Promoting healthy living

National Eating Disorders Weeks raises awareness

Katelyn Wyszynski / staff photographer Senior Brendan Halligan speaks to students on "A Serious Illness," National Eating Disorders week, which began Feb. 22, concluded Friday.

As the media becomes progressively influential in American culture, people have been more and more frequently presented with the "ideal" image of attractiveness and beauty.

As a result, JMU organized various programs to coincide with National Eating Disorder Week, which was held Feb. 22 to 29.

Senior Kai Eason who wrote his senior thesis on eating disorders, shared his views on the growing problem of eating disorders.

"As obesity becomes more of a problem, eating disorders will continue to exist and impact more Americans," Eason said. "People need not only to be more well-informed [about eating disorders], but to maintain a generally healthier lifestyle."

Eason said that changing one's appearance, even if the desired weight loss occurs, will not solve the problem that initiated it.

"Everybody feels imperfect in some way," he said. " Unfortunately, some are better able to deal with it than others."

Michelle Cavoto, University Health Center nutritionist, held a program titled "The Role of Diet in Eating Disorder Recovery," held Feb. 24, which dealt with diet as part of a positive weight-loss solution, stressing that a consciousness of what an individual eats does not have to become extreme in its measures, but can help somebody feel better about him or herself.

"The image of the ideal woman is less realistic today than it ever has been," Cavoto said. "In the 1970s, the Playboy [Magazine] model was commonly idealized, whereas the dichotomy has become bigger and bigger between what women strive to look like, and what is realistically possible.

"The JMU student body does not realistically represent female body image, either," Cavoto added, addressing the large number of attractive people on campus.

"There is a pressure on both male and female students to conform to this image," Cavoto said.

Cavoto regularly works with victims of eating disorders throughout the school year, typically assisting anywhere between 20 and 40 women and one or two men each semester.

Although having worked with several men, she said women are more prone to forming eating disorders, and that binge eating has been a noticeable problem.

Cannie Campbell, associate director of the Office of Health Promotion at the Health Center, also identifies eating disorders as a problem on any college campus.

"It is important for students at JMU to know that there is help for them if they or their friends have any disordered eating patterns or suffer from eating disorders," she said. "We have a very skilled case management team, [Stop Eating and Exercise Disorders], that works with students on a case-by-case basis.

"There are also support groups, one-on-one counseling, educational programming, etcetera. For help or questions [about eating disorders], we encourage students to visit our Web site devoted to this topic," Campbell added.

The SEED committee includes both professionals and students from all areas of campus.

"We have offered many programs over the past three years, and will also kick off a social marketing campaign this spring on body acceptance," Campbell said.

To learn more about eating disorders, visit the Counseling and Student Development Center Web site at www.jmu.edu/healthctr/eatingdisorders.