Study: ‘Drunkorexia’ the new way to avoid the freshman 15
Aug 13, 2012, 4:56 AM | Updated: 9:27 am
Students planning on a big night of drinking are offsetting calories by eating less throughout the day. The new practice is called Drunkorexia. (AP Photo/file)
(AP Photo/file)
A new study finds college students trying to avoid the freshman 15 are taking a new approach, forgoing food to leave more room for alcohol. The new practice is called “Drunkorexia.”
The study found that as high as 40 percent of drinking-age college students use the technique when they have heavy drinking in their plans.
“They know they still want to drink a lot of alcohol, but they don’t want to gain weight,” says Daniella Sieukaran, a Simon Fraser University graduate student who worked on the study.
Sieukaran says constant warnings about morbid obesity in our society have made young adults acutely aware of weight gain and they will try anything to avoid it.
“They’re cluing in and making the connection that if I don’t want to gain weight from alcohol, then I’m going to restrict my diet and actually go and engage in dieting,” says Sieukaran.
But she says when people eat less, the alcohol can have more of an impact.
“The alcohol will become more toxic and get to your head a bit quicker if you are drinking on an empty stomach, just biologically that is going to happen,” says Sieukaran.
For students engaged in this behavior, Sieukaran says the study showed a higher rate of hospitalization for alcohol overdose.
