I remember when I was 10 years old (in the mid-90s) my mom sent me to school with homemade muffins. They were carrot cake mini muffins, made with whole wheat flour and with cream cheese (not icing) on top. I loved them, and looked forward to her making them every Fall. When I pulled them out for snack time, my 4th grade teacher took them off my desk and announced to the classroom that they were not a "healthy snack." I don't exactly remember what happened next, but my mom was never one to shy away from a mama bear fight - I think she took her complaints to the principal. But the damage was already done. There are so many of these little things from my formative years that really messed up my relationship with food, and I still struggle with it today. Thanks to both of you for all the work you do and for facilitating this discourse with parents and in schools. I love that there is an effort to make this better/easier for kids now.
My kids started school first week of August and my 6 yo has been learning the human body unit for like 4 weeks now- I have been very on guard. Last night was the first time I heard him talking about “healthy” food- he announced Mommy did you know pizza can be healthy but only if it’s homemade?” And we talked about how all foods can be healthy and homemade pizza and store bought pizza are both good foods and we have seen his dad struggle to get good crust when we make pizza at home!
The obesity panic still stresses me out. We never did calorie counting in my HS health class but we certainly still had to talk about the balanced plate all the time. We have talked before about my sister developing her eating disorder in the fall of 5th grade and I know she spent a lot of time giving food away which they don’t allow now.
I look forward to a time my kids watch more tv I like, my oldest wanted to watch The Summer I Turned Pretty finale with me and then was like umm I think I liked it better when I just saw the last 10 minutes when I got up!
I am absolutely going to track down the person at my granddaughter’s school who would be in charge of putting this curriculum in place. Also, Better Things~sooooo goooood.
I've been thinking about all of this a lot lately, especially upon receiving messages that "junk food" is not allowed in my kids' classrooms. Every year before school starts, I talk with my kids' teachers about my own lived experience with an eating disorder and the values I hold around food and bodies. It doesn't always make a difference, but it still provides context and understanding. I also talk about these values with my kids so that they can keep them in mind when they're inevitably exposed to harmful diet culture messaging outside of the home.
I've written about the negative side effects of "healthy eating curricula" before, and I delve more deeply into the topic in my new book SLIP. Your own work in this area has no doubt been a source of inspiration for me.
I've just shared the interview on my Substack and all my social media channels with hopes that people will benefit from it!
I’m homeschooling my 14-year-old this year (they asked). I did the Let’s Eat online training so I could use the curriculum as part of our nutrition class. I’m so psyched and grateful. The resource is great—a lot for a homeschool teacher of one! But exceptionally thoughtful. Thank you, Denise! The training modules are so well done, too. (For reproductive health we’re reading the book You Know, Sex! which is also great.)
My 10th grade kid had yet another required food tracking assignment. Fourth one so far. Her solution (she hates making waves and did NOT want to be excused) is to make a fake one with random food she doesn’t usually eat. Not sure if that’s the best option, but it keeps her engaged with the conversation with me and us talking. She actually came to me all huffy about this one, so it is sinking in. :)
I was excited to hear my own county (Anne Arundel County, Maryland) name-checked as one of the schools trying out Denise’s new curriculum! Curious if it’s the public school system or a private school.
I don't even really have the words to express my ongoing appreciation for Denise's work. Considering the current state of child health "initiatives," I know Be Real's programs are more important than ever!
I would say if you show up at a PTA meeting, you’ll probably have a good chance to at least get some face time with the principal. Ours is very involved. Also, our PTA is pathetically small so that’s how I’ve gotten to know our principal pretty well.
Be Real's Ambassador program gives you all the tools you need to walk in confidently to your PTA with evidence based material. This is exactly why we developed it!
My main comment on this based on my own experience is that the assumption that you will find someone in a school or even a district who cares about preventing eating disorders or even being aware of them as a health risk is...unfortunately a false assumption. I have yet to meet or find someone from health teachers to all the guidance counselors who take this seriously, which is so frustrating. This curriculum sounds so much better, and I hope it gets into more and more schools. I wish it didn't feel like such a huge hurdle to figure out the how to make it happen part though.
To be clear, I will be trying to find the person in charge of curriculum, I just know it's going to be a challenge to even make a case for it that lands...
I agree, Amy. When I started doing this work I assumed that the health teachers would "eat this up" because it was evidence-based and focused on what young people need to grow up confident in their own skin. What I learned from talking to so many health teachers is that they are required to be experts in so many topics, from human sexuality, to drug and alcohol use, to nutrition to body image. These fields are constantly changing. Even if the school has text books for health (and only about half do), they can be out of date incredibly quickly. I found that schools or districts often have a curriculum decision-maker for health. It could be a "wellness coordinator" or a even a school social worker. It is someone whose job is it to make sure the students in the school are getting the latest information on health. They, as a whole, may be more open to new ideas and information saying what has been done for decades is not working and could be harmful to students. I do find everyone I come in contact with wants to do the best for the students, it is just their plates are extremely full.
I was so excited to hear my new kindergartener’s school district listed as a trial site! Yay PPS! But now I’ve gotta track that person down anyway to positively reinforce this 😅
I don't think our school has any curriculum that is questionable, but I do cringe when teachers ask for "healthy snacks" to be sent in for something. They never define what that is and frankly I just send whatever the F I want / what the kids will actually eat. But nonetheless I hate the insinuation that there are bad, less acceptable snacks out there.
The good/bad food paradigm is the hardest nut to crack. We have lots of research that shows it is a short leap from a student learning a food is "bad" to thinking "I am bad" for eating that food. From my experience, teachers and parents think that good/bad paradigm is useful. I've had teachers tell me that this paradigm is the "only way" to teach young people to stay away from certain foods. And I've had parents tell me they "want" their child to fear food, so they won't eat it. Fear of food contributes to eating disordered and disordered eating. Fear of food can morph into fear of becoming fat, which leads to body dissatisfaction, disordered eating, and eating disorders. We teach "short and long energy" foods in Let's Eat. No food is "bad," and it gives students an idea of how different foods choices fit their own particular needs for a particular day.
I remember when I was 10 years old (in the mid-90s) my mom sent me to school with homemade muffins. They were carrot cake mini muffins, made with whole wheat flour and with cream cheese (not icing) on top. I loved them, and looked forward to her making them every Fall. When I pulled them out for snack time, my 4th grade teacher took them off my desk and announced to the classroom that they were not a "healthy snack." I don't exactly remember what happened next, but my mom was never one to shy away from a mama bear fight - I think she took her complaints to the principal. But the damage was already done. There are so many of these little things from my formative years that really messed up my relationship with food, and I still struggle with it today. Thanks to both of you for all the work you do and for facilitating this discourse with parents and in schools. I love that there is an effort to make this better/easier for kids now.
My kids started school first week of August and my 6 yo has been learning the human body unit for like 4 weeks now- I have been very on guard. Last night was the first time I heard him talking about “healthy” food- he announced Mommy did you know pizza can be healthy but only if it’s homemade?” And we talked about how all foods can be healthy and homemade pizza and store bought pizza are both good foods and we have seen his dad struggle to get good crust when we make pizza at home!
The obesity panic still stresses me out. We never did calorie counting in my HS health class but we certainly still had to talk about the balanced plate all the time. We have talked before about my sister developing her eating disorder in the fall of 5th grade and I know she spent a lot of time giving food away which they don’t allow now.
I look forward to a time my kids watch more tv I like, my oldest wanted to watch The Summer I Turned Pretty finale with me and then was like umm I think I liked it better when I just saw the last 10 minutes when I got up!
I am absolutely going to track down the person at my granddaughter’s school who would be in charge of putting this curriculum in place. Also, Better Things~sooooo goooood.
Thank you so much for this interview, Virginia.
I've been thinking about all of this a lot lately, especially upon receiving messages that "junk food" is not allowed in my kids' classrooms. Every year before school starts, I talk with my kids' teachers about my own lived experience with an eating disorder and the values I hold around food and bodies. It doesn't always make a difference, but it still provides context and understanding. I also talk about these values with my kids so that they can keep them in mind when they're inevitably exposed to harmful diet culture messaging outside of the home.
I've written about the negative side effects of "healthy eating curricula" before, and I delve more deeply into the topic in my new book SLIP. Your own work in this area has no doubt been a source of inspiration for me.
I've just shared the interview on my Substack and all my social media channels with hopes that people will benefit from it!
Thank you for sharing it on your Substack!
I’m homeschooling my 14-year-old this year (they asked). I did the Let’s Eat online training so I could use the curriculum as part of our nutrition class. I’m so psyched and grateful. The resource is great—a lot for a homeschool teacher of one! But exceptionally thoughtful. Thank you, Denise! The training modules are so well done, too. (For reproductive health we’re reading the book You Know, Sex! which is also great.)
Oh so cool to know it works for homeschooling too!
Homeschool parents are definitely teachers, too!
My 10th grade kid had yet another required food tracking assignment. Fourth one so far. Her solution (she hates making waves and did NOT want to be excused) is to make a fake one with random food she doesn’t usually eat. Not sure if that’s the best option, but it keeps her engaged with the conversation with me and us talking. She actually came to me all huffy about this one, so it is sinking in. :)
That seems pretty brilliant to me!
I was excited to hear my own county (Anne Arundel County, Maryland) name-checked as one of the schools trying out Denise’s new curriculum! Curious if it’s the public school system or a private school.
I’m guessing public! That’s so exciting!
It's the public school! I can get you the name of the school if you reach out to me. Denise@berealusa.org
I don't even really have the words to express my ongoing appreciation for Denise's work. Considering the current state of child health "initiatives," I know Be Real's programs are more important than ever!
Thank you, Oona! This is a much appreciated endorsement coming from you--one of the great experts in our field!
Aww, thanks, Denise!
Thank you for the action steps!
I would say if you show up at a PTA meeting, you’ll probably have a good chance to at least get some face time with the principal. Ours is very involved. Also, our PTA is pathetically small so that’s how I’ve gotten to know our principal pretty well.
Same here! Is such a bonus of volunteering that you can develop much better relationships with the head and plenty of other staff too.
Be Real's Ambassador program gives you all the tools you need to walk in confidently to your PTA with evidence based material. This is exactly why we developed it!
Love this! Everyone benefits from Be Real’s FREE resources!
Thank you for all you've done to help us develop this resource, Sarah!
Of course! Thank you!
My main comment on this based on my own experience is that the assumption that you will find someone in a school or even a district who cares about preventing eating disorders or even being aware of them as a health risk is...unfortunately a false assumption. I have yet to meet or find someone from health teachers to all the guidance counselors who take this seriously, which is so frustrating. This curriculum sounds so much better, and I hope it gets into more and more schools. I wish it didn't feel like such a huge hurdle to figure out the how to make it happen part though.
To be clear, I will be trying to find the person in charge of curriculum, I just know it's going to be a challenge to even make a case for it that lands...
I agree, Amy. When I started doing this work I assumed that the health teachers would "eat this up" because it was evidence-based and focused on what young people need to grow up confident in their own skin. What I learned from talking to so many health teachers is that they are required to be experts in so many topics, from human sexuality, to drug and alcohol use, to nutrition to body image. These fields are constantly changing. Even if the school has text books for health (and only about half do), they can be out of date incredibly quickly. I found that schools or districts often have a curriculum decision-maker for health. It could be a "wellness coordinator" or a even a school social worker. It is someone whose job is it to make sure the students in the school are getting the latest information on health. They, as a whole, may be more open to new ideas and information saying what has been done for decades is not working and could be harmful to students. I do find everyone I come in contact with wants to do the best for the students, it is just their plates are extremely full.
I was so excited to hear my new kindergartener’s school district listed as a trial site! Yay PPS! But now I’ve gotta track that person down anyway to positively reinforce this 😅
We LOVE PPS!!
I don't think our school has any curriculum that is questionable, but I do cringe when teachers ask for "healthy snacks" to be sent in for something. They never define what that is and frankly I just send whatever the F I want / what the kids will actually eat. But nonetheless I hate the insinuation that there are bad, less acceptable snacks out there.
The good/bad food paradigm is the hardest nut to crack. We have lots of research that shows it is a short leap from a student learning a food is "bad" to thinking "I am bad" for eating that food. From my experience, teachers and parents think that good/bad paradigm is useful. I've had teachers tell me that this paradigm is the "only way" to teach young people to stay away from certain foods. And I've had parents tell me they "want" their child to fear food, so they won't eat it. Fear of food contributes to eating disordered and disordered eating. Fear of food can morph into fear of becoming fat, which leads to body dissatisfaction, disordered eating, and eating disorders. We teach "short and long energy" foods in Let's Eat. No food is "bad," and it gives students an idea of how different foods choices fit their own particular needs for a particular day.