Is it really true?

By Rachel Bartz, Talon staff writer

If you were to ask a high school what they are most worried about for college, you might find the dreaded “freshman fifteen” as one of the top answers.

But is this feared legend simply a myth?

According to a study conducted by Ohio State University, both men and women between the ages of 17 and 20,  gained, on average, about three pounds.

Heavy drinkers were shown to gain more, and students with a job gained less.

Variables included income, poverty and living in a dorm versus living at home, which were not shown to have any effect.

Young adults in the same age group who did not attend college were also studied and were shown to gain the same amount of weight.

Jay L. Zagorsky, a research scientist at Ohio State, told The New York Times, “There are lots of things to worry about when you go to college, but gaining weight is not one of them.

Worry about flunking your courses and whether you’re going to like your roommates. Don’t worry about a myth.”