Eating Disorders Affect Men’s Health Too

Eating disorders are not something experienced only by teen aged girls: anyone can struggle to cope with an eating disorder, including men.  An estimated 10% of eating disordered people are men, although that estimate is likely to be artificially low due to the negative connotations for men with eating disorders.  These conditions have even less to do with a person’s sexuality than they have to do with food, but often men with eating disorders are suspected and accused of being homosexual and weak, too feminine and too concerned about appearances: shallow and sensitive.  In addition to under reporting, men rarely seek treatment or help for these disorders until their health has been affected and they meet the criteria for a diagnosis of Anorexia Nervosa or Bulimia Nervosa.

 An article on Caring Online about Males and Eating Disorders, included this excerpt.

Another expert who treats eating disorders says society has a tendency to glamorize eating disorders while at the same time making fun of the people who have them.

“The media and society believe it’s all about these beautiful models trying to lose weight, when that’s really not what eating disorders are about,” says Mae Sokol, MD. “They’re less about food and eating and much more about people’s sense of self-esteem and identity and who they are.”

Sokol says anorexia may be less noticeable in men than women because men can still have muscle mass even though they are thin.

“In fact, it’s more dangerous for men to develop anorexia nervosa than for females … because when males get down to the lowest weight ranges, they’ve lost more muscle and tissue, whereas [fat] is something you can lose for a period of time without repercussions,” says Sokol, a child and adolescent psychologist at Menninger, a psychiatric hospital in Topeka, Kan.

I visited MensHealth.com website and searched with the keywords “eating disorders,” and was unable to find a single article about men and EDs, and I could not count how many articles were about food, fitness, weight loss, and even how to “Think Your Way to Thin” (a great read, by the way).  Clearly the pressure on men to be thin and fit is just as intense, if not more intense than the pressures women also face every day.  Unfortunately there isn’t an equal amount of information, education, awareness, and treatment programs designed for treating men who struggle with eating disorders.

During Eating Disorder Awareness Week, February 21 to 27, please tell others about the widespread eating disorder epidemic and the damage done to so many lives of men, women, and children around the world.  Talk about the common misconceptions and stereotypes, and inform people of the fact that eating disorders include more than just anorexia and bulimia, and they affect more people than just young girls and immature women or fashion models.

Eating Disorder Awareness Week Coming Soon

As the Eating Disorder Awareness Week approaches, we’re going to see a lot more articles in the media like the story of a Canadian man who is campaigning to raise awareness of EDs as well as reverse the stigma associated with them.  The article was posted on one of Canada’s most respected leading news websites, the CBC News, and states,

Events will be held in high schools and shopping malls across Newfoundland and Labrador the week of Feb. 1 to raise awareness of eating disorders.

“Having gone through this personally, I would suggest to families that they be very aware to changes in personality of their adolescents,” said Vince Withers, who chairs the Newfoundland and Labrador Eating Disorder Foundation. “People with and eating disorder will have noticeable changes in terms of mood, self esteem, school, in terms of having their friends around them.”

Withers founded the Eating Disorders Foundation after the death of his daughter Renata in 2006.

He hopes events this week will reverse the stigma attached to potentially fatal eating disorders.

I read that the Eating Disorder Awareness Week is actually from February 21 to 27 this year, although the other campaign in eastern Canada that’s happening now will add to the positive attention focused on these life threatening conditions.  I support any and all campaigns to raise awareness and stop the suffering that eating disorders can cause!  It is my sincere wish that all people who are living with eating disorders today will be able to recover completely or develop a healthier balance with their ED so that they no longer suffer from the pain, depression, anxiety, isolation, shame, judgements, misunderstandings, stigma and stereotypes that often go hand in hand with them.