College is a significant time for growth and self-development, but it may also cause an increase in food and body image issues. Disordered eating can affect students of all ages, genders, races, ethnicities, or socio-cultural backgrounds. Many students believe they must look or act a certain way to succeed, make friends, or fit in with their peers. There are many influences and factors that lead people with different backgrounds and interests to be affected by diet culture.
By: Sadie Grant
If you have ever been in a college setting, you have likely heard something similar to messages such as:
“I am cutting out carbs to avoid gaining the “Freshman 15!”
“I am not going to eat now since I am going out tonight.”
“I do not have time for breakfast and will just have coffee instead.”
With the transition into college living comes more freedom, social pressure, and “health” messages around campus. Many students experience increased vulnerability to diet culture during this time. However, the effects of diet culture among college students can be detrimental not only to their academic performance but to their body image, self-esteem, and relationships with others.
What Is Diet Culture and Why Should People Be Concerned?
Diet culture is a system of beliefs that prioritizes someone’s weight and size over their well-being. Diet culture influences people to believe that any weight loss is good and weight gain is bad and looked down upon. Common examples of diet culture in society and college include eliminating certain food groups without any medical reason, using exercise to compensate for indulging, deeming certain foods as “good” or “bad,” promoting the idea that thinness = happiness, and striving to meet unrealistic standards of beauty. Does any of this sound familiar to you? It probably is. Diet culture has become one of the dominating voices in American society, infiltrating our social media pages, billboards, grocery stores, schools, and other settings.
Unsurprisingly, diet culture can lead to disordered eating. According to a study conducted by the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), 35% of dieters may become obsessive, and 25% of dieters may develop a full-blown eating disorder (National Eating Disorders Association, 2013). These statistics have concerning implications for college students. Around 44% of women and 27% of men in college actively try to lose weight (American College Health Association, 2010). Between 10 – 20% of college women and between 4 -10% of college men have a full-blown eating disorder (Zivin, K., et al, 2009).
Why Does Diet Culture Play A Significant Role Among College Students?
For many, the transition to college life comes with increased independence, meeting new people, eating with others, and adjusting to new expectations and stressors. This can lead to changes in attitudes and behaviors around food and body image. Below are some of the reasons diet culture may particularly affect college students:
Stress
Dieting and trying to control one’s appearance can be maladaptive coping mechanisms to deal with the new stressors of college life, such as difficult classes, extracurricular activities, and social pressures.
Increased Independence
Away from the watchful eyes of parents and guardians, many college students experience the freedom to eat and exercise without supervision for the first time. As a result, it may go unnoticed if students skip meals or engage in other disordered eating behaviors.
A New Food Environment
The college dining experience is different from the dining experience at home and may lead to new eating patterns. For example, dining halls that serve unappetizing food may lead to excuses to restrict. Students may only be drawn to foods considered “healthy” or “clean,” which may encourage eliminating certain food groups from one’s diet.
Social Comparison
Many students share meals with friends in dining halls or dorm rooms. Increased shared mealtime with peers can lead to a comparison between eating habits. Increased time with friends and peers can also lead to body comparison.
College Sports
College athletes may be particularly vulnerable to diet culture. Many athletes feel they must appear a certain way to be successful. Other sports require weigh-ins, which can add additional pressure to those in athletic programs.
“Freshman 15”
Many college dining halls are open at all hours and are self-served. This can lead to “The Freshman 15,” which refers to gaining weight in college. This saying can be harmful to students. The phrase, which is commonly tossed around among pre-college and college students, parents, and mentors, can increase fear of food and weight.
Greek Life
Greek life membership is often perceived as based on appearance, so students interested in joining some sororities or fraternities may feel pressure to appear, eat, dress, or act a certain way.
While there are many reasons diet culture may affect college students, students can deal with diet culture. For example, one alternative to engaging in diet culture is through intuitive eating, which fosters attunement to the physical sensations that occur in the body to indicate fullness and hunger and rejects dieting or food rules. Intuitive eating helps reject the idea that there is an “ideal” way to look and encourages individuals to respect their bodies through nutrition and movement. Similarly, college students can also choose to surround themselves with like-minded peers. Having friends and a support system who respect and celebrate all body types can be beneficial throughout college.
College years can be very stressful for students. College is an adjustment and might be a first time away from home. College students have to learn how to balance academics, work, relationships, and other activities. Although diet culture and living up to what seems to be college expectations can further contribute to the stress of college life, students do not have to let diet culture influence their college experience.
At BALANCE eating disorder treatment center™, we offer a variety of programs and services targeted at helping clients overcome disordered eating and develop a healthy relationship with food and their body. In addition to our full-time Day Treatment Program and Weeknight Intensive Outpatient Program, we offer nutrition counseling with a licensed dietitian, meal support, a Body Image Group, and various other groups and resources to assist those seeking help for food concerns.
Our admissions team would be happy to answer any questions you may have regarding our programs and services. Book a call below, or read more about our philosophy here.
This post was written by BALANCE Blog Contributor, Sadie Grant (she/her).
Sadie is a recent graduate of Oberlin College with a B.A. in psychology. After recovering from disordered eating, Sadie became passionate about eating disorder awareness, body neutrality, and destabilizing beauty standards that are established by social and cultural norms. While earning her Bachelor’s degree, Sadie conducted quantitative research, worked with populations experiencing barriers to essential services, and studied Spanish. Sadie hopes to use her developing research and interpersonal skills to work in the field of eating disorders and address the way in which expectations around eating and beauty vary across different populations.
References
American College Health Association. (2010). National College Health Assessment: Reference Group Data Report.
Andersen, A. (2020, January 15). The Problem with Dieting: Eating Disorders Affecting American College Students: The Pursuit: University of Michigan School of Public Health. The Pursuit | University of Michigan School of Public Health.
National Eating Disorders Association. (2013, February). Eating Disorders on the College Campus: A National Survey of Programs and Resources.
Zivin, K., et al. (2009). Persistence of mental health problems and needs in a college student population. Journal of affective disorders.
