Unpacking Weight Science

A short course for medical, allied health, fitness and counselling professionals, and anyone who wants to know more about body weight and health- without bogus weight loss promises.

The research about human body weight is mountainous. Most people accept unquestioningly that weight and health are closely linked. The assumption that increased weight causes poor health outcomes is widespread in medical and cultural discourse but the reality is much more interesting. This course will help you to learn how to 'unpack' weight related research, be it weight loss intervention research, obesity research, or population-wide epidemiological studies, in order to interpret and discuss findings for their actual value, while weeding out weight biased rhetoric. Also covered is an overview of size inclusive approaches which incorporate health promoting behaviours, enhanced body image and self acceptance.

About this course


This course is self-paced and should take approximately 5 hours to complete. The learning content consists of videos and written materials. The assessment tasks include quizes to check your understanding of important concepts and a reflective task to consolidate your learning. Upon successful completion of the assessment tasks you will be issued with a certificate of completion. Health, Not Diets is recognised by the Queensland Department of Education and Training (Australia) as a provider of employment-related training and participants may be eligible to claim the time spent completing the course as continuing professional development/education.

Please note: this course is for educational purposes only and is designed to enhance your skills in human weight-related research appraisal. It is not a clinical intervention program.

The Unpacking Weight Science course is currently receiving a deep review, update and significant expansion. This version is the original course.

When the new version is ready, people enrolled in this course will receive a 20% discount and be able to carry the cost of this course to the updated version. For example, if you enrolled in this course at $99AUD, you will receive a 20% discount and a $99AUD credit towards the updated course.

So, what are you waiting for?

Example Curriculum

  Welcome!
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  Unit 1: Unpacking BMI: Health, Risk and Disease
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  Unit 2: Unpacking Intentional Weight Loss Efforts
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  Unit 3: Health Supporting Behaviours
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  Unit 4: Unpacking Weight Stigma
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  Unit 5: Size Inclusive Approaches
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  Finishing Up
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