When I picked up The State News on Thursday, I was so pleased with the picture and front page article ("Skin-deep"). Then, I turned to page two. And then I got to the concluding paragraphs, that highlighted Weight Watchers.

I asked myself again and again and again - why do people not get it? How can The State News in one part of an article write about an amazing organization such as Respecting and Understanding Body Image (RUBI) and a powerful and supportive event such as "Take Back Your Body Night" and then incorporate a diet program into the same article? Do people really not understand that it is most frequently dieting, preoccupation with weight loss, counting fat, carbs, points (and other weight-loss strategies) that contribute significantly to the rise in eating disorders in this country?

And since it was National Eating Disorder Awareness Week during the week this article was published, couldn't the paper wait until next week to run a full-page ad of a scantily clad, thin young woman advertising "aerobic striptease"?

I have worked with both men and women on this campus attempting to help them recover from their eating disorders, attempting to feel positive about their bodies, no matter what size - and as positive as we can make it in my office, going out into the culture on campus, as well as the nation, recovery is so much more difficult when one has to fight the economic power of the weight-loss and advertising industry.

Ronda Bokram
Olin Health Center nutritionist and health educator