Eating Disorders at College

Posted by Lori Henry Nov 16, 2006

“Highly competitive colleges probably have more individuals who are highly competitive and elicit more environmental stress, thus leading to a higher prevalence of eating disorders within certain academic institutions,” said Dr. Daniel le Grange, a faculty member in the department of psychiatry at the University of Chicago.

Dr. le Grange has published research on anorexia and bulimia and currently sits on the clinical and scientific advisory council of the National Eating Disorder Association.

He is quoted as saying, “Highly competitive environments may significantly raise an individual’s stress and anxiety level, but this may be a relative phenomenon. It may not be competition per se, but instead a perfectionist attitude that contributes to the development of an eating disorder.

“Since stress and anxiety seem to contribute to the development and maintenance of anxiety disorders, feeling constantly pressured may exacerbate symptoms of an already present eating disorder.”

The Doctor sites the statistics at the University suggest that 1 in 4 students have an eating disorder, although no formal study has been conducted. This includes people who might not necessarily be diagnoses with an eating disorder, but participate in many of the behaviours.