P14 - Impact of Health at Every Size Curriculum Module on Weight Attitudes of College Students

Abstract

Background (Background, Rationale, Prior Research, and/or Theory): Weight bias is pervasive in Western society. Health at Every Size (HAES) provides an alternative to weight-centric approaches and may help to alleviate weight stigma. Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether a HAES curriculum module would impact weight attitudes of college students. Study Design, Setting, Participants, Intervention: Quasi-experimental design using pre- and post-testing was used to compare attitudes among students in a personal health course. Students in 11 sections of the course received the usual weight management module (comparison) while students in the other 11 sections received a 2-day HAES-focused module (intervention). The HAES module included information about HAES principles, mindful eating, comparison of dieting and non-dieting approaches to nutrition, and body positive self-talk. Outcome Measures and Analysis: Attitudes were measured using the Health and Weight Attitudes Scale, an instrument measuring HAES attitudes. Independent t-tests were used to analyze differences in attitudes among the comparison and intervention groups, paired t-tests to analyze differences between pre- and post-tests, and ANOVA to analyze differences in gain scores among the groups. Results: One hundred and ninety five college students participated in both pre- and post-tests. Attitudes at pre-test did not differ significantly between the intervention (n = 109) and comparison (n = 86) groups [t(193) = -.08, P = .93]. Comparison group scores did not change from pre- to post-test [t(85) = .29, P = .77] while the intervention group did have a significant change from pre- to post-test [t(108) = -7.55, P < .001]. At post-test, intervention group attitudes also differed significantly from the comparison group [t(193) = -4.67, P < .001]; the intervention group had significantly more positive attitudes at post-test [F(1,193) = 32.43, P < .0001]. Conclusions and Implications: Even a short, 2-day HAES curriculum module can increase positive attitudes of students toward HAES principles. Nutrition educators can optimize the impact of their instruction by incorporating HAES principles in their curriculum, even in small doses, to support body and size acceptance and improve attitudes about weight. Funding: None.