National Eating Disorder Awareness Week: Interview with Katey Tucker, Nutrition Therapist
Eating disorders are extremely common but rarely treated – in fact, 90% of eating disorders go undiagnosed.
National Eating Disorder Awareness Week is February 21-27. ODMHSAS Nutrition Therapist Katey Tucker offers insight to her experience helping treat kids and adults alike who suffer from eating disorders:
Q: What is your role within the ODMHSAS system?
A: I am a Nutrition Therapist at Children’s Recovery Center (CRC) in Norman, Oklahoma. I contract with three other ODMHSAS facilities and my day-to-day consists of meeting the needs of consumers, school districts and healthcare providers. This includes menu development, nutritional therapy, dietary education and more.
Q: What brought you to Children’s Recovery Center?
A: I am a registered dietitian and completed my education at OU Health Sciences Center. I’ve always gravitated toward eating disorder treatment and found my niche at CRC. I’ve been with CRC for three years.
Q: What role does nutrition play in the treatment of eating disorders?
A: Proper nutrition is integral for making sure treatment plans stick. Patients need to build trust with food again. In my work, the eating disorder itself is rarely the sole issue that’s going on. By restoring proper nutrition and stabilizing weight, the patient can restore cognitive functions and better focus, and then it’s possible to treat the underlying issues and possible comorbidities.
Depression and other mood disorders co-occur with eating disorders quite frequently.
Q: How do you help people who suffer from disordered eating?
A: We want to create an individualized plan and minimize any food restrictions a patient has. It’s important to help patients recognize and learn their internal body cues, listening to their body when they’re hungry. This could be by starting with three small meals and helping the patients realize they can eat when they’re hungry and not push them to eat three meals a day. Treatment timeline could be anywhere from three to six months - the goal is to prevent relapse.
Q: What are some common signs and symptoms you can see from someone who may be suffering from an eating disorder?
A: Extreme recent weight loss or gain, hoarding snacks, behaviors specifically around meals, weight patterns or brain fog are all signs of a potential eating disorder. It’s important to remember that eating disorders coexist with other underlying issues like trauma, stress and anxiety. Within our system, CRC has a malnutrition screening tool that flags me if the patient has a history of disordered eating. That way I can be pulled into the treatment plan.
1 in 5 children in mental health facilities have an eating disorder.
Q: If you think a loved one may have an eating disorder, how do you approach them about it and what is the best way to address it and get help?
A: It depends on the signs they’re showing. If they are exhibiting behaviors in front of you and they’re not hiding it, you can bring it up in the moment – for example, asking why they are restricting this specific food, where did they learn this behavior, etc. If they’re hiding behaviors, recognizing signs can be a little harder. Remember - getting the conversation started is key. You don’t need to be direct – asking leading questions about their mental health can give you a lot of answers. If you are looking for treatment, it’s important to get a professional involved. Contact your primary care physician to get someone evaluated for an eating disorder and discuss options for treatment approach and setting.
Many people assume males don’t have eating disorders, when in fact they represent 25% of individuals with anorexia nervosa and are at a higher risk of dying because they are often diagnosed later in life.
Q: What misconceptions about eating disorders, if any, have you had to combat in your career?
A: There are so many out there! The idea that restricting yourself is the fastest or easiest way to lose weight is extremely harmful. A person may drop weight quickly, but they’ll probably gain that weight back - and more - even faster. Another misconception is that we need to “detox” our bodies with special teas or pills – our liver exists for this exact function. Supplements, pills and gimmicks aren’t healthy ways to lose weight. Unfortunately, the rise in social media has played a role in misinformation about nutrition, weight and health. From experience, the average age of those with an eating disorder is probably 10-20 years old. Younger generations are being affected by this, and it’s important to find and recognize trusted resources about nutrition and health.
If you or someone you know may be at risk for or suffering from an eating disorder, help is available. Call or text the NEDA Helpline at (800) 931-2237. Helpline volunteers are trained to help you find the support and information you need.
If you are in a crisis and need help immediately, text “NEDA” to 741741 to be connected with a trained volunteer at Crisis Text Line. Crisis Text Line provides free, 24/7 support via text message to individuals who are struggling with mental health, including eating disorders, and are experiencing crisis situations.
