Dr. Sharon Kirkpatrick
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About Amanda

 FEATURED PUBLICATION​
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"Maybe a little bit of guilt isn't so bad for the overall health of an individual":
A mixed-methods exploration of young adults' experiences with calorie labelling


Amanda Raffoul, Brook Gibbons, Karla Boluk, Elena Neiterman, David Hammond, Sharon I. Kirkpatrick

Read the full paper

Background: Menu labelling, and more specifically calorie labelling, has been posited as an intervention to improve nutrition literacy and the healthfulness of consumers’ food purchases. However, there is some concern calorie labelling may unintentionally trigger or exacerbate disordered eating among vulnerable persons. The purpose of this research was to explore young adults’ experiences with labelling, with a focus on its implications for their relationships with food.

Methods: Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants from a campus-based menu labelling study. Interview data were inductively coded using thematic analysis and supported by survey data assessing disordered eating, body esteem, and related constructs.

Results: The sample consisted of 13 participants (10 women, 3 men), most of whom perceived themselves as “about the right weight” (62%). Four key themes included: (1) participants’ support of and skepticism about labelling interventions, (2) the identification of knowledge and autonomy as mechanisms of labelling interventions, (3) the role of the individual’s and others’ relationships with food in experiences with labelling, and (4) disordered eating and dieting as lenses that shape experiences with interventions. Participants’ perceptions of and experiences with calorie labels were shaped by gender, body esteem, and disordered eating risk.

Conclusions: The results provide insight into the complexity of young adults’ interactions with labelling interventions and context for future research exploring the unintended consequences of public health nutrition interventions.

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Amanda Raffoul
BA MSc PhD


Research interests: Dieting/weight management, obesity, eating disorders, weight bias, body image, systems methods, women and adolescent health
Current position: 
Instructor in Pediatrics and Canadian Institutes of Health Research Postdoctoral Fellow, Strategic Training Initiative for the Prevention of Eating Disorders
Education:
PhD, Public Health and Health Systems, Faculty of Applied Health Sciences, University of Waterloo (2016-2020) (Read Amanda's PhD thesis)

MSc, Public Health and Health Systems, Faculty of Applied Health Sciences, University of Waterloo (2014-2016) (Read Amanda's MSc thesis)

BA, Psychology (with thesis), Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Windsor (2009-2014)
Select publications:
Peer-reviewed
  •  Google Scholar
Non-peer-reviewed
  • Kirkpatrick SI, Raffoul A. Top dietary sources of energy, sodium, sugars, and saturated fats among Canadians: Insights from the 2015 Canadian Community Health Survey. Submitted to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 2018.
  • Kirkpatrick SI, Raffoul A. Measures Registry User Guide: Individual Diet. Washington, DC: National Collaborative on Childhood Obesity Research. January 2017. 
  • Kirkpatrick SI, Raffoul A. A. Sugar consumption among Canadians: A background paper. Report submitted to Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes and Health Canada, 2016.
  • Kirkpatrick SI, Maynard M, Raffoul A, Stapleton J. Interventions to reduce sugar consumption: A scoping review of systematic reviews to identify gaps in the evidence. 2016. Report submitted to Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes and Health Canada, 2016.
Select presentations:
  • Raffoul A, Hammond D, Kelly A, Kirkpatrick SI. Beyond the numbers: Young adults’ lived experiences of calorie labelling in relation to disordered eating. Body Peace Virtual Conference, 2019.
  • Raffoul A, Kirkpatrick SI. Toward a holistic framework of eating- and weight-related disorders: Implications for public health intervention and weight stigma. 7th Annual International Weight Stigma Conference, 2019.
  • Raffoul A, Rynard V, Goodman S, Hammond D, Kirkpatrick SI. Are weight management intentions and weight perceptions related to dietary quality among young adults? An analysis of the Canada Food Study. International Society of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity Annual Meeting, 2019.
  • Raffoul A, Leatherdale ST, Kirkpatrick SI. Dieting and other risky behaviours among adolescent girls: Implications for obesity prevention initiatives. Canadian Obesity Summit, 2017.
Select recognitions:
  • 2020-2023: Canadian Institutes of Health Research Fellowship
  • 2020: Certificate in University Teaching Award, University of Waterloo Centre for Teaching Excellence
  • 2019: University of Waterloo GRADTalks: The Future of Healing
  • 2017-2020: Joseph-Armand Bombardier Doctoral Scholarship, SSHRC
  • 2017-2020: President’s Graduate Scholarship, University of Waterloo
  • 2018: Travel Award, Canadian Institutes of Health Research Institute of Population and Public Health
  • 2018: Student Award, Waterloo Institute for Complexity & Innovation
  • 2016: Queen Elizabeth II Graduate Scholarship in Science and Technology
  • 2016: President’s Graduate Scholarship, University of Waterloo
  • 2016: Provost Doctoral Entrance Award, University of Waterloo
  • 2016: Graduate Entrance Scholarship, University of Waterloo

Select professional activities and networks:
  • Body Project Facilitator, Counselling Services, University of Waterloo (2017-Present)
  • Program Facilitator, Shaping and Helping Youth Form Tomorrow (SHYFT), YWCA, Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge, ON (2015-Present)
  • Working Group Member, Applied Health Sciences (AHS) HeForShe Committee, University of Waterloo (2017-Present)
  • Core Member and Volunteer Coordinator, Waterloo-Wellington Eating Disorders Coalition (WWEDC) (2017-Present)
  • Outgoing Chair, National Executive, Obesity Canada - Students and New Professionals (OC-SNP) (2018-2019)
  • Chair, National Executive, Obesity Canada - Students and New Professionals (OC-SNP) (2017-2018)
  • Chapter Representative, National Executive, Obesity Canada - Students and New Professionals (OC-SNP)(2016-2017)
  • Co-Chair, Obesity Canada - Students and New Professionals University of Waterloo Chapter (OC-SNP-UW) (2015-2018)​
 

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  • Home
  • About
  • People
    • Lesley Andrade
    • Martin Holmes
    • Joy Hutchinson
    • Alyssa Milano
    • Alexandra Pepetone
    • Mona Qutub
    • Tabitha Williams
    • Carolyn Minnick
    • Kirsten Lee
    • Amanda Raffoul
    • Miriam Price
    • Michelle Marcinow
    • Merryn Maynard
  • Projects
  • Publications
  • Workshops
    • Systems Workshop
    • CCHS 2015 Workshop