By Deaven Zimmerman
Staff Writer
Worried you or someone you love might have an eating disorder?
Lewis and Clark Community College’s Student Development and Counseling Department and the Nurse-Managed Center for Healthcare and Education will be sponsoring an Eating Disorder Screening March 9. The screening will be held in Caldwell Hall, room 2301 from 8 a.m to 1 p.m. Nursing students will be managing the registration table outside the room making the screening – which is open to students, faculty and staff – easy to find.
The screening procedure is as follows: participants complete a short questionnaire regarding food attitudes and behaviors and view a 20 minute video on eating disorders, and then speak privately with a counselor regarding their questionnaire and recommendations
According to statistics, eating disorders affect 5 million American men and women, particularly young people
“Eating disorders primarily afflict high school- to college-aged people. It can really affect anyone but that’s when it really begins and it can continue into later years,” said Renee Bauer, a counselor with the Student Development and Counseling Department.
Eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia, and binge eating have the highest mortality rate of any psychological disorder and can cause serious medical problems including loss of menstruation, significant weight loss, serious skin, dental, throat and intestinal problems and in the most severe cases, death.
“Many instructors offer extra credit for students who attend the screening. This offers a layer of anonymity so that students can go and not feel they stick out like a sore thumb, and if they have problems they can get help quicker. Eating disorders can take such a hold on people and even if we only find one person it can be of tremendous benefit to that person. The earlier the intervention the better the chances for long term recovery,” said Bauer, “We also have people who come to the screening because their friend or family member has an eating disorder so they come to seek information on how to help that person.”
According to statistics, approximately 150 to 200 students participate in LC’s annual Eating Disorder Screening. Of the 166 students who attended last year, 23 of them were referred for counseling services and 11 identified with other concerns which they spoke to counselors at the screening about.
LCCC has been holding eating disorder screenings for around 12 years and traditionally has a depression screening in the fall besides the eating disorder screening in the spring.
