page_title: Freshman 15
section_title: Dining halls
hierarchical_section_title: Freshman 15 / Over-eating / Dining halls
caption_attribution_description: Photograph of Thayer Dining Hall at the campus of Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire.
context_page_description: The term "Freshman 15" is an expression commonly used in the United States that refers to an amount of weight gained during a student's first year at college. In Australia and New Zealand it is sometimes referred to as First Year Fatties, Fresher Spread, or Fresher Five, the latter referring to a five-kilogram gain.
  The purported causes of this weight gain are increased alcohol intake and the consumption of fat and carbohydrate-rich cafeteria-style food in university dormitories and fast food in nearby restaurants. Many other causes include malnutrition, stress, and decreased levels of exercise. All of these factors can affect each person in a different way. Studies confirm many of these causes. Colleges and universities have recently been cracking down on this common problem and are trying to educate people on how to prevent it. This problem has grown so much that students are focusing on how to stop the freshman 15 before it happens.
  Despite how commonly the Freshman 15 is asserted, an Ohio State University study showed that the average college student gains only two to three pounds in their first year.
context_section_description: The dining halls at colleges try to make dining at school convenient and comfortable. Dining halls can provide a wide variety and bountiful options of food. They can also provide a place where students can endlessly indulge in high calorie foods such as pizza, fried food, and ice cream. When exposed to these gourmet restaurants, students are generally more likely to choose them over healthier options, which leads to weight gain, especially if fast food restaurants are more prevalent on campus than other restaurants. A study done on 60 students at Cornell University showed that 20% of the weight gained by the test subjects was directly caused by the dining halls' all-you-can-eat nature.
caption: Thayer Dining Hall at Dartmouth College
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