2008 Woodie Awards
Anorexia still prevalent among young women
Laura Middleton
Issue date: 12/7/06 Section: Health
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Some students' desire to be thin leaves them starving for perfection.
The average woman is 5'4" and weighs 140 pounds while the average model is 5'11" and weighs 117 pounds. This startling statistic from the National Eating Disorders Association reveals the unhealthy standards that many young women are aspiring to meet. Some students at Marist College are feeling the pressure to live up to the emaciated "ideal." Both men and women encounter unrealistic images and their expectations are flawed.
Dr. Mary Dunne, the college physician at Health Services, said that women are vulnerable to unreasonable expectations and that today voluptuous Marilyn Monroe would be considered fat.
"The visual model for women has become more extreme," said Dunne.
Dunne said that most of the students with eating disorders at Marist began battling their illnesses in high school but the freedoms that come with the college setting can put people at risk.
"Without a support structure they can walk close to the edge when exploring things on their own and it is with those people that early intervention is really important," said Dunne.
Early intervention from friends is vital and they need to understand that eating disorders are a challenge that is managed rather than fixed.
"The less isolated someone is the healthier they will be," said Dunne. "Communication is always important. Peer communication, about pressures for women to conform to stereotypes to be 'perfect,' is especially important in a college."
Dunne said that females become adept to avoiding interface but they are not the only silent victims of eating disorders.
"In the professional field we believe it is under recognized in males," said Dunne.
Gina Barricelli, a senior, said that men are just as concerned about their bodies as women.
"A lot of guys here are overly health conscience and their eating habits are unhealthy," said Barricelli.
Erin Kibble, a senior, said that there are men at Marist suffering from eating disorders and that they too are striving for unrealistic ideals.
The average woman is 5'4" and weighs 140 pounds while the average model is 5'11" and weighs 117 pounds. This startling statistic from the National Eating Disorders Association reveals the unhealthy standards that many young women are aspiring to meet. Some students at Marist College are feeling the pressure to live up to the emaciated "ideal." Both men and women encounter unrealistic images and their expectations are flawed.
Dr. Mary Dunne, the college physician at Health Services, said that women are vulnerable to unreasonable expectations and that today voluptuous Marilyn Monroe would be considered fat.
"The visual model for women has become more extreme," said Dunne.
Dunne said that most of the students with eating disorders at Marist began battling their illnesses in high school but the freedoms that come with the college setting can put people at risk.
"Without a support structure they can walk close to the edge when exploring things on their own and it is with those people that early intervention is really important," said Dunne.
Early intervention from friends is vital and they need to understand that eating disorders are a challenge that is managed rather than fixed.
"The less isolated someone is the healthier they will be," said Dunne. "Communication is always important. Peer communication, about pressures for women to conform to stereotypes to be 'perfect,' is especially important in a college."
Dunne said that females become adept to avoiding interface but they are not the only silent victims of eating disorders.
"In the professional field we believe it is under recognized in males," said Dunne.
Gina Barricelli, a senior, said that men are just as concerned about their bodies as women.
"A lot of guys here are overly health conscience and their eating habits are unhealthy," said Barricelli.
Erin Kibble, a senior, said that there are men at Marist suffering from eating disorders and that they too are striving for unrealistic ideals.
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