I am often asked by parents across the country for help in finding a local nutritionist who is an expert in eating disorders. A new organization of which I am a member, the International Federation of Eating Disorder Dietitians (IFEDD), provides just such a service. Parents and others can go to IFEDD website for a list of nutrition providers in the US and across the world.

I also suggest that parents ask their doctor and/or therapist for the names of good nutrtionists. Usually qualified and effective professionals are well known in their local communities.

Let me use this opportunity to tell you a little more about IFEDD. We lobby to increase insurance coverage for nutrition services which is a major problem in many states. IFEDD is also collecting published research on the effectiveness of eating disordered-specialized nutritionists. Nutritionists who belong to IFEDD can use these references when they make a case for insurance coverage for a dietitian in the treatment of a patient with an eating disorder.

One major problem in the nutrition field is that there is very little published on nutrition techniques in the treatment of eating disorders. IFEDD is working to remedy this by providing grad students to help busy clinicians set up research projects.

Nutritionist Marcia Herrin and Nancy Matsumoto, co-authors of The Parent’s Guide to Eating Disorders, G?rze Books, Marcia is also author of the recently published Nutrition Counseling in the Treatment of Eating Disorders (Routledge, 2013).

Copyrighted by Marcia Herrin and Nancy Matsumoto.