UA News

UA's Campus Health Service will screen the award-winning documentary, "America the Beautiful," and host its filmmaker during a postive body image event this month.

A film about the nation's unhealthy obsession with beauty – which hasn't even made its national debut – will be screened at The University of Arizona as part of an event to promote healthy body image.

Gale S. Welter, a nutrition counselor at the UA's Campus Health Service, has worked with her collaborators to bring filmmaker Darryl Roberts and his documentary, "America the Beautiful," to the University.

The film will be screened at Gallagher Theater on Feb. 25 at 6 p.m. as part of the "Love Your Body Day" events.

The day's events begin at 10 a.m. on the UA Mall with interactive exhibits, presentations, raffle prizes and other informative material through 2 p.m.

Counselors from the UA's counseling and psychological services unit will also be on hand to give body image screenings. During the screening, specialists will ask a series of questions to determine whether a person has a healthy image of themselves. If not, the counselors will offer suggestions and resources.

The evening film screening will feature a question and answer session with Roberts and other health experts. All the day's events are free and open to the public.

"He is very much an advocate and takes it beyond it just being an interesting topic," Welter said.

Roberts spent two years filming his documentary, following the life of fashion model Gerren Taylor, who began modeling at the age of 12. She was the youngest person ever to be represented by the L.A. Models agency's runway division. The documentary has won several awards at national and international film festivals in Chicago, Hollywood and elsewhere.

"It's a real eye opener," Welter said. "It's very current."

Roberts has written and produced several other films, commercials and music videos and is currently visiting cities throughout the United States to promote and screen "America the Beautiful." To date, the film has only been released in about 25 cities.

For the documentary, Roberts interviewed common citizens, fashion experts, media representatives and celebrities such as Paris Hilton, Julianne Moore, Michael Beach, Mena Suvari and Tisha Campbell.

Roberts covered issues related to plastic surgery, celebrity obsession and the culture of consumption as well as the unhealthy consequences of being body-obsessed, such as low self esteem, depression and the risk for eating disorders. The film has been show in a select number of theaters and is scheduled to have a broader release later this year.

The UA day of events coincides with National Eating Disorder Awareness Week. Event sponsors include the UA's Center for Student Involvement and Leadership, Life & Work Connections, the Parents and Family Association and numerous Main Gate vendors and merchants.

"People don't understand that eating disorders are a mental illness. I think that is one of the major misconceptions," said Jaye Arouty, a National Eating Disorder Association volunteer who collaborated with Welter on the event.

Her daughter was diagnosed with anorexia as a teenager. At that time, Arouty and her family did not know much about the disease or eating disorders in general.

She said some people believe that those with eating disorders simply need to eat more to solve their problem. Often, the problem is much deeper, she said.

"Most people just don't understand the grips and the strength of this disease," she said. "They also don't understand the fact that it is a mental illness."

Arouty's organization estimates that roughly 35 million men and women in the United States are dealing with some kind of eating disorder, including anorexia nervosa, binge eating and bulimia.

Numerous resources exist to help people combat eating disorders. At the UA, Campus Health Service offers counseling and clinical services. UA Life & Work Connections also provides resources.

"People who are dealing with this need to know that they are certainly not alone," said Arouty, who is also a member of the Parent Family Network. Last year, she initiated a local support group for individuals whose relatives are dealing with or have dealt with eating disorders.