Jenny Dombroski

Have you ever thought, “If only I lost ten pounds…I would be happy?” If so, you aren’t alone.

The ‘thin craze’ is something that affects nearly every woman in America in one way or another. We all tend to obsess over our weights, but why? Where does this pressure to be thin and perfect come from? Is it society, the media or just the peers we spend time with?

The answer is all three. From the time girls are in their early teens until they are grown women in their twenties, the pressure is on. Women are taught at a young age that thin is beautiful, and beautiful is what everyone wants to be. The question is, how do we get thin and beautiful? The answer is usually through dieting, under-eating and obsessively working out.According to a study done by Healthy Weight Journal in 1999, out of 84 college females tested, 80% had dieted to lose weight, while 32% had dieted more than six times. Out of those women, 46% were currently dieting even though 82% of the dieters were within the recommended body mass index range. College females, on average, wanted to lose 11.5 pounds. However, 80% said they were terrified of being overweight. Where does this leave us? Are all females concerned about their weight and body image? What about females right here on campus