Georgia Hamer
Opinion Writer
ItÔÇÖs not difficult to see how the typical university lifestyle may begin to take its toll on your health.┬áBooze fuelled nights out, succumbing to the temptations of takeaway food as you stagger home in the early hours, followed by crawling to 9am lectures, an all too familiar story. Of course I am generalising; though, as I sit writing this article opposite my flatmate (who lies face down on the kitchen table) occasionally managing a self-pitiful cry of ÔÇÿnever againÔÇÖ, I realise it is perhaps not a far cry from reality. Whilst his claims that he is in fact ÔÇÿdyingÔÇÖ are perhaps a little dramatic, it does pose the question: to what extent is uni life harmful to our health?
I feel I speak for the majority when I say uni certainly tests your tolerance for alcohol; the infamous ÔÇÿChunder ChartÔÇÖ becoming a prevalent feature of kitchen noticeboards across university halls, naming and shaming, or perhaps commending, all those who couldnÔÇÖt quite stomach their drink. The array of student nights across clubs, which offer cheap drinks, makes it all too easy to begin seeing ÔÇÿresponsible drinkingÔÇÖ as anything that doesnÔÇÖt lead to impromptu vomiting and passing out on your doorstep.
Striking the balance between your social life and work can prove a difficult task. Whether it be due to nights out or nights in studying for the more conscientious of students, regular sleeping patterns are a thing of the past; remaining awake in lectures an exceedingly difficult task.
On top of this there is the issue of maintaining a healthy diet. Away from home, perhaps for the first time, it can be all too easy to opt for microwave ready meals, or perhaps even the more budget friendly 11p everyday value noodles – which I am in no way endorsing – once mumÔÇÖs frozen homemade meals run dry. Takeaways too become an ever more appealing solution to avoid the hassle of food shopping or even tackling last weekÔÇÖs washing up. It is on this basis that media claims have been made stating the ÔÇÿfreshman 15ÔÇÖ, as it is known in the US, may be beginning to pose as much of a health risk to British students as it does to their American counterparts. The phenomenon refers to the 15 pounds freshers supposedly gain in their first year at university, and whilst in reality these claims are (in my mind at any rate) sheer absurdities, it does remain a fairly alarming prospect.
There are ways to avoid piling on the pounds; sporting opportunities at university, particularly through the vast range of societies, are readily available. Although it seems that when you factor in the detrimental effects incurred at the weekly socials and fierce initiation processes, any positive health effects are arguably counterbalanced by the brutality of bizarre competitive drinking practices. That being said, having heard tales from a recent Cardiff cricket social which saw Freshers forced to gorge on entire cucumbers to chants of ÔÇÿsee that veg offÔÇÖ, I commend their efforts to promote a balanced, healthy way of life.
Whilst on the surface uni lifestyle may seem a sure-fire ticket to liver failure, obesity and emotional meltdown, the reality is, thankfully, not quite so severe. Despite the media depictions of students, particularly in recent reports on the Cardiff Carnage event, not every student night out is worthy of rivalling an episode of The Valleys. Though I do agree it is not always easy to maintain a healthy lifestyle at university on a student budget, with the average student loan unable to stretch to super foods or pricey gym memberships, it is possible to avoid the student clich├®s presented in the media without breaking the bank. With the number of uni graduates rising each year, there is surely hope for all our survivals. Only time will tell.
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