Back in skinny jeans

More on addicted to dieting

So, I've been probing my brain even deeper on the subject of addiction to dieting. Take a look around your own little piece of the world. Do you know any woman who is not on some kind of diet to lose weight or to stay skinny? In my sliver of the world, the only people I could think of were all over 60 year olds like my mom, some of my aunts, and grandma. These women are by no means obese but they are probably packing on a good extra 30-40 pounds which is getting heavy. Perhaps, when you start living in the crony years, there are more important things to worry about than the size of your waist. I know for my Mom she is still working as a nurse delivering babies, and being a grandma to triplets. She is also active in her church and community. This woman is active more than anyone I know, and is highly regarded for her warmth, generosity, and kindness in helping others. Who cares if she ain't a size 8. You can only see the beauty in her heart resonate outwardly.

I heard a joke the other day, and it originated from some famous starlet of yore. Forgive me but I can't remember her name but it went something like, "Ladies if you have to make a choice between sex appeal and money, take the money because when you get older, your money will be your sex appeal."

On some level I would agree with that statement. You are always deemed more attractive if you are loaded, male or female. Money makes people more attractive in many people's eyes. I think it's just because loaded folks have the means to better plastic surgery, creams, trainers, fat farms, and stylists. They can also pay someone to cook healthy Zone friendly meals for them, and to make sure they stay on the skinny track. I'd love to be that rich where I could hire a staff just to keep me looking fabulous. Perhaps that is shallow, but hell, if you are loaded and do good things in the world, why not pamper yourself. Look at Oprah.

But let's not forget people like Mom. Mom isn't a starlet with a staff to keep her taut and moist. No, in fact she only has Oil of Olay and Herbal Essence shampoo and conditioner, and her grandchildren to keep her in shape. Mom isn't addicted to dieting because she something better to be addicted to, the love of her family. Perhaps, more of us can aspire to loftier addictions like that.

Are we addicted to dieting?

I was thinking about this on the plane ride back from Rhode Island the other day after reading my US magazine whilst sipping on bloody Mary mix on the rocks, my favorite airplane beverage. Are we addicted to dieting? Do we diet just for the sake of dieting, or do we diet because every woman is "supposed" to diet? In my circle of peeps, I don't know one woman, girl, teenybopper, who is not on some kind of diet to lose weight, or is about to start some new diet "on Monday."

I just saw at iVillage that more than 80% of college women are on some kind of diet. I actually believe the number is higher than that. When I was in college, every single girl in my dorm was dieting either because we gained the freshmen 15, we wanted to be more attractive to the boys, or we just wanted to compete and be one of the pretty people. College is where the obsession to be thin, in my humble opinion, really gets ingrained into our psyches. Many will say it starts in high school, and I will agree with that to a degree, but when you're in high school you are still in a small bubble and living with your folks. Things are pretty predictable.

When you hit college, you are thrown into a much larger circle, and you are living with other coeds in the dorms or sorority houses. You are seeing other women's bodies 24/7, and thus the need to compete, fit in, or just get along increases monumentally. As well, feelings of not having any control over one's life increases when away from home, and the hometown. Your body is the one thing that you can always control no matter what. You also know that in 4-5 years after you graduate, you'll be "out there" in the world having to make it on your own.

When you arrive "out there", you are now entering the professional world where the competition is totally turned on. Again, you may not have any control of what's happening around you, but again, you can always control your body, and dieting is part of that process. So, because of all this craziness, perhaps the answer to the question is yes, we are addicted to dieting because we have to in order to compete in the world.