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The Freshman 15 And
Other Food Morsels

JENNIFER FINER SECTION EDITOR

I

ILLUSTRATI ON BY ANN FE ILD

he life of a college student
is fairly predictable.
It includes a lot of late-
night studying and cafe-
teria-style eating; three meals a
day, seven days a week.
This explains why so many
students, once they reach col-
lege, can expect to gain weight
during their first year away from
home.
Nutritionists say it is fairly
common for a young adult to put
on extra pounds.
Popular culture dubbed the
phenomenon the Freshman 15,
based on the mythical figure of
15 pounds, the amount of weight
a first-year student stands to
gain if he or she does not eat
properly.
"The Freshman 15 is more of
a slang term than anything clin-
ical," says Pam Savage-Marr, a
registered dietitian with the
Oakwood Health Care System
and a national spokesperson for
the American Dietetics Associ-
ation. "However, it is commonly
recognized that some students
tend to gain weight during their
first year of college."
Nutritionists and those who
battled the Freshman 15 say the
single biggest culprit is the
amount of food available in most
college dorms.
Registered dietitian Wendy

Schwartz says a student's ten-
dency to stay up late leads him
or her to sometimes eat a fourth
meal, and consume alcohol.
"Drinking gives us a lot of emp-
ty calories and no nutrients," Ms.
Schwartz says. "Eating junk food
like pizza, chips and peanuts of-
ten goes along with drinking.
That can add 1,000 calories in one
escapade of nighttime snacking."
Stress, dietitians say, is also
responsible.

"Many people are stress
eaters and going off to college is
very stressful," Ms. Savage-Marr
says. 'There are a lot of changes
going on in students' lives."
It wasn't the stress that got to
Amy Leebove, a recent Michigan
State University graduate from
West Bloomfield. She gained 10
pounds her first year because of
the amount of food available in
the dorm, and because she didn't
exercise.
"I wasn't used to having
desserts and entree choices and
neither was my body," she said.
By the end of her freshman
year, Ms. Leebove lost all the
weight she had put on.
Eden Jaffa, aLso a recent MSU
graduate, said she ate healthy
during her first year at college
and lived an active lifestyle, par-
tially to avoid the Freshman 15
she'd heard about.
"I would eat pizza late at night
sometimes, but not every night,"
she said. "I was really careful
about watching myself."
Dietitians say the best way to
avoid the Freshman 15 is by
making healthier choices. Con-
trary to popular belief, it is pos-
sible to eat healthy in the dorm
and throughout college.
Dorm cafeterias do offer
healthy choices, but it's up to the
student to make those choices.
Dietitians recom-
mend choosing foods
that are low in fat.
They also suggest
(i • staying away from
the nuts and cheese
at the salad bar
and using dressing
sparingly.
Most university food
services have a dietitian
on staff who will answer
nutrition-related ques-
tions.
Physical activi-
ty, according to registered dieti-
cian Debra Finkelstein, is
helpful for weight management
and stress.
Most schools have gyms and
offer classes such as aerobics. A
college campus also provides a
good opportunity for exercise
between classes. Walking or rid-
ing a bike is great transporta-
tion and a good fat-burning
workout.

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