The News-Press wire services • April 14, 2009
The Freshman 15 -
What can I do to avoid weight gain when I start college?

It’s never too early to start staying vigilant against the Freshman 15, according to a local dietitian and nutritionist.

Elaine Hastings is a registered dietitian, licensed dietitian/nutritionist and president of Associates in Nutrition Therapy in Fort Myers. She noted that preventing weight gain in college takes awareness.

“If you’re aware that this is a possibility, this is real, you do gain weight when you go to college ... knowing this ahead of time,” think of what you can do to prepare, Hastings said. “Make sure you’re walking to your classes — walking all the time rather than driving your car — choosing a wide variety of foods, staying way from fried foods, but also, most colleges and universities, their athletic club is either minimal cost or no charge to be part of that.”

That’s especially important for former high school athletes who aren’t continuing on into college sports, she said. “If you were active in high school, you need to continue intramural sports.”

Parents and students should scrutinize the dorm meal plans as well. Hastings recommends a la carte meal plans as opposed to those that offer “all you can eat,” for obvious reasons.

And if students are of drinking age and are drinking, they should do so in moderation for all the obvious reasons as well as the fact that the body will use the alcohol as an energy source before using food that’s consumed, which can result in weight gain.

Students pulling all-nighters studying should watch what they eat then, Hastings said, and they should stock dorm mini-fridges, or full-size fridges in rented houses, with healthy foods because the fried foods and other diet challenges will confront them when they’re out with friends. And that will happen, because eating is a social activity most of the time, especially in college.

Parents should also talk to their children about the Freshman 15 long before they set foot on campus, Hastings said.

“The big thing is ... it starts in middle school and high school. It starts at home,” she said.

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Student gained in knowledge what she lost in weight

Kate Whitaker, 21, didn't gain the Freshman 15 during her first year in college. Instead, by the time the second semester started, she was just a few pounds away from the Freshman 25. Fatty dorm meals and fast food wreaked havoc with her weight.

But she turned her diet around and lost about 40 pounds over two years by eating bargain-basement foods, including peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, diet frozen dinners and low-calorie fast-food fare. "It was one of the best decisions I ever made to lose weight," she says.

Whitaker was chosen by a panel of experts to be featured in the sixth annual USA TODAY Weight-Loss Challenge in the newspaper and online at dietchallenge.usatoday.com. This year's series, which runs every Monday through mid-May, focuses on how to lose weight on a budget.

Whitaker's weight-gain history is similar to that of many other college students. In high school, she was active in sports and weighed about 125 pounds. Then she went to college at Texas A&M, and by the time January rolled around, her weight had climbed to 145. She blames the gain on partying and not watching what she ate. "I lived in a dorm, and I would eat whatever they served. If they were serving cheeseburgers, I'd eat a cheeseburger. I didn't think at all about calories." Then she saw a picture of herself on Facebook, and "I was like, 'Wow, I need to do something. It's time to try to lose weight.' I didn't realize that I'd gotten that big. When I look back now, I can't believe I didn't realize it sooner." Whitaker went to a couple of Weight Watchers meetings in February 2007. Each meeting cost her $12. The program assigns points to foods, which vary according to such factors as fat and calorie content. The dieter is allowed a range of points each day. Instead of consuming so much dorm food, she started eating low-cost, microwavable meals, such as Smart Ones frozen dinners. She also bought low-cost, low-point food from McDonald's, Subway and other inexpensive restaurants. "My favorite quick food is the 99-cent beef tacos from Jack in the Box. They are only three points per taco. I could eat those all the time." Her exercise routine was equally cost-effective. She walked around campus and worked out at the recreation center, using the elliptical machine, running on the treadmill or lifting weights. By the end of 2008, she weighed about 107 pounds. Whitaker, who transferred from Texas A&M to the University of Texas this spring, is happy with how far she has come. "I feel amazing, wonderful. I feel like I'm more outgoing. I feel so much better about myself."

Weight loss on a student budget
• Who: Kate Whitaker
• Hometown: From Houston, attends University of Texas in Austin
• Occupation: Junior, majoring in education
• Height: 5 feet 1 inch
• Weight in February 2007: 147 pounds
• Current weight: 105 pounds
• Loss: 42 pounds
• Goal: To maintain

How she gained: “It was from going out partying, drinking, eating fast food, not watching what I was eating at all.”

Key to loss: “I went to a few Weight Watchers meetings for the motivation factor. I started counting my points. I was eating about 21 to 23 points a day. I would not let myself get discouraged. If I messed up one day, I would just keep going.

“I still watch my points, but I don’t write them down. I just basically kept track of my points in my head.”
Dieting on a dime insight: “Microwavable meals are not expensive, and most of the low-point foods at fast-food restaurants are the cheaper items.”

A sample day

9 a.m.: For breakfast, 6 ounces of strawberry yogurt and a bowl of cereal with skim milk.

Noon: For lunch, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, 100-calorie pack of cookies.

2 p.m.: For a snack, a 100-calorie pack of baked Cheetos.

4 p.m.: Works out at recreation center on the elliptical machine or treadmill for 20 to 30 minutes, then does weight machines for about 20 minutes.

6:30 p.m.: For dinner, a Smart Ones frozen dinner, lettuce salad with cheese and fat-free ranch dressing. For dessert, Skinny Cow frozen treats or personal-size frozen treats from Weight Watchers.

Exercise routine: “I do tons of walking around campus 30 to 40 minutes a day. Now I work out three or four times a week. I do the elliptical machine or run on the treadmill and lift weights.”

Dieting downfall: “I’m living in a sorority house now, which includes 15 meals a week, so I don’t have as much control of my food as I did when I was losing weight. “Some days are more difficult than others. If we have a meal I know is higher in calories, I just watch my portions. “When I go out to eat with all my friends, it’s more difficult to watch what I eat. I believe it’s OK to slip every once in a while as long as it doesn’t happen on a regular basis.”

Gulf Coast Times October 2009

Orthorexia

Too Much of a Good Thing?

By: Elaine Hastings, PhD, RD,LD/N

Obsession with food is not just about quantity, it can be about quality too. The medical term is called orthorexia, an eating disorder characterized by excessive focus on eating healthy, quality foods. Sometimes referred to as “health food junkies,” orthorexic individuals take it to the extreme by obsessing over what they eat, not just how much they eat.

The name orthorexia comes from the Greek word “orthos,” which means correct or right and “orexis” for appetite. Literally, it means “correct appetite”. The term was first defined by Dr. Steven Bratman in 1997. According to Bratman, orthorexia usually starts as a desire to overcome chronic illness or to improve general health. Because radically changing your diet and habits requires so much willpower, few accomplish the change successfully. Different from healthy eaters, orthorexia sufferers adopt a more rigid diet that lacks the proper balance of nutrients and food groups, which can result in both emotional and physical health problems.

Fixated solely with the quality of the food they are ingesting, orthorexics will avoid eating wheat, corn, dairy foods, sugar, salt, yeast, soya, caffeine, alcohol, and gluten. They also will avoid foods that come in contact with pesticides, herbicides or foods that contain artificial additives.

So how do you know if you or someone you love has orthorexia or may be heading that way?

• Do you or your loved one spend more than three hours a day thinking about healthy food?
• Do you plan your day’s menu more than 24 hour in advance?
• Do you take more pleasure from the “virtuous” aspect of your food than from actually eating it?
• Do you find your quality of life decreasing as the “quality” of your food increases?
• Are you increasingly rigid and self-critical about your eating?
• Do you base your self-esteem on eating “healthy” foods?
• Do you eat “correct” foods avoiding friends, family or activities you once enjoyed?
• Do you feel guilt or self-loathing when you eat “incorrect” foods?
• Do you derive a sense of self-control from eating “properly”?

If more than four of these questions apply to you, it may be time to take a step back and reassess your attitude about food. If they all apply, you may be in the grip of an obsession and should seek professional support.

Obsession with healthy foods over time can negatively impact relationships, interfere with social activities, and even become physically dangerous with complications that mirror other eating disorders, like anorexia nervosa or bulimia.

But how does Orthorexia differ from anorexia? While an anorexic wants to lose weight, an orthorexic wants to feel pure, healthy and natural. Orthorexics take healthy eating to radical limits. They have strong feelings about foods, including a fear of preserved products and feelings of disgust when faced with so-called “unhealthy” foods. Symptoms may include obsession with healthy eating, emaciation and death by starvation.

If you are concerned that you or a loved one is at risk for orthorexia, please seek consultation with a medical professional, such as your physician or a Registered Dietitian.

- Elaine Hastings is a Registered Dietitian and owner of Associates in Nutrition & Sports Speciality in Southwest, FL. Hastings can be contacted at info@elainehastings.com or by visiting AssociatesinNutrition.com. ©2009 Associates in Nutrition Therapy. All Rights Reserved.

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