Spring Break
"Quick fixes":taking a look at the psychological side of the issue
Janhavi Purohit
Issue date: 1/18/08 Section: Health and Fitness
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Henning said that we are an "impatient society," and want "quick outcomes." She also commented that Drexel students in particular are vulnerable to these eating patterns.
"The culture here tends to be so driven, with our 10-week terms, everything moves at such a fast pace," Henning said. "People think that if they do it fast or they do something extreme, they'll have the results sooner."
Henning said fad diets in general do not work, mainly because such patterns can be difficult to maintain.
"They set people up for deprivation. It's called a diet in general because you're restricting-your calories, a particular food group, and they don't work because you can't live like that. It's an extreme way of trying to do something," Henning said. "It's not realistic and it's not balanced, and in the end you can't sustain it."
Students often get caught up on media images that present individuals with specific body types, according to Henning.
"We want something so bad, that we're persuaded to try something that'll work fast. But in the end, they'll set us up to get very frustrated and feel very deprived, and in the end, we'll feel worse about ourselves," she said.
Along with the obvious health issues, Henning said there are many long-term implications to consider.
"If you deprive yourself, you're going to want something more. If I tell myself, I can't have sugar, or candy or cake, for a week, all you're going to think about is that thing you're not supposed to have. Suddenly, that becomes the enemy, and that sets us up to want it even more. Then we tend to binge on that thing we're not allowed to have. Long term it can set us up for that restriction-binge cycle, which can become a disordered eating pattern, which could develop into an eating disorder," Henning said.
Henning said that it is easy to become caught up in a pattern of self-doubt as a result.
She said: "We enter into this belief when we see it on TV or see other people doing it, that its supposed to work, and we wonder why it's not working for me, without even researching if it's something that's realistic or proven. Long term, that can really start to affect the way a person feels about themselves."
According to Henning, college students are more vulnerable on many levels because they are in a period of adult, which is a hard time because they are trying to figure out their identity.
Henning added that for many students, it also becomes an issue of control.
"I think this is a period of time in someone's life where there is a lot pressure-academic, personal growth, financial pressure, and if we can latch onto some area of life where they can gain some sense of control-losing weight for example, that might give them a false sense of control," she said.
Henning agreed that weight issues are not restricted solely to women anymore.
"I don't know if I'd call it even, but I definitely feel like men now are facing some of those same issues, where there's a perfect body standard. You see a lot of that with male athletes, trying to maintain a certain body weight or look. If you look at different magazine covers, there's definitely a trend towards men now having to have a specific body. I think women, in our history, have been more affected, but for men, it's definitely on the rise," she said.
Henning warned that college students, being short-sighted, tend to lose perspective of the long-term effects of crash dieting. "I think that in the moment, just like anything else with this population, you don't really think about the long-term effects. You just want a quick fix," Henning said. "I don't think that when you're in that moment that you care so much about any implications. I think implications start to arise when it becomes a chronic pattern and you're starting to get sick, or you're seeing your emotional life become affected."
According to Henning despite the number of students engaging in unhealthy diets, there is still a rising number of students who remain mindful of health and fitness.
"There's definitely a contingent of college students who are much more aware, which is a good thing," she said.
Henning said she wants to reminds students that maintaining healthy practices, as opposed to crash diets, is important because it is more holistic, as opposed to only thinking about what one can or cannot eat.
She also said students should remember that promoting a positive body image is what we should focus on, rather than dieting.
According to Henning, it is important to remember that the people represented in television advertisements are not typical results.
"It's sending us a mixed message-buy this piece of equipment, go on this diet, and you'll look like this, but the fine print says 'Not really.' We're buying into it because we want to do it quick," Henning said. "But it's just not realistic."
Henning said it is important to remember the basics, including exercise and caloric intake and output, and more importantly, a health self-image.
"Your body isn't just about what it looks like, it's also about what can you do, what you can accomplish. Think beyond the scope of I am just who I am on the outside. Its more than that, it's that you're a multifaceted person, with a personality and goals, and the body is the shell in which you're living," Henning said.
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