Posted on 11/17/2007 9:32:14 AM PST by DeweyCA
America's college students are in a worrisome state of health, according to a study released yesterday.
Most drink and are sexually active, many have been diagnosed with mental illness, and plenty are fat and in debt, says the University of Minnesota, which surveyed 10,000 students from 14 campuses across the state.
"College students face multiple risks to their health, and their behavior affects all parts of their existence," said Dr. Edward P. Ehlinger, director of the school's Boynton Health Service, which coordinated the research.
It is the first comprehensive analysis of campus health issues, and it reflects national trends, Dr. Ehlinger said.
- Snip -
•77 percent are sexually active
•71 percent drink alcohol; 37 percent report "high-risk" drinking
•58 percent have credit-card debt of $1,000 or more
•41 percent say excessive computer and TV time affects their academic performance
•39 percent are overweight or obese
•27 percent have been diagnosed with a mental disorder
•25 percent smoke
•23 percent of females students have been sexually assaulted
•9 percent have no health insurance
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
Other than the sexual assault, they don’t mention how most campuses are pretty high crime areas.
“27 percent have been diagnosed with a mental disorder”
I’m sure the percentage is much higher for the faculty.
The only thing I find surprising is this was another waste of tax dollars... ok, that’s not surprising.
Why is being “sexually active” a health threat instead of giving an STD/Pregnancy rate?
I know many married college students, one would hope that they are sexually active!
Good to know some things never change.
I should hope most are in debt... Student loans!
Worse? No, that’s too low. I live in a college town. We joke we don’t have prostitutes because we have to much amateur competition. When they drink- and they drink alot- a good number of them smoke. When they smoke and drink they "hook up". And they "hook up" everywhere.
Wow, young people with their first taste of freedom make bad decisions. What a shocker.
There oughtta be a law.
Our institutions of LOWER learning are living up to their billing.
I'm always amused - irritated, actually - when I hear that it's homeschoolers that will go ape shit once they reach college, because they've been overprotected and oversheltered by their parents. The "Catholic girl syndrome" I've even heard it described.
It's stories like this - of UNhomeschooled students going ape shit - that the doom predictors conveniently forget.
39% are overweight or obese ....that means 61% are normal weight or underweight - which is a big suprise in today’s world.
I bet the figures would be about the same if this poll had been taken 25 years ago. But, back then, probably more than 25% smoked.
Home-schooled or not, many kids who go to college go through a wild period. It was the same when my Dad was in college in the sixties, it was the case when I was in college in the 90s, and it will undoubtedly be the same when my kids go to college in the next decade or so.
And a bit off topic, but what does the status of health insurance coverage have to do with anything? I frankly don’t know if I had insurance when I was in school. It didn’t matter, because other than the occasional cold or flu (or brown bottle flu on many Saturday mornings), I was never sick.
College students especially on large campuses do get plenty of exercise running between classes; campus layouts and parking restrictions make cars impractical or impossible even when affordable. As highly indebted paupers, most college students lack cars, and those who live outside the dormitories eat what little cheap food they can afford. I never figured out where college students get money for alcohol, but I managed to save a considerable portion of my stipends as a graduate student and apply such savings toward student-loan debt.
More worrisome than how many students have sex is how many students can’t cook a simple meal, nor sew, nor do laundry, nor work. More kids than ever leave college unable to do basic domestic chores, and more than ever live at home until they’re 30.
Nothing, but it is curious. At most schools, insurance is required for fulltime and it is offered by the school. Students have insurance either thru their parents or the school itself. At many schools, there is a health service, whose care is often free.
I expect 9% are part-time students. Even lowly grad usually TAs get insurance as part of their aid package.
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