We live in a nation where Time Magazine reports 80 percent of 10-year-old girls have dieted. A nation where the dieting industry makes a $50 billion profit per year. A nation where between 19 and 30 percent of college women suffer from bulimia.
As a new class enters Brown, it is important to realize that we live in a school that does not offer enough support for women and men who suffer from these conditions.
The Georgetown Independent reported in 2000 that between 20 and 25 percent of Georgetown University students suffered from eating disorders. Interviewed students attributed the high percentage to campus emphasis on appearance and over-achievement.
The Brown health education department claims that we do not deviate from national averages. Students, however, are aware of a dire, unaddressed problem.
Recent statistical data on the occurrence of eating disorders cannot be found at the health education department or at Psychological Services - in fact, it doesn't exist. It is inexcusable that this vital information concerning the undergraduate body is not prioritized.
Other universities have organized high-profile eating disorder awareness programs that reach out to students. For example, Dartmouth College has the "Eating Disorders and Nutrition Program," which incorporates the primary care/preventative medicine department, in-patient services, counseling and human development and nutrition specialists. These departments collaborate to plan eating disorders treatment on campus.
Two organizations co-exist out of their health resources department: EDPA (Eating Disorders Peer Advisors) and SAFE (Students Against the Abuse of Food and Exercise). These groups organize and sponsor eating disorder awareness, outreach and educational programs at Dartmouth.
The Brown campus chapter of ANAD (National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders) holds weekly sessions. However, the nature of ANAD is a support group, and many members wish to remain anonymous. Therefore, the need exists for a separate campus organization that will promote Eating Disorder awareness events.
Eating disorders are not just a women's issue. Forty percent of diagnosed eating disorders in the 40-to-50 year-old age bracket are men. Eating disorders are increasing in occurrence in the gay community. Male and female athletics are particularly prone to high eating disorder statistics. Brown is no exception.
Eating disorders affect 5 to 10 million American women and 1 million American men per year (Alliance for Eating Disorder Awareness 2004). In a single person's lifetime, approximately 50,000 individuals will die because of this disease. The mortality rate for anorexia is higher than for any other psychological disorder. It is the number one cause of death among young women. Yet America maintains a chilling silence.
Why does America avoid the topic of eating disorders? The above definitions did not circulate until the 1970s. Even today, the line between "eating disorders" and "disordered eating" is debated. It is important to realize that anorexia is not the only form of a disorder, but that bulimia, laxative use, over-exercise, binge eating and an array of other eating patterns also fall under disorder. Why the silence? Simply, eating disorders do not fit with the American image of security. It is time that eating disorders come into the spotlight of public health campaigns and campus movements.
Laura Martin '06 is a biophysics concentrator.
