myth:
Everybody gains at least 15 pounds as a freshman eating dorm food.
FACT:
Research on this topic is sparse and conflicting. Some college campuses have found
that of the students who gained weight in their freshman year, the average weight
gain was 5 pounds. Risk factors include: calories from alcohol, dieting, evening
snacks and reduced exercise.
myth:
Everybody gains at least 15 pounds as a freshman eating dorm food.
FACT:
Research
on this topic is sparse and conflicting. Some college campuses have found that of
the students who gained weight in their freshman year, the average weight gain was
5 pounds. Risk factors include: calories from alcohol, dieting, evening snacks and
reduced exercise.
myth:
Dieting is an easy and effective way to lose weight.
FACT:
90-95% of people who lose 10 pounds or more on a diet regain it within one year.
myth:
People with anorexia lose weight by eating nothing at all.
FACT:
Anorexics
often eat a lot of "empty" food that fill them up but have no calories.
myth:
Only
Anglo women from high-income families get eating disorders.
FACT:
Eating disorders
are found in all socio-economic levels. Eating disorders occur at the same rate
in Asian, Anglo and Latina-Hispanic women at UCSB. According to a 2002 survey of
UCSB students, 15.9% of men at UCSB have a diagnosable eating disorder.
myth:
Anorexia
and bulimia are the most common eating disorders.
FACT:
The most common eating problem
in women and men is called an "Atypical Eating Disorder." This is characterized
by two or more of the following:
- a) An obsession with nutrition and eating habits
and/or the use of supplements and meal replacements. b) An obsession with losing
weight and/or building muscle mass.
- Compulsive exercise: Exercising even though
you are sick or injured; missing class or social events to exercise; feeling angry
or disgusted with yourself when you don't exercise enough; forcing yourself to exercise
to "get rid of" calories.
- Constantly comparing yourself to others (Am I bigger
than that person? Do they look better than I do?")
- Occasional use of Laxatives,
vomiting or diet pills to get rid of calories.
myth:
Weight-loss dieting is a harmless
fad.
FACT:
The #1 risk factor for developing an eating disorder is severe dieting.
This includes any of the following: using diet pills, meal replacements, or fasting
to lose weight; eating very few calories (under 1200) per day, "getting rid" of
calories by vomiting, over exercising or taking laxatives.
myth:
Once you have an
eating disorder, you never really recover.
FACT:
80% or more of people who seek
treatment recover. The sooner a person gets help, the better their likelihood of
full recovery.