The Nutrition Care Process organizes nutrition diagnoses into three different groups: Intake, Clinical, and Behavioral- Environmental. The most pertinent and urgent nutrition- related problem should be chosen for the nutrition diagnosis and phrased in problem, etiology, and signs and symptoms (PES) format:
[Nutrition diagnosis term (problem)] related to [etiology] as evidenced by [signs and symptoms].
Tables 3.1 through 3.3 provide sample Nutrition Diagnoses for the different eating disorder diagnoses and for different presenting problems that you may observe. These examples do not cover all of the possibilities and patients you may encounter, so use them as a guide for your own patient-spe- cific PES statements. Although there may be many nutrition-related issues
for each individual with an eating disorder, remember to prioritize the most pertinent and urgent nutrition-related problem(s) in your initial nutrition diagnosis. Note that the diagnosis “harmful beliefs/attitudes about food and nutri- tion” may not be used as a nutrition diagnosis for someone with an eating disorder but may be used in the evidence portion of the statement.
