Froshs’ Waistlines in Flux

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.”