Removal of Body Mass Measurements from National Curriculums

Australian teachers have been advised not to calculate the Body Mass Index (BMI) of students, record food intakes, or use terms such as “good and bad” when describing diets. The new food and wellbeing curriculum resource removes 340 references to the word BMI and replaces it with terminology such as “balanced nutrition.”

The update follows a campaign and petition from Eating Disorders Families Australia (EDFA), body image advocacy group The Embrace Collective, parent Kylie Burton, and eating disorder groups. Specifically, the framework advises teachers to avoid critiquing and comparing personal food and well-being choices and calculating BMI.

The Australian Education Union welcomed the changes to the guidelines on food education in schools. The parent of a child with anorexia, Kylie Burton, explained the changes to the resource in a blog post for Embrace Collective, including the removal of more than 340 references to BMI. The collaboration had secured “important changes to the school curriculum” to prevent eating disorders.

Most significantly, the framework advises teachers to avoid critiquing and comparing personal food and well-being choices and habits with those of other people, including calculating kilojoules/calories, assessing body weight and body measurements, calculating BMI, and recording food intake in food diaries.

BMI calculates body fat based on height and weight divided by the square of their height. A BMI less than 18.5 is considered underweight. Average weight is generally between 18.5 to 24.9, overweight is between 25 to 29.9, and obese is 30 or greater.
Eating Disorders Families Australia said the collaboration had secured “important changes to the school curriculum” to prevent eating disorders. The changes to the Australian Curriculum Version 9 website, published in November, included the recommendations of the advocacy groups and Ms. Burton.



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