Healthy eating for Eve Lahijani means having a cookie every now and then.
Lahijani, a nutrition health educator at the Bruin Resource Center is one of two people who teach the fiat lux, “Cosmo Says You’re Fat? I Ain’t Down with That: Nutrition and Body Image.”
The seminar, which is the only Fiat Lux being offered this fall that will have two sections, focuses on ways to understand and prevent body image issues and eating disorders, Lahijani said.
Lahijani will concentrate on healthy eating, while Dr. Gia Marson, a counseling psychologist at Counseling and Psychological Services will teach students about healthy body image.
“My favorite part is seeing how the students’ relation to food transforms,” said Lahijani, who is also a dietitian. “When they leave, they have more of a realistic and healthy way to approach food and eating.”
Rie Korovyanko, a third-year physiological science student who took the seminar in 2012, said she enjoyed the class and thinks other students should take it as well.
“I thought it was a very open and honest discussion about body image and nutrition,” Korovyanko said. “There were no gimmicks; it was simple and easy to follow.”
Korovyanko said she still uses some of the things she learned in the class today, such as only eating snacks in small bowls in front of the television.
“If you put it in a small bowl it looks like it’s more than if it’s in a big one,” Korovyanko said. “It’s a boundary kind of thing.”
Lahijani teaches students about hunger and fullness and how to make healthier eating choices through nutritional science.
“(For example), if you don’t have fat in your intake, you are more likely to binge,” Lahijani said. ” If you don’t have enough (carbohydrates) you’re more likely to crave sweets.”
By keeping these tips in mind, Lahijani said students can create healthy diets for themselves.
“Your relationship with food is important,” Lahijani said. “You could be eating totally healthy, but if you run away screaming every time you see a cookie, that’s a problem.”