Too thin to study: Frances Chan was threatened with suspension unless she gained weight.

Accusations of “skinny-bashing” have been levelled at a prominent Ivy League university after a 20-year-old student revealed she was “forced to eat cheetos” to add weight to her naturally slim frame.

Frances Chan, who’s studying Arts at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, says she spent months trying to convince uni authorities that her slight 157cm, 42kg frame was down to genetics and not an eating disorder.

The New Jersey native wrote on the Huffington Post that she had been subjected to weekly weigh-ins and urine tests, three blood tests, a test on her heart and appointments with a mental health counsellor and a nutritionist since late 2013.

She says the fiasco began after visiting the university’s cancer hospital in September, 2013, about a breast lump that turned out to be benign.

She was called back after her appointment to discuss “a concern” resulting from the visit — and that “concern” turned out to be her weight.

Chan says the university clinician threatened to put her on medical leave if I did not comply, remarking: “If it were up to the administration, school would already be out for you. I’m just trying to help.”

She described the invasive experience on the Huffington Post like this:

Every week, I try to convince my clinician that I am healthy but skinny. Over the past several months, however, I’ve realized the futility of arguing with her.

“You should try to gain at least two more pounds.” (What difference does two pounds make?)

“Come next week to take a blood test to check your electrolytes.” (No consideration that I had three exams that week.)

“I know you’ve said in the past that you don’t eat as much when you get stressed out.” (I’ve never said that.)

So instead of arguing, I decided that perhaps the more I complied, the sooner I could resume my normal life.

… Finally, I decided to start a weight-gain diet. If I only had to gain two pounds, it was worth a shot to stop the trouble. I asked my health-conscious friends what they do to remain slim and did the exact opposite. In addition to loading up on carbs for each meal, I’ve eaten 3-4 scoops of ice cream twice a day with chocolate, cookies, or Cheetos at bedtime. I take elevators instead of stairs wherever possible.

Chan eventually gained two pounds — under a kilogram — but “cracked” when she was told that wasn’t enough.

“I was left sobbing in my dean’s office, in my suitemate’s arms afterwards, and Saturday morning on the phone with my parents,” she said.

“At this rate, I was well on my way to developing an eating disorder before anyone could diagnose the currently nonexistent one.”

Chan’s solution? Ultimately, she decided to switch doctors, write about her experience to the Yale President and ditch the insulting regimen altogether.

As she writes:

I was scheduled to have a mental health appointment at 9am and a weigh-in at 10.30am this past Friday. But I’m done. No more weigh-ins, no more blood draws. I don’t have an eating disorder, and I will not let Yale Health cause me to develop one. If Yale wants to kick me out, let them try — in the meantime, I’ll be studying for midterms, doing my best to make up for lost time.

At least the university’s backed off since, it seems.

Chan has said on Facebook that she and her parents are now working with new doctor at Yale, who has apologised and admitted that university made a mistake by focusing too much on the student’s weight.

Chan has agreed to continue being monitored by the university’s health service but only has to check in once per semester.

If this post brings up any issues for you, you can contact The Butterfly Foundation for eating disorders via their website or on their National Support Line (1800 33 4673).