By TROY LARSON
Internationally known doctors were in attendance for the annual conference on health and wellness at BYU, Thursday and Friday.
BYU chose to dedicate this year’s conference learning how to manage obesity and eating disorders, said Keith Karen, director of the College of Health and Human Performance.
As part of the conference a panel discussion directed by Dr. Harold A. Frost, was held Thursday, where members of the panel were patients who had recovered from an eating disorder. Frost opened the Center for Change in Orem to help people recover from many kinds of eating disorders.
For many of these patients it is just an accomplishment to be putting food in their mouth, said Heather Anderson, panel member. Anderson, a native of Utah told her story to help others understand the mindset of people with anorexia.
Anderson developed an eating disorder at 19 and kept it hidden for several years. She said it is common for young adults to develop eating disorders and keep them secret from loved ones. But the help of these same loved ones is the key to overcoming problems, she said.
“The only way to eradicate problems in the human mind is through kindness,” said Peggy Claude-Pierre, owner of an eating disorder clinic in Victoria British Columbia, Canada.
Claude-Pierre dedicated her life to help patients with eating disorders after both her daughters developed an eating disorder. After reversing her daughters’ condition many people recognized the effectiveness of her technique.
Many people from all over the world have sought her help because of her success rate of 99 percent.
Claude-Pierre has been interviewed on the TV show 20/20 three times, appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show and has written a book dedicated to eating disorders.
She chose to speak at BYU because she enjoys the Utah atmosphere and feels members of the LDS church are very receptive and loving. This is needed to help overcome disorders of all kinds, she said.
In Utah there is a heavy push to achieve perfection which pushes many people to develop eating disorders, said Robert Hulcombe, conference and workshop director.
According to the Center for Change, Utah has one of the highest rates of eating disorders in the United States.
Through the efforts of Claude-Pierre and other doctors many new techniques are being developed and used effectively throughout the world in treating these disorders.
