Nearly all people with eating disorders develop their habits during their college years. (86% of people with eating disorders develop them around the age of 20).
As a female college student, I am well aware of the pressure on girls my age to be pretty and thin. Scan through the TV shows, movies, and magazines. It seems like models become thinner and thinner each year. Is an anorexic body really all that desirable? Either way, the media has a very strong influence over what is considered attractive. As long as they constantly advertise thin bodies, it will be considered the image of beauty. With these incredibly high standards, many women have poor self-image. Especially in college, we're supposed to be in our prime, right?
This obsession with beauty, body image, and acceptance plagues too many. When I was assigned to work on improving some aspect of my college campus, UCF, I immediately knew what I wanted to work on. Too many of my friends were obsessed with how they look, what they eat, and all that jazz. Their warped self-images were infectious, and I began to realize that eating disorders and the mindsets that come with it are more common than some people realize.
My partner and I decided to survey 100+ people at UCF (17-28yrs old) to get an idea of what people around here think about eating disorders. Go to the "Survey" section for more info.
I chose to focus on eating disorders in college for a few reasons:
1. I’m in college.
2. One in ten female college students has an eating disorder.
3. I know a many people that have a distorted body image.
College is an exciting and liberating experience, especially if you live on your own. You’ve broken away from your parents, and now you have a chance to prove yourself. However, with the new choices and freedoms, there are a plethora of responsibilities. There are bills to pay, meals to buy, subjects to study, papers to write, et cetera. In addition, if your friends didn’t come to the same college, you have to start all over and build new friendships. It can be a lot of work, and if you don’t manage your time well, things can spin out of control really quickly.
When things do go awry, some people find solace in controlling their eating habits. Many eat junk food whenever they feel badly, and then the guilt is so overpowering that they vomit it all back up. Others eat less and less in hopes of losing weight and becoming the ideal size. In a chaotic world, it is something people can control.
Between running around socializing or studying, it is very difficult to eat well and feel good about ourselves, but it is also very important to our success. Eating disorders can destroy our bodies, self-esteem, and lives. That is why this page was created. We want to educate and try to lend a helping hand, because we know too many women with low self-esteem and destructive eating habits.
Welcome to our attempt to help someone... anyone.
Please feel free to share your own personal experiences in our guest book. Or, if you have any suggestions or comments, drop us a line!
