Publish date: 26 February 2026
This week is Eating Disorder Awareness Week, and we’re shining a spotlight on one of our Ealing Dietitians within the Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) Eating Disorders Team.
The theme of this year’s Eating Disorder Awareness Week is ‘Community’, and the work of Isis Stelmo - a dietitian with in the Ealing CAMHS - offers a clear example of what community support can look like in practice.
Isis, who started working with West London NHS Trust in 2024, has begun a programme delivering cooking sessions for patients with eating disorders at their homes. Eating disorders are a growing problem in the UK; research shows that in children aged between 11 and 16, the rate of eating problems rose from 6.7% in 2017 to 12.3% in 2023. Meanwhile, for young people aged between 17 and 19, the rate of eating problems has risen from 44.6% in 2017 to 59.4% in 2023.
Isis’ patients range from nine-year-olds taking their first steps toward understanding food, to teenagers experiencing some of the most challenging years of their lives. Referrals come from GPs, schools, other healthcare professionals - or even from families themselves. Isis has seen firsthand the positive impact the sessions can have for a young person, normalising working with food through careful planning and consideration, removing some of the emotion and fear that can be characteristic of an eating disorder.
“When people hear the word dietitian, they often imagine strict rules or unrealistic expectations,” Isis explains. “But it’s not about restriction, it’s about a relationship - with food, one’s body and with the world around us.”
“I might challenge someone to try a new recipe,” she says, “but only when they feel ready. Those huge steps have to be led by the patient, once we’ve built their confidence.”
Isis encourages her patients to take control of their recovery, asking them what they would like to explore in their sessions. That may mean choosing snacks at a supermarket, planning meals for the week, or learning how to plate portions. Sometimes, it means sketching a food map or practicing mindfulness. And sometimes, for her cooking sessions, it means stepping into the young person’s kitchen for individual cooking sessions.
Isis came up with the idea of the individual cooking lessons as a way to support eating disorder recovery after she began her career working as a community dietitian in Brazil. In this role, Isis hosted cooking groups for members of the community - from teenagers to new parents. She witnessed firsthand how preparing food together created an openness and curiosity around food - particularly for those who felt disconnected from it. “Cooking brings people together,” Isis says. “And that’s especially important in eating disorder recovery, where isolation often plays a big role.”
Isis recalls one young person who was terrified of using sugar. When their chosen recipe - sushi - required a spoonful of it for the rice, they froze. With Isis’ encouragement that the sugar was just a part of the recipe they had planned, they were able to add the sugar to the pot. “Planning ahead helps with the anxiety, as they can anticipate what will happen, which recipe we will make together, which ingredients they will use, and that it is their choice after all.”
Isis says: “Food often becomes the enemy for individuals with eating disorders. Cooking can help to shift this problematic relationship with food - it encourages variety, social eating, and learning about healthy portions as we plate the food together. It gives the food less power over them.” Isis has found that these sessions turn cooking into collaboration and a way to communicate for young people - especially for those who struggle to express how they feel.
Eating Disorder Awareness Week takes place every year, highlighting the difficulties that people with eating disorders of all ages, genders and cultures face. If you or a loved one is struggling with an eating disorder, you can visit our website - we offer support for children and young people as well as for adults with eating disorders. There are also a number of resources available online from Beat , the UK’s leading eating disorder charity.