Body Image Research Lab

Body Image Research Lab

Lead and transform research about weight-related issues like body image, disordered eating, weight-related disorders and professional conversations and interactions about weight.

Weight-Neutral Wellbeing in the School Setting

A Comprehensive School Health approach considers the multi-dimensional wellbeing of all members of a school community and relies on four inter-related components related to health education and health promotion. The Comprehensive School Health framework is a useful tool for considering how to ensure health is promoted from a weight-neutral perspective in the school setting. While each school will have its own specific needs to address, the following suggestions are recommended for creating schools where all students can thrive.

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An Open Letter to all Alberta Parents of School-Aged Children - Kindergarten to Grade 6 Curriculum

Dear Parents,

As Director of the Body Image Research Lab, a Research Professor in the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary, and perhaps, most importantly, as the mother of a teenage daughter, I am writing to urge you to raise your voice in protest against the Draft Physical Education and Wellness Kindergarten to Grade 6 Curriculum (https://www.alberta.ca/curriculum-physical-education.aspx). As a researcher and educator who has spent my almost 20-year career studying body image and weight-related issues, I am gravely concerned about how this curriculum might harm our children’s relationship with their bodies, which directly impacts their wellbeing 

In the News


Pandemic puts health on the agenda at schools

A positive upshot of COVID-19 may be an amplification of focus on kids’ overall health and wellness in education systems...

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Are we over weight yet? New guidelines aim to reduce obesity stigma in health care

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How ‘weight bias’ is harming us all

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In the News: Explore UCalgary

Weight bias: Another lens on obesity

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