Many University students suffering from eating disorders - like anorexia and bulimia - treat their condition like a secret. But the planners of Eating Disorders Awareness week are hoping to confront these issues out in the open in the coming days.
Paula Herzog, University nutritional specialist for Housing, said eating disorders are common at the University.
"It's too prevalent - way too prevalent," Herzog said. "Half of all first-year women students are found to have significant eating and body appearance disorders."
Pamphlets describing nutrition and eating disorders, along with flyers urging letter-writing campaigns to magazines and TV stations that portray ultra-thin models in advertisements, will be available at information tables in the Angell Hall Fishbowl today and at the Central Campus Recreation Building later this week.
A "Body Image" discussion in the School of Public Health Building and an interactive program about treating eating disorders are planned for Thursday at the Michigan League.
Devon Woodruff, an Engineering sophomore and president of Sigma Kappa sorority, said eating disorders are not uncommon in the Greek system.
"I would say it's prevalent in a lot of sororities - it seems like it's big on campus everywhere," she said.
Many said there are no blanket explanations for the prevalence of eating disorders.
"There are a lot of different explanations about how people develop eating disorders," said Vicki Hayes, a University psychologist and counselor at UHS. "I find the reason for developing them are about as individual as the person I'm seeing."
Woodruff said young women often choose to eat poorly because they are insecure about their appearance, and adjust their diets because it's something they can change.
"It's about pressure - it's one thing they can control," she said.
But people suffering from anorexia, bulimia and other disorders usually cannot control their bodies, though they try to convince themselves they can.
"Oftentimes, eating disorders are associated with a sense of secrecy and shame - people often don't want to talk about it," Hayes said.
Many young women say they disapprove of the recent wave of fashion advertisements portraying waif-like models.
"I find it obnoxious," Woodruff said. "Every single model on TV and in the magazines is a twig - I get kind of sick when I look at the magazines."
Hayes criticized editors of magazines such as Cosmopolitan, Glamour and Vogue.
"I would tell them that if they would spend as much time, energy and money advertising how women can be healthy and happy with who they are instead of who they should be, that would go a long way toward solving the problem," Hayes said.
Eating Disorders Awareness Week is sponsored by UHS, Residence Halls Dining Services, and Counseling and Psychological Services.