The average American woman is 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 140 pounds, yet the average American model is 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighs 117 pounds according to the National Eating Disorders Association.

Each year, eating disorders continue to rise among adolescents and adults. According to The Center for Mental Health Services, 90 percent of those who have eating disorders are women between the ages of 12 and 25. In the United States alone, as many as 10 million females and 1 million males are fighting with bulimia or anorexia.

In recognition of National Eating Disorders Awareness Week from Feb. 25 through March 3, Ellington Health and Counseling Center eating disorder specialist and personal counselor Annmarie Carter had much to contribute.

“We make food the enemy,” Carter said. “Many different personality characteristics contribute to our obsession with eating and body image concerns. It’s a toss up between genetics and environment-whether that is media, culture in which we live, friends, family etc.”

Her up-and-coming cookbook, tentatively titled “Phoenix Food” will be released near April 1, stresses the importance of normal eating, eating when you are hungry and continue until you are satisfied.

“It’s all about balance,” Carter said. “Drinking a six pack of coke everyday may cause the average person to gain quite a bit of weight, however, every so often is great. Balance is critical in all of the basic aspects of our human needs: physical, emotional, spiritual and intellectual needs.”

The cookbook is a collection of family and heart-friendly recipes taken from Elon students, staff members and faculty members. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Girls in Motion and the Healthy Kids campaign, two organizations that reinforce the importance of good eating habits and therapy for children of all ages.

“It’s a really creative idea, I’m surprised no one has thought of that sooner,” sophomore Kate Scharback said.

Student members of Eating and Body Image Concerns Committee celebrated National Eating Disorders Awareness Week by displaying silhouettes representing body image outside of Moseley. One read “the incidence in bulima in 10 to 39 year old women tripled between 1998 to 1993,” and another was dedicated to the memory of Elon student Caitlin Hamill, who lost her fight with the eating disorder bulima in January. They also set up tables with informative handouts and brochures about eating disorders.

The Health and Human Performance committee, another organization that promoted the awareness week, sponsored a jean drive on Feb. 28 that promoted the idea of being “comfortable in your genes.”

Reporter: Mary Thibault - 03/08/07