The “Freshman 15” appears to be an exaggeration, but softening
mid-sections are a hard reality for first-years, according to a Rutgers
University study.
Focusing on a sample of 67 undergraduates, nutritional
scientists at the New Jersey school found that three-quarters of the
students gained weight in their first year. But the average weight-gain
was seven pounds—less than half the much-feared 15, the researchers
found. Students in the study consumed an extra 112 calories per day.
Causes of the extra pounds included a decrease in physical
activity and an increase in consumption of alcohol, according to a
press release from Rutgers.
In that release, the study’s co-author, nutritional scientist
Daniel J. Hoffman, warned that weight-gain could lead to diminished
self-esteem, which in turn may harm academic performance.
The study suggested that college weight-gain does not affect
all students equally. And a Harvard University Dining Services (HUDS)
spokeswoman, Jami Snyder, agreed with the Rutgers researchers’ finding.
Snyder said that freshman weight-gain “is an individual event,
part of the transition from home-life to college. You may gain weight,
you may lose sleep.”
Snyder also noted that although there is no way to anticipate
how much weight a particular student will gain, HUDS has made a strong
effort to “offer a variety of healthy options for students to choose
from.”
But one Weld Hall resident, Jeremy Tran ’09, said that the
extensive choices provided by HUDS could lead to more expansive
waistlines.
“You have so many options,” Tran said. “I think for many
people the problem is controlling how much they eat—especially
dessert.”
By contrast, some Harvard freshmen said they shrank in size
since they passed through the Yard’s august gates, possibly a testament
to the good work of HUDS.
One Wigglesworth Hall resident, Zachary P. Rosenthal ’09, said
that for him, the “Freshman 15” wasn’t an exaggeration—it just happened
in the opposite direction.
“I’ve lost 15 pounds,” Rosenthal said. “Now I have to walk to places to get food—to Annenberg.”
The trek to the dining hall and unavailability of free food at
all hours was another reason for weight loss that some students cited.
Still, even with longer walks to the dining hall, freshmen
said they face challenges as they seek to incorporate exercise into
their daily routines.
“I really exercised in the first semester, but in the second,
I have found that I am involved in too many commitments to find the
time,” said a Wigglesworth Hall resident, Susan H. Nguyen ’09.
Of course, the term “Freshman 15” did not become a part of popular culture solely due to catchy use of alliteration.
Straus Hall resident Kyle A. Fishman ’09 said, “I gained 15 pounds, exactly.”
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