"There is a double standard, however, for young male identifiers who are exposed to the same media-glorifying six packs, have not been given the same alternative body types that women are allowed." -- adriana Rosekrans
In the past decade, the awareness of body shaming and beauty standards for women have increased and the pressure to have the perfect body, although still there, has softened. According to Bryan Karazsia, PhD, of The College of Wooster, "the last two decades have witnessed increasing attention and awareness on a body acceptance movement aimed primarily at girls and women,” and according to Refinery 29 in 2016 54% of women were satisfied with their bodys and only 12% were not.
There is a common tendency, especially in the media, to enter “oppression olympics” into conversations, mainly around gender, but socialization causes individualized experiences with gender roles that cannot be compared. There is a double standard, however, for young male identifiers who are exposed to the same media-glorifying six packs, but have not been given the same alternative body types that women are allowed.
This double standard plays a large part in body dysmorphia and eating disorders. Body dysmorphia materializes in images of the “perfect body” and pursuit of being “a real man.”
This starts in early childhood; for example, when girls are hit on the playground, they often respond with tears. When boys are hit, they often respond with fists. This reaction is sourced from a fear of being vulnerable, having intense feelings besides anger, and being called out for it. It creates an unhealthy mask that young male identifiers learn to live behind in order to protect themselves.
There is a subconscious notion that mental illnesses, more specifically eating disorders, pertain to only one gender. Dr. Scott Griffiths, a NHMRC Early Career Fellow investigating body image, and eating disorders found that male identifiers were four times more likely than women to go undiagnosed with an eating disorder, including anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. He explained that "[eating disorders have] long been considered a female illness [...] male eating disorders are woefully underrepresented [and] a lot don't receive help because they don't feel like they have an issue or [..] they feel embarrassed by it."
The symptoms of eating disorders are different for different people and genders. Eating Disorder Hope, a wellness organization, explains that, “factors thought to contribute to the development of eating disorders in men consist of media idealization of highly chiseled, muscular men with extremely low body fat.” They found that involvement in certain sports can lead to eating disorders and other mental illnesses. While eating disorders in men may look different, the core of the illness remains as obsessing over control and reaching beauty standards, and paired with other illnesses (anxiety, depression, PTSD, etc.) this can the result in unhealthy, and sometimes fatal outcomes.
One of the reasons men do not come out and speak about this illness is because of the way media portrays it. Eating disorders do not only consist of young, skinny women with anorexia, but that is often the only image presented—and where the root of the devalidation comes from.
There is a common tendency, especially in the media, to enter “oppression olympics” into conversations, mainly around gender, but socialization causes individualized experiences with gender roles that cannot be compared. There is a double standard, however, for young male identifiers who are exposed to the same media-glorifying six packs, but have not been given the same alternative body types that women are allowed.
This double standard plays a large part in body dysmorphia and eating disorders. Body dysmorphia materializes in images of the “perfect body” and pursuit of being “a real man.”
This starts in early childhood; for example, when girls are hit on the playground, they often respond with tears. When boys are hit, they often respond with fists. This reaction is sourced from a fear of being vulnerable, having intense feelings besides anger, and being called out for it. It creates an unhealthy mask that young male identifiers learn to live behind in order to protect themselves.
There is a subconscious notion that mental illnesses, more specifically eating disorders, pertain to only one gender. Dr. Scott Griffiths, a NHMRC Early Career Fellow investigating body image, and eating disorders found that male identifiers were four times more likely than women to go undiagnosed with an eating disorder, including anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. He explained that "[eating disorders have] long been considered a female illness [...] male eating disorders are woefully underrepresented [and] a lot don't receive help because they don't feel like they have an issue or [..] they feel embarrassed by it."
The symptoms of eating disorders are different for different people and genders. Eating Disorder Hope, a wellness organization, explains that, “factors thought to contribute to the development of eating disorders in men consist of media idealization of highly chiseled, muscular men with extremely low body fat.” They found that involvement in certain sports can lead to eating disorders and other mental illnesses. While eating disorders in men may look different, the core of the illness remains as obsessing over control and reaching beauty standards, and paired with other illnesses (anxiety, depression, PTSD, etc.) this can the result in unhealthy, and sometimes fatal outcomes.
One of the reasons men do not come out and speak about this illness is because of the way media portrays it. Eating disorders do not only consist of young, skinny women with anorexia, but that is often the only image presented—and where the root of the devalidation comes from.
Most eating disorders in young men start with a fitness obsession. The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Sydney found that, “Ten percent of patients with eating disorders are boys who are mostly concerned about fitness and their sporting ability, with a quarter under 12 years of age.”
An interview with an MLB player helps to understand what might be going on inside the heads of young boys struggling with body image. Baseball star Mike Marjama explains that, in the beginning of his eating disorder, he "was definitely getting into an attraction to a girl [and thought] ‘if I’m going to get a girlfriend, I’ve got to get a six pack’ and so I thought if I didn’t eat anything, well I wouldn’t get any fat, and then if I worked out a ton I would get big and muscular."
He told the interviewer how his obsession with his body image began to spiral out of control and consume him."I started just restricting my diet, just overworking," he explained. "I put a stationary bike in the shower, and [would] ride until I would pass out." Marjama said his anorexia progressed into bulimia until he finally hit "rock bottom" during 11th grade, when he was admitted into an in-patient program, where he stayed for five days.
Toxic masculinity, a term for what is caused by the stereotype of masculine gender roles that restrict the kinds of emotions allowable for men to express; plays a role in the response to the unattainable beauty standards and eating disorders. The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) says that one in three people struggling with an eating disorder are male-identified and some type of eating disorder will affect approximately 10 million males in the U.S at some point in their lives.
The common misconception of eating disorders as a woman's issue puts men in vulnerable, isolated positions. This shames them into thinking that they couldn't possibly have a “girl’s disease,” so they often don’t acknowledge it in the first place. Crystal Karges, a nutritionist, says “men struggling with eating disorders run a risk of being undiagnosed, misdiagnosed or potentially encouraged to do things that complicate an eating disorder. Substance abuse, anger, isolation and self-harm can also become coping methods used by males to elude their struggles around body image.” With toxic masculinity playing a role in this, men tend to put on a tough facade of being “okay.”
The silence around body dysmorphia and eating disorders for men causes detrimental psychological and physical effects. The double standards in our society go unrecognized, toxic masculinity is a burning but subtle mindset that prevent male identifiers to seek out for help.
Marjama's experience is one of millions; if these journeys were more visible to the public, we could all start understanding just how much vulnerability young men face in our society, and they would be able to cope differently with body image.
An interview with an MLB player helps to understand what might be going on inside the heads of young boys struggling with body image. Baseball star Mike Marjama explains that, in the beginning of his eating disorder, he "was definitely getting into an attraction to a girl [and thought] ‘if I’m going to get a girlfriend, I’ve got to get a six pack’ and so I thought if I didn’t eat anything, well I wouldn’t get any fat, and then if I worked out a ton I would get big and muscular."
He told the interviewer how his obsession with his body image began to spiral out of control and consume him."I started just restricting my diet, just overworking," he explained. "I put a stationary bike in the shower, and [would] ride until I would pass out." Marjama said his anorexia progressed into bulimia until he finally hit "rock bottom" during 11th grade, when he was admitted into an in-patient program, where he stayed for five days.
Toxic masculinity, a term for what is caused by the stereotype of masculine gender roles that restrict the kinds of emotions allowable for men to express; plays a role in the response to the unattainable beauty standards and eating disorders. The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) says that one in three people struggling with an eating disorder are male-identified and some type of eating disorder will affect approximately 10 million males in the U.S at some point in their lives.
The common misconception of eating disorders as a woman's issue puts men in vulnerable, isolated positions. This shames them into thinking that they couldn't possibly have a “girl’s disease,” so they often don’t acknowledge it in the first place. Crystal Karges, a nutritionist, says “men struggling with eating disorders run a risk of being undiagnosed, misdiagnosed or potentially encouraged to do things that complicate an eating disorder. Substance abuse, anger, isolation and self-harm can also become coping methods used by males to elude their struggles around body image.” With toxic masculinity playing a role in this, men tend to put on a tough facade of being “okay.”
The silence around body dysmorphia and eating disorders for men causes detrimental psychological and physical effects. The double standards in our society go unrecognized, toxic masculinity is a burning but subtle mindset that prevent male identifiers to seek out for help.
Marjama's experience is one of millions; if these journeys were more visible to the public, we could all start understanding just how much vulnerability young men face in our society, and they would be able to cope differently with body image.
