CALORIE counts on menus could be harmful to people struggling with eating disorders, an Oxford psychologist warned.

The Government’s new anti-obesity strategy that is pushing forward with plans to list calories on restaurant and takeaway menus, was criticised for being ‘too simplistic’ and ‘potentially problematic’.

Dr Julia Bouska, who co-founded the Oxford Centre for Eating Disorders (OCED) in 2017, treats women and men who show symptoms of eating disorders.

Currently she is working with 14 patients, however, she pointed out that with two universities in Oxford, there were hundreds of people who required professional help but were struggling to get it.

The psychologist is also concerned that the Government’s plan will have a further ‘detrimental’ effect on them.

She said: “Calorie counting does not measure whether a meal is healthy or not.

“People who struggle with eating disorders tend to focus on controlling how much food they eat, so we deal with this a lot during treatment.

“It is a big part of the eating disorder, part of the problem.”

Dr Bouska added that a big part of her work is to move the patients’ focus away from ‘measuring’ when eating.

She encourages them to shop at delis where food cannot be necessarily counted.

The Prime Minister’s campaign, which he announced almost a month ago, encourages overweight people to lose five pounds to save the NHS £100 million and help lower the risk of dying from Covid-19.

As well as listing calories on menus, the new strategy includes banning junk food adverts on TV before 9pm and launching a weight loss app.

Dr Bouska said that in future, for many people, the experience of going to a restaurant would be made more difficult and potentially upsetting.

She said it could affect their mental state and make them more anxious and hyper-vigilant.

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The doctor acknowledged that Britain has an obesity problem but pointed out that the solution to it is ‘much larger’ than simply including calories on menus.

Dr Bouska added: “I can see that the Government wants to do something about obesity but this is problematic.

“But even with patients who are medically classified as obese we still try to move away from counting calories.

“There is no clinical evidence that I have encountered that supports this method.

“This is not a ‘quick fix’ problem.”

The psychologist also argued that any strategy, which aims to tackle obesity in Britain, needs to focus on early childhood education that teaches what healthy and nutritious food is.

Dr Bouska is not alone in her concerns.

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The national eating disorder charity Beat has also urged Downing Street to reconsider evidence that shows calorie numbering only worsens health problems like anorexia.

To talk in confidence to an adviser from the charity, call its adult helpline on 0808 801 0677 or youth helpline on 0808 801 0711.