EDFA Submission to the Joint Select Committee on Social Media and Australian Society
Eating Disorders Families Australia (EDFA) Executive Director Jane Rowan appeared at a Joint Select Committee on Social Media and Australian Society public hearing on July 10, 2024, where she presented EDFA’s recommendations for greater regulation of social media for young people in Australia.
EDFA advocates for stricter social media regulations to protect young Australians and calls for:
- Raising the age limit for social media access to 16+ years;
- Effective and robust age verification;
- Practical support and social media literacy resources for parents and carers; and
- Stringent content moderation and algorithm transparency requirements.
Joint Letter: 120 Mental Health Clinicians & Experts call for changes to Social Media for Australian children
Eating Disorders Families Australia (EDFA) Research Committee member, Simon Wilksch, along with 120 paediatricians, psychiatrists, GPs, psychologists, dietitians, social workers, mental health nurses, research and other experts sent a joint letter in September 2024 to Parliament members urging for stronger government intervention to protect young people from the harms of social media.
The letter is also accompanied by a short paper that outlines what we see at the coalface regarding the harm Social Media can cause young people. It also addresses some misconceptions and inaccuracies.
Promoting Health and Wellbeing in The Australian Curriculum
In a collaborative effort by Eating Disorders Families Australia (EDFA), The Embrace Collective, and EDFA Parent Advocate and educator Kylie Burton, important changes have been made to the Australian School Curriculum v9. These changes aim to make it safer for students at risk of developing an eating disorder or experiencing an eating disorder relapse.
The changes include:
- Over 340 references to Body Mass Index (BMI), weight, calories, healthier, food, and diets were removed or replaced with a new focus on strategies to maintain health and well-being and using the term “balanced nutrition”;
- Teachers are now advised to avoid activities that can cause unintended harms such as critiquing and comparing personal food and well-being choices and habits of those with other people, including calculating kilojoules/calories; assessing body weight and measurements; calculating BMI; and recording food intake in food diaries;
- They are also asked to avoid focusing on constant improvement for all students to be “healthier” and using the terms “good” and “bad” foods; and
- The provision of links to useful resources for educators.
You can learn more about the collaboration by watching EDFA’s EDucation Webinar ‘Body Image and Making Schools Safe’. In this webinar, The Embrace Collective Executive Director Dr Zali Yager and Kylie Burton talk about advocating for safe environments in schools.
There is still more work to be done
Feedback from teachers is they feel there is no clear guidance about what they should do, and they are not aware of the specific resources that can help them to safely teach about food and nutrition in ways that do not cause harm.
If carers need to contact their child’s school about problematic classwork, they can email the ‘Letter to school and resources for educators‘.
Contact details
EDFA: Jane Rowan, jane.rowan@edfa.org.au
The Embrace Collective: Dr Zali Yager, zali@theembracecollective.org
Carer representative: Kylie Burton, K.Burton.Education@gmail.com
Federal MP Campaign
Do you feel unheard and unsupported in the public health space?
EDFA members know first-hand the many service gaps and failings in the health system that prevent our loved ones from getting the treatment they need and deserve.
The run up to the Federal election is the time to demand real action from our local Federal MPs to provide better support for people with eating disorders and their families and carers. To help, we’ve prepared a range of materials to support your local advocacy with your Federal MP.
To participate in the Federal MP Campaign, make sure to follow these steps:
- Find your Federal electorate here;
- Find the address and contact details for your local Federal MP here;
- Prepare your letter by downloading the Template Letter to your Federal MP (this will download as a Word document, so that you can personalise it to include your story, and local Federal MP details); and
- You will also need to include the Comprehensive Approach document.
Before meeting with your local Federal MP, download the Handy Tips, and Meeting Talking Points so that you are well-prepared.
We would love you to tell us how you go! Email us to share your advocacy experience.
Join the Campaign
There are 151 MP's in Australia. Find your MP. Find your voice and speak out.
