What is new in this edition of the course?

What topics will this course cover?

During this five week course we will discuss biological and psychological topics related to eating and food.

During the second activity of the first week we will explore some background notions related to the rest of the course. We will talk about the brain and its metabolism, as well as the axes that link the brain with our gut and other organs.

The first activity of the second week will be devoted to the brain responses to feeding, focusing on the reward systems. The videos and articles you will find will introduce you to the subject of the second activity of that week, food addiction.

Going forward, in the third week we will discuss the relationship between mind and food, touching topics such as emotional eating and restrained eating. Emotional eating, and a way to measure it, will also be explored.

In the fourth week, we will transition from psychological topics to biological topics. In the first activity we will discuss eating disorders, and in the second activity we will focus on the effects on the body that unhealthy eating behaviour can have.

In the fifth and final week we will continue our discussion of biological aspects, focusing on the gut-brain axis and the role of the microbiome.

What has changed from the previous edition?

The first and last week of the course have been revised, taking into account the feedback of your fellow learners.

In particular, we have revised the first week, streamlining the introduction to the rest of the course. We also added video transcripts and new content, exploring in more detail the gut-brain axis and the role of the microbiome in it.

The last week now also includes a review of the studies that investigated how modifying our microbiome can have an effect on our health.

A note on course moderation

The Educators won’t be able to join the discussions themselves or respond to individual comments, but the course encourages a strong learning community. The learning is focused around debate and discussion – supporting other learners, sharing your own experience and knowledge, and listening to new perspectives. We hope that you will enjoy interacting with and learning from each other in this way. Don’t forget to comment, reply to other learners and ‘like’ comments.

Get extra benefits, upgrade your course

You can now get extra benefits by upgrading this course, including:

Unlimited access to the course: Go at your own pace with unlimited access to the course for as long as it exists on FutureLearn.

A Certificate of Achievement: To help you demonstrate your learning we’ll send you a Certificate of Achievement when you become eligible.

Find out more