Do you think eating in the classroom is rude?

[Alnitak7]

In most cases I restrain myself from passing a judgement on obsessive eaters.

In recent weeks though, I have become severely agitated when I go to my classroom which has a sign right on the door reading "NO FOOD OR DRINK" and people insist on bringing their dinner or their snacks in and eating them in front of everyone while people are trying to do their work and socializing while they eat. The classroom should not be treated like their living room.

They almost seem to be testing their limits. The teacher lets them get away with it and the school has ignored the complaint I sent to them.

I find the sound of them chewing their food revolting, offensive and distracting. Sometimes the sound of the food sloshing inside their mouths gives me chills down my spine.

The cafeteria is just right in walking distance, a place where if I see them eating, I refrain from evaluating them.

They also have option to take their food outside, a place where I can easily mind my own business.

Not only do people insist on bringing food into class but also continue to eat for extended periods of time. They go get more food after they finish what they have.

Unless it's a small class with a mutual agreement about food, eating in front of people is disgusting and disrespectful.

[bagface]

1) Often times students are so busy studying, getting to class, handling other obligations, etc that sitting down in class is the only time they can eat.

2) Some students stress eat. It isn't healthy but if they are managing they are managing.

3) Personally our lectures run 4-6 hours with only two 15 minute breaks, so most of us bring lunch or dinner to class with us.

There are far worse things that can be done in a classroom that can be found rude, volatile, and offending. Perhaps you should sit in the very front and focus on what is being taught and it will drown out the noise you find so horrid?

FYI perhaps this should be posted under nursing students - not under the general nursing discussion.

[excited1]

I dont mind it as long as its not distracting. Empty the contents out of the bag so we dont hear the bag moving every 2 seconds and avoid eating snacks that are loud when chewing. Other than that, i dont see anything wrong with it.

[Pangea Reunited, ASN, RN]

I think it's rude and distracting.

[THELIVINGWORST, ASN, RN]

I find your post both rude AND condescending. Have several seats. Did you die when that shiver was sent up your spine? I think not. Mind your business unless someone is truly dying or suffering.

As a previous poster has suggested, maybe they are so busy minding their business that this was their only meal of the day.

I honestly can't believe you thought it was your duty to tell on them to the teacher because their food consumption offended you.

[JustBeachyNurse, LPN]

Rude is relative. In a 4-6 hr class with minimal breaks most people need a meal or at least a snack. If it's a 50 minute class most adults can survive an hour without eating. Eat before/after class, on break whatever.

Chomping on a bag of chips & crunching the package can be as disruptive as someone having a disrespectful conversation during class.

The OP seems to have an extreme sensitivity to the sight & sound of people eating that exacerbates his/her response.

My one school banned food after improper disposal led to an over-the-weekend ant & maggot/fly infestation.

[THELIVINGWORST, ASN, RN]

I must add, it is annoying to hear people eating when in class but some people choose sleep, their children or some other important thing over eating before class. Many times, when I was a student, I chose sleeping and studying over eating before class so by basic, my maslows judge, needs were met.

Try to remember that every person is fighting a hidden battle.

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

I think it is rude and distracting but I realize that some people have to social skills or time management skills and are just plain boorish. Since you cannot change them, sit up front.

[Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN]

There is actually a name for this.....Misophonia, literally "hatred of sound", is a neurological disorder in which negative experiences (anger, flight, hatred, disgust) are triggered by specific sounds. These sounds can be loud or soft. The term was coined by American neuroscientists Pawel Jastreboff and Margaret Jastreboff and is often used interchangeably with the term selective sound sensitivity. http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0054706

The disorder comprises a unique set of symptoms, most likely attributable to neurological causes unrelated to hearing-system dysfunction. It can be described as an immediate and extremely negative emotional response accompanied by an automatic physiological flight response to identifiable auditory, visual, and olfactory stimuli. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/06/health/06annoy.html?_r=0

People who have misophonia are most commonly angered, and even enraged, by common ambient sounds, such as other people clipping their nails, brushing teeth, chewing crushed ice, eating, slurping, drinking, breathing, sniffing, talking, sneezing, yawning, walking, chewing gum, laughing, snoring, typing on a keyboard, whistling or coughing; saying certain consonants; or repetitive sounds^. Some are also affected by visual stimuli, such as repetitive foot or body movements, fidgeting, or movement they observe out of the corners of their eyes; this has been termed misokinesia, meaning hatred of movement.

Hyperacusis: Evaluation, Diagnosis, and Treatment. - Hyperacusis Information Site

[nursel56]

I understand your irritation, Saiderap. Especially the part that includes socializing while they make audible eating noises. It's especially irritating during times and places that are supposed to be "quiet" like test-taking and watching videos. You wonder why they don't just take the sign down if they aren't going to enforce the rule.

Maybe I have misophonia to go along with my other OCDish tendencies, but part of it is that I was raised by a mother who reacted very negatively to any noise made while eating and gum-snapping, etc so it's in my hard-wiring.

I've noticed that conversation in libraries is tolerated nowadays, too. I suppose it's up to us to adapt to the norms around us and try to learn to live with it. If you stay tied up in knots inside you won't absorb as much or use your time well so it may help to think of acceptance as enlightened self-interest.

[cracklingkraken, ASN, RN]

@Esme: I may actually have this... It sounds eerily like my annoyance at someone scrunching their face repetitively, coughing, or clipping their nails. The eating doesn't bother me as much, as long as it isn't someone crunching chips or blowing gum. Mind blown.

[SopranoKris, MSN, RN, NP]

There is actually a name for this.....Misophonia, literally "hatred of sound", is a neurological disorder in which negative experiences (anger, flight, hatred, disgust) are triggered by specific sounds. These sounds can be loud or soft. The term was coined by American neuroscientists Pawel Jastreboff and Margaret Jastreboff and is often used interchangeably with the term selective sound sensitivity. PLOS ONE: Misophonia: Diagnostic Criteria for a New Psychiatric Disorder

The disorder comprises a unique set of symptoms, most likely attributable to neurological causes unrelated to hearing-system dysfunction. It can be described as an immediate and extremely negative emotional response accompanied by an automatic physiological flight response to identifiable auditory, visual, and olfactory stimuli. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/06/health/06annoy.html?_r=0

People who have misophonia are most commonly angered, and even enraged, by common ambient sounds, such as other people clipping their nails, brushing teeth, chewing crushed ice, eating, slurping, drinking, breathing, sniffing, talking, sneezing, yawning, walking, chewing gum, laughing, snoring, typing on a keyboard, whistling or coughing; saying certain consonants; or repetitive sounds^. Some are also affected by visual stimuli, such as repetitive foot or body movements, fidgeting, or movement they observe out of the corners of their eyes; this has been termed misokinesia, meaning hatred of movement.

Hyperacusis: Evaluation, Diagnosis, and Treatment. - Hyperacusis Information Site

I must have misophonia because snoring is like nails on a chalk board to me....LOL!

To address OP: when you have a class that is 3 to 4 hours long and you only get two 10 minutes breaks, you need to eat. Our class runs from 10 am to 2 pm. No break for lunch. We get 10 minutes, which is barely enough time to use the restroom and get back to class. We have to eat in class. Our instructor asked that no one bring food with heavy odors (such as garlic, curry, etc.) but other than that, we're allowed to eat in class. It's the only way we can get lunch. 10 AM is too early and waiting until 2 makes you famished.

You've said your peace to the instructor, but in all honesty, if he/she doesn't have a problem with it, then the eating is going to continue. Try not to dwell on it and let it go. In the big picture, it's a small issue.