Making kids in Quebec stand on a scale in gym class can be a “humiliating” experience that risks triggering body image issues and even eating disorders, say those demanding an end to school weigh-ins.

The National Assembly is now holding hearings into the issue after more than 4,300 people signed a petition calling for an end to the practice.

“Some schools do it, some teachers do it. Some do it in public, some do it in private,” said Corinne Payne, who is president of the Quebec Federation of Parents’ Committees.

She was urged to take on the issue by her teenage daughter, who is taking pre-university courses in Quebec’s CEGEP college.

“And she said, ‘It has to stop. It’s not right. It’s not right for us to have to stand in front of our friends and have to say what our weight is,’” Payne told reporters.

"She told me at one point in time, in her high school, 'Mom you know I have a friend who doesn't eat lunch ever, because she thinks she's too big. But she's not. She's way too small.'"

The petition, signed by 4,336 people and presented to the National Assembly last fall, calls for the practice to end and also for references to weight to be removed from textbooks. It says the weigh-ins are “humiliating” to those who are overweight and “harmful to young people suffering from a food disorder and may even be the trigger for some people.”

Anorexia and Bulimia Quebec echoed those arguments to a National Assembly committee hearing Thursday.

Dr. Pierre-Olivier Nadeau, a psychiatrist at Ste. Justine Hospital who specializes in eating disorders, told the committee that young people should only be weighed in a doctor’s office.

In an interview with CTV Montreal, he said teachers may be acting with good intentions, but said it's more important for young people to focus on healthy eating and exercise habits and building self-esteem instead of numbers on a scale.

"It's understandable that you want to help people understand what's their weight and what it means, but it creates self-awareness and negative self-talk," said Nadeau.

A survey of parents committees across the province found the vast majority are against weighing students. Liberal MNA Marc Carriere is one of the politicians hearing from health professionals, physical education teachers, and parents during the hearings.

"It's really important for us to hear what the people have to say, and then after that we'll be able to see what we will do," said Carriere.

The committee will make recommendations to the Ministry of Education.