Obesity Stops Girls From Attending College
A negative self-image often causes obese girls to skip going to college.
In fact, they skip college twice as often as normal weight girls. The rate is even higher for non-whites, for obese girls whose parents didn’t go to college, and for heavy girls who attend high schools where obesity is uncommon.
As published in the July 2007 issue of Sociology of Education, a new study from The University of Texas at Austin followed almost 11,000 American teenagers to find out how obesity affects college enrollment.
The girls’ problems appeared to be rooted in a negative self-image.
That’s something I blogged about previously in “Image Is Everything.” But in that post, I talked about how a negative self-image can cause you to fail on your diet.
Here The Consequences Are Even More Serious
The researchers discovered that obese girls are more likely to consider suicide, use alcohol and drugs, fail in school, and be absent from school without permission.
However, obese girls who go to high school with a lot of overweight kids have normal rates of college enrollment.
So do obese boys, no matter where they go to high school.
It seems that obesity has a greater negative effect on girls — probably because body image is more important to a girl’s self-concept. And girls are judged more harshly than boys when it comes to weight.
So if they’re in a school where they stand out because of their weight, they’re more likely to be socially isolated.
The Researchers Tested Solutions To This Problem
They found that obese girls do better if they join in school activities, have close relationships with their parents or teachers, or even find one good friend they can depend on.
I think this study emphasizes how important it is to treat obesity as more than just a number on a scale.
For obese kids, especially girls, we need to make sure they’re not socially isolated. And to build their self-esteem so they understand how truly valuable they are.
Technorati Tags: obesity, college enrollment, self-concept, self-image, self-esteem
July 25th, 2007 at 8:52 am
That’s really sad.
July 25th, 2007 at 1:21 pm
It’s hard to be heavy in school when so many kids are skinny. I got picked on and spent most of my time alone at lunch. You say join activities but it’s not as easy as that, the skinny kids didn’t want me there and they made my life miserable.
July 25th, 2007 at 2:41 pm
I’ve known overweight girls who did just the opposite and did stellar in school and went on to college and grad school and had fantastic careers. It’s sad to hear that obese girls get treated so badly, but we’ve got to find a way to make sure they don’t ruin their lives over it.
July 25th, 2007 at 6:02 pm
I can sure relate to this. I got teased so bad I didn’t want to go to school, but I decided to work hard and ignore my tormentors and it all worked out. I still have to lose the weight though.
July 25th, 2007 at 9:14 pm
Anyone who’s ever been ostracized knows how this feels. It’s a shame it doesn’t end when you leave school. I’ve had just as many hurtful remarks made by rude people when I walk down the street as I ever got in school.
July 26th, 2007 at 12:26 am
Sad. Very sad.
July 26th, 2007 at 11:17 am
I am in college and I see it every day that even adults here make fun of the younger people and people their own ages, I am 42 and a little over weight, and I have been the brunt of jokes all my life, and I do get very upset when I see adults here making comments that can do very very harmful things to others. Every one needs to remember that “WORDS DO HURT”.
July 26th, 2007 at 11:59 am
When I was in school, the teachers were just as bad as the kids about ostracizing heavy girls.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:35 pm
The social pressure from our peers and all the advertising that shows rail-thin women makes these young girls think a thin body is all life is about. It’s so sad that they think their self-worth comes from how much they weigh. Until other people stop making fun of overweight people like they do on all the comedy shows, young women will always feel they are being judged on weight.
July 26th, 2007 at 10:16 pm
How can these girls not believe they’re not as good as the thin girls with everyone picking on them and making them feel like dirt? It’s everywhere, in the schools, on TV, on the Internet, there’s so much loneliness and hurt when you’re overweight, but it’s really hard when you’re young and alone. Having an adult to talk to just isn’t the same as having friends your own age.
August 2nd, 2007 at 10:49 pm
I can relate to this as well. Growing up as the “chubby” kid I got teased a lot in school and in my adult life as well. I have done a lot of work on letting go of the fat kid and not being defined by that anymore. I’m now a health weight, I eat well and am fit and this is how I want to see myself instead of carrying around the old definition from those painful years. It is now my passion to share what I have learned with other people and hope they can let go of the past so they can finally let go of the weight.
October 4th, 2008 at 3:15 pm
I grew up big…i was about 330 lbs at the age of 16 when i came to college, i began rapidly losing weight with the help of God and my friends….im now down to 230 and i am so happy that im getting healthy…i just want to encourage any big girls, go to college if you want to god can help you through