Eating

We watched the movie "eating" in class this week. This film explores the love/hate relationship that women in Western societies have with food-- as a source of pleasure and comfort, on the one hand, and as something to be feared in a society that equates thinness with beauty on the other. Set during a birthday party where the guests (all women) are asked to talk about their feelings about food, the discussions also touch on their mixed feelings about their bodies, childbearing, and relationships. It doesn't really have a plot, It doesn't offer simple solutions, but it makes the important point that this love/hate relationship of women with food is not confined to those who might be diagnosed as suffering from an eating disorder. I found it quite true to life and engaging.

Here are some facts gathered by SELF Magazine,and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill regarding women and food through a questionnaire.

* 75 percent of women report disordered eating behaviors or symptoms
consistent with eating disorders; so three out of four have an
unhealthy relationship with food or their bodies
* 67 percent of women (excluding those with actual eating disorders) are
trying to lose weight
* 53 percent of dieters are already at a healthy weight and are still trying
to lose weight
* 39 percent of women say concerns about what they eat or weigh interfere
with their happiness
* 37 percent regularly skip meals to try to lose weight
* 27 percent would be "extremely upset" if they gained just five pounds
* 26 percent cut out entire food groups
* 16 percent have dieted on 1,000 calories a day or fewer
* 13 percent smoke to lose weight
* 12 percent often eat when they’re not hungry; 49 percent sometimes do

These facts crossed across racial lines and showed that the 30-40 age group had the same numbers as the 20-30 age group.