The Dilemma of Disordered Eaters in an Introductory Nutrition Course
by Julie Walton, Ph.D.
I teach Nutrition in a large Christian liberal arts college. Each day in class, I look out over 60 young faces, and pray that the day’s focus on eating and food will not batter and badger the 4-8 students who are in the midst of, or freshly recovering from an eating disorder. How do we teach with sensitivity to these students? How do we continue, day in and day out our intentional and intense attention on food and nutrition and health in ways that do no harm?
The course begins with an assignment to record and analyze a 3-day diet diary. It is not uncommon for these diaries to come back with average daily caloric intakes of 1100 calories, dangerously low folic acid and calcium levels, fat intakes that students wrongly think virtuous and high intakes of water, ice, Crystal Light, diet sodas, and other non-caloric items. Sadly, I am no longer astounded by such eating patterns. What does stun me is the palpable fear of food in these otherwise wonderful Christian students.
I do not teach Nutrition nor do I claim to have any real expertise in the area. However, I have some personal experience with disordered eating (a loved one who has long since recovered). As I understand it, most eating disorders are a result of issues with *control*. The individual finds that, in a world in which perhaps everything seems to be forced upon him/her, s/he is able to dictate exactly what goes into this body. Yes, the symptoms of the illness include low calorie intake and unrealistic body image, but the root of the problem (again, as I understand it) is a skewed psychology related to feelings of helplessness and self-loathing. In this context, I don’t know that any nutrition class could actually address the problem. Nutritional counseling is only one small part of the recovery process, while the majority of a successful therapy focuses on slowly reversing the psychological process that created the problem. Alas, this probably does not help you deal with your students, but recognizing that eating disorders are much, much more than nutritional issues may relieve some of your anxiety. We can only offer comfort when it is needed and counseling when appropriate, but take solace in the fact that our prayers are far more powerful than anything we can possibly provide in a classroom.
Posted by Paul Nagelkirk, Ph.D. on 11/02 at 03:09 PMPaul,
I appreciate the comforting comment. I guess my biggest concern is that body-conscious students commonly elect the health/wellness/fitness/sport majors that require a semester or more of Nutrition, where they have NO control over being saturated, day after day, with food information that could, if they were in remission, or even in the middle of a disorder, raise the ugly spectre of making the illness worse. I am loathe to think that something I teach, the virtues of which are legion, could also so easily be distorted by someone who is ill to the point of making her/him even sicker.Posted by Julie Walton, Ph.D. on 11/03 at 09:53 AM
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