Work

The Freshman 15: Is it Real?

Year: 2008

Type: article

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: The belief that college students gain 15 lbs during freshman year is widespread, yet the evidence for this is limited. The authors aimed to determine whether college students gain weight during freshman year. PARTICIPANTS: The authors studied unmarried freshmen living on-campus at a private university in the northeastern United States. METHODS: The authors used an online survey to collect information about social behaviors and weight. RESULTS: The authors observed an average weight gain of 2.7 lbs. About half of the students gained weight, and 15% lost weight. Men gained more weight than did women. CONCLUSIONS: Freshman weight gain was 5.5 times greater than that experienced by the general population.

Source: Journal of American College Health

DOI: 10.3200/jach.56.5.531-534

Authors: Nicole L. Mihalopoulos, Peggy Auinger, Jonathan D. Klein

Institutions: University of Utah, University of Rochester Medicine, University of Rochester

Language: English

Topic: Health and Lifestyle Studies

Subfield: General Health Professions

Field: Health Professions

Domain: Health Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Awards: G1442329186, Research Training in Preventive Cardiology