To promote student awareness of eating disorders, Ball State's Counseling Center will provide students with free screening tests this week.
The screenings are not on-the-spot diagnosis for eating disorders; instead the screenings can quickly and easily let students know if they are at risk, associate director for counseling Ellen Mauer said.
The Counseling Center's efforts are part of a national awareness week sponsored by the National Eating Disorders Association.
According to the association's Web site, seven million women and one million men have an eating disorder with 86 percent diagnosed by age 20.
At the university's Counseling Center, Mauer said they see about 75 to 100 students with eating disorders per year.
College students are at a higher risk because they are faced with life changes constantly, Ball State psychologist Kimberly Gorman said.
"The transition time into college can be a pivotal factor for an eating disorder," Gorman said.
Mauer said eating disorders are a way of coping with stress, self-esteem and feelings of loss of control. If students focus on their weight, that's a way for them to control a part of their lives, Mauer said.
Ball State psychologist Robin Lett said the center sees many students with anorexia and bulimia.
"Here's the problem with eating disorders, the symptoms don't fit neatly into categories," Lett said. "We tend to see a higher number of students with characteristics of bulimia."
According to the National Eating Disorder Association, up to 50 percent of people with anorexia develop bulimic symptoms, and some people with bulimia develop anorexic symptoms.
Some common warning signs of an eating disorder are excessive exercising, eating in secret, going directly to the bathroom after eating, withdrawal from social activities, obsession with counting calories and low self-esteem.
Students at higher risks tend to be perfectionists, especially those participating in weight-centered activities such as performing arts and athletics, Mauer said.
People with anorexia are under weight, while people with bulimia tend to be average weight or overweight, Lett said.
Gorman said although eating disorders do not have immediate cures, students should not feel alone or discouraged.
"It's something that can be managed," Gorman said. "You have to eat, so you have to face it, but people do recover."
According to the National Eating Disorder Association, 5 to 20 percent of people with anorexia will die from health consequences such as heart failure or severe dehydration.
The Counseling Center has a support group specifically for eating disorders and weight issues called "Weight Not Want Not," Mauer said.
The Counseling Center also offers individual counseling sessions by appointment.
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