Food. Body image. Health. Things we think about everyday. With ads on TV, in magazines, on the radio and with restaurants and fast food places changing menus to provide healthier options, it’s not our fault that food is on our minds a little bit too often. But did you know that even thinking about food could be having a dangerous affect on us?

Eating disorders have always been around, and are spreading like wildfire nowadays. But we’re not just talking about anorexia and bulimia, disorders where you either starve yourself or binge and purge. We’re talking about a new disorder associated with eating healthy. Meet Orthorexia, a serious disorder that may plague a lot more people than you think, including yourself.

Orthorexia nervosa is a condition in which people become obsessed with eating the “right” kinds of foods. We may roll our eyes and call them “health freaks” but the truth is that this is a very serious condition. Orthorexia causes people to obsess over what is eaten, how much is eaten, and how it is prepared.

So what’s so bad about being obsessed with eating healthy? Read More »

When I started training for a half-marathon a few years back I was absolutely convinced that I would be in the best shape of my life. How could running at least 7 miles everyday not give me lean, sexy legs, rock hard abs, or toned arms?

Yet as D-day approached, I didn’t find myself shedding pounds; I found myself staying the same weight. Yes, I was burning thousands of calories, but my body was also demanding more fuel for those long aerobic sessions.

After weeks upon weeks without a change in my physical self, I began to wonder: Is it possible to be really fit, yet not look it? Because I was by no means “fat,” but I definitely didn’t obtain the incredible runner body I had hoped for. Read More »

Last week I asked the CollegeCandy writers to share their biggest piece of advice for dudes. Then I passive aggressively sent that link to every guy I know. What can I say? I’m a philanthropist.

This week I asked the writers to dole out the advice again. This time, though, we’re dishing it to the ladies. Not because we hate, but because we want to stop our fellow females from making huge life mistakes. YOu know, like wearing full makeup to the gym or starving themselves to fit some unrealistic standard of beauty.

Share your own nuggets of wisdom and advice with your sistas in the comments section.

Kiki – University of Missouri: Friends don’t let friends date Justin Bobbys. Also, you can probably get that top for $24.80 at Forever 21.

Gemma – NYU: Cliche but true: chicks before dicks. Men can be awesome, but you’ll have more fun if you spend less time thinking about ‘em, do what makes you happy, enjoy your kick-ass friends, and then let a lucky fella or two come along for the ride.

Alex – Lakehead University: Don’t compromise yourself for a boy. You won’t have to change anything about yourself when someone loves you.

Leah – Ryerson University: If you have to think about whether a piece of clothing is too short or too tight, it probably is. Read More »

My mom does a lot of really annoying things.

She calls me really early in the morning, or really late at night. To talk about reality TV shows.
Whenever I’m on the phone with her, she hangs up abruptly to get another call…without saying goodbye.
She pees with the door open in the powder room on the main floor of our house.
She backed into my car when it was parked on her driveway…

But no matter how much I want to shake her and scream, “MOM IT’S 8AM ON A SUNDAY AND I DO NOT CARE WHAT YOU THINK OF RAMONA!” the woman has given me so much and I can’t forget that.

My mom is one of the most generous people I know, always giving her time and services to other people. She will do anything for me, including moving me and all my stuff from dorm to sorority house to house to apartment to apartment. She’s always in the mood for a trip to the mall and sometimes even throws her credit card down at the register. She’s an awesome cook, she’s pretty good at Scrabble and she did apologize when she backed into my car…

But the thing I’m most grateful for when it comes to my mom is the confidence and self esteem she has instilled in me.

I was a fat kid growing up. And not just baby fat. Fat fat. I was tall and big and had a perm – needless to say, I stuck out. But I never knew it. In fact, I didn’t realize quite how big I was until I looked at pictures from my childhood long after those years were over. At the time, thanks to my mom, I thought I was just like everyone else. You see, she was a plus sized woman, but I never realized there was anything wrong with that. I don’t remember my mom ever talking about her weight. I don’t remember her ever hiding herself or her body out of shame. Read More »

When you see a perfectly sculpted star on the cover of a magazine, don’t let yourself be fooled. They may look like they pray to the treadmill gods each day, but they are also just as human as we are. These ladies have curves, dimples, scars, warts and all the other things we pick at ourselves for. But thanks to the magic of Photoshop, their flaws can be hidden with the click and drag of a mouse.

Every so often, a brave celeb comes forward and acknowledges her body for the beautiful reality that it is. Recently, photos from a Complex magazine shoot with the bootylicious Kim Kardashian were accidently leaked onto the magazine’s website. In this assortment of pics were a couple shots of KK, pre-Photoshop, in all her luscious glory. A side-by-side comparison reveals the extent of her photo’s retouching: Read More »

[This post is courtesy of our gal pal, Marie Claire.]

It all started 10 years ago with a drunken kiss, which quickly led to drunken sex. She was the cool, pretty receptionist at the glossy music magazine where I was interning. But after a few more heated nights together that summer, my gig ended, and so did our trysts. I initially dismissed our encounters as nothing more than clumsy, alcohol-fueled experimentation — little did I know things were going to get much more complicated.

Prior to that fateful fling, I had been straight as a ruler and extremely confident about my figure. I’d always been robust (185 pounds), and proudly so. Constant attention from men — be it coy advances or vulgar catcalls — kept me feeling like a wanted woman. I was certain that my large breasts, tiny waist, and curvaceous hips were irresistible to members of the opposite sex. These assets — in any size and shape — were just so alien and intriguing to them. Read More »

Last week one of the CollegeCandy writers asked a question that I have been thinking about since I started crushing on boys in the 4th grade: would you date someone who weighs less than you?

Many people weighed in (tee hee) on the topic via the comments, and most of them seemed angry that we even brought up the issue. I mean, weight shouldn’t matter! But I really felt that a lot of people were missing the point.

This is not a question of body image or beauty, but rather a question of comfort, societal expectations and the role of men and women in a relationship. I was curious to see if weight was something guys considered when dating someone (beyond the whole preference for a girl with big boobs and a negative waist).

And based on what this guy said, I think weight and size matter more than most people are willing to admit. Read More »

In today’s society, the most appealing man is one that is big and manly, one who is there to protect his “weak” woman. And the ideal woman? She looks like Barbie: petite, busty… petite. The ideal pair, then, is a big, strong man and his teeny, frail little lady. Because of this unrealistic ideal that we have all been socialized to expect and strive for, women want to feel small and cute in comparison to their men.

Yes, we want to weigh less than our men.

It makes sense, right?

I know it is stereotypical to say, but I like strong men who are bigger than I am. I think girls feel this way for many reasons, one being the constant feeling of insecurity and body image. I know I would feel insecure about myself and have the constant feeling that I needed to lose weight if I was dating a man who weighed less than me. I also think, politically correct or not, I’d like to be with someone who could protect me. I’m not saying that I can’t stand up for myself, but I like the feeling of security that a nice big pair of arms provides me.

And, let’s be honest here, it is hard to feel feminine and ladylike when you are bigger than your boyfriend.

So as much as I would like to say I would date a guy who weighs less than me, the reality is that I probably wouldn’t. But I’d like to know: am I alone?

Would you date someone smaller than you?

When we decided to devote a week on CollegeCandy to eating disorder awareness, we wanted to get some facts and statistics from the experts. We reached out to the people who study and know these diseases best, and in doing so, met Stacey, a survivor who is using her rough past to help others. We immediately fell in love with both this woman and her message and wanted to introduce her to you.

Here is Stacey’s story:

Don’t get me wrong, I love guys (I mean I LOVE guys), but what if the story had been different?  What if Adam had emerged from Eve’s rib instead of vice-versa?  Would we be living in an entirely different world?  Would a woman’s success be gauged monetarily and a man’s physically?  Would aggressiveness be seen as a feminine quality and submissiveness as masculine?  Would women eat whatever they wanted while men counted every one tenth of a calorie?  I have no idea, but I asked this five years ago when starting EvesRib.com, a company that promotes positive body image and self-esteem in girls and women through fashion, while donating a portion of our proceeds to the National Eating Disorders Association.  However, this was not the only thing that led to The Creation of Eve’s Rib.

I used to miss school because I was too ugly, miss parties because I was too fat, and miss life because I was too [insert any and all negative adjectives here.]  It was assumed that I would grow out of this after high school, but things only got worse.   While having a blast on the outside—seriously, an All-American, collegiate blast—I perfected the art of self-hatred on the inside, and no one was the wiser; sometimes not even myself. Read More »

Being college-aged women, we tend to spend more time noticing what we hate about ourselves than what we love. We stand in front of the mirror and pinch our fat, measure our thighs and obsess over our pale skin/big nose/ugly ears. But how often have you ever looked in the mirror and celebrated your body and yourself?

During a week we devoted to the Eating Disorder epidemic, we feel it is important to stop hating on ourseles and, instead, focus on the extraordinary things we have to offer. So, we asked the CollegeCandy writers what they loved about themselves and it looks like we have some pretty fantastic writers.

What is your favorite thing about yourself?

Amanda – Wagner: I love my ability to laugh at myself. I think its important not to take yourself too seriously and try to just laugh at all the crazy in your life. And, of course, I always have a good story to tell because if that.

Brithny – Duke: I love how I am an ABC- American Born Chinese. It’s given me more opportunities and experiences than I could ever hope for.

Leah – Ryerson University: I love my body as a whole.  I wouldn’t change one thing about it.

Alex – Lakehead University:  My smile and laugh. I snort and usually other people laugh at my laugh, so I get people smiling. Read More »