secondly, a new addition to my course this year was a guest speaker.  An alumnus came to campus to speak in a chapel service and she spoke openly about how her faith helped her overcome anorexia nervosa.  I asked her to speak in my lectures later that day and she was delighted to share her story with the opportunity for question and answer interaction with the students.  She spoke to both the male and female classes and I think having an actual survivor tell her story was more impacting to the students than any amount of information I could ever compile into my lectures.

The issues of compassion and sensitivity are ever present when I address my classes on sensitive issues such as eating disorders, nutrition, and body weight/composition, so let’s continue to pray for each other’s instruction and each others students.