Body Dysmorphia and the Stigma Surrounding Males

^{Hey guys,}

^{Todays post is going to be a little different from normal as this post strays away from my regular light hearted posts and focuses on a more serious/important topic. Last month for my sociology class I had to pick a topic, research it, and then write a reflective and research based essay. I actually really enjoyed learning and writing about this topic so I thought I would share my findings with you and hopefully give you some insight on the topic of male body dysmorphia. Enjoy :)}     

                In elementary school and all throughout high school, I, along with every other girl in my class, was told time and time again how important it was for girls to love and accept their bodies.  I noticed that there was never the same emphasis on male body image. When talking about body image and eating disorders, we only ever discussed female examples. Even last year, I was a part of a group of students who went to elementary schools to talk to girls about healthy body image. The program I was involved with only had seminars that were geared towards females and boys were unable to attend. This got me thinking; Has society deemed body dysmorphia as a predominantly female oriented mental illness and, if so, does this effect males who are suffering with this disorder?

            Body dysmorphia is a mental illness. It is caused by a person developing an unhealthy perception of their body (Phillips 63). I am fairly knowledgeable about the effects the media and society have on teenage girls and their body image, but I know almost nothing about how it affects males. 

             In the past, most of the research about body dysmorphia and eating disorders has been centred on females. Very few studies have been conducted with men in mind. Only in recent years has some attention been focused on how males are affected by this disorder. Most of this new research has focused predominantly on muscle dysmorphia, obsessive body building, and steroid use (Wright 2).  With very little scientific research regarding male body dysmorphia, it can be hard to combat and raise awareness of the disorder, as there has been little or no study conducted on the subject. In order to eliminate the feminine stigma regarding body dysmorphia, more research needs to be completed on male body dysmorphia and the findings need to be publicized.

By putting more emphasize on female research, scientists are telling the public that body dysmorphia is more of a feminine concern, which is not the case.  According to The Guardian “80.7% of men talk in ways that promote anxiety about their body image by referring to perceived flaws and imperfections, compared with 75% of women” (Campbell). As well, a study conducted at Harvard found that “men are one-third as likely as women to have anorexia or bulimia and more than half as likely to have a binge eating disorder” (Weintraub). These statistics suggest that body dysmorphia affects more than just females. Why is there not the same emphasis on research and awareness on male body dysmorphia?

Cultural norms have played a big part in presenting body dysmorphia as a predominantly female oriented disorder.  Bell and McNaughton state that feminist literature has played a part in “establishing the idea that the fear of fatness is fundamentally tied up with patriarchy and femininity” (108). There is never any mention of male body dysmorphia in these texts, which needs to change in order to break the feminine stereotype surrounding body image.  The norm is for men to be more carefree about their bodies than females even though they are under the same pressures to fit the “ideal male” mold that the media constantly promotes (Pope 202). How the media represents men has proven to be a contributing factor in the development of male muscle dysmorphia, yet there is little talk surrounding these findings (Leit 335).  These expectations and norms lead the public to believe that males do not go through similar body struggles that females endure. If a male suffers from body dysmorphia, he is no longer adhering to the societal norm and, in turn, is un-masculine (Grogan 228).  If society assumes that this disorder does not apply to the majority of men, does this result in researchers believing that the disorder is not worth studying ?

While conducting this research, I was most surprised to see the statistics regarding males and body dysmorphia rates compared to females. I knew that both men and women suffer from body dysmorphia but I was unsure how common it really was. Like the majority of society,  I am completely unaware & misinformed about how much males are actually affected by this mental illness. On the other hand, I am not surprised as to why society has positioned body dysmorphia as a feminine illness. Males are not supposed to be self- conscious of their bodies. The belief is that males need to be strong, carefree, and unemotional. From the moment boys come of age, they are told how they should present themselves and shown how they can be as masculine as possible. Body dysmorphia has been deemed to be an “un-masculine” illness. In order for that to change, men need to be reminded that there is nothing wrong with being emotional or vulnerable. As well, more research on the topic needs to be conducted and more literature published in order to bring about more awareness, attention, and answers about how male body dysmorphia is a prevalent and important issue in today’s society. Science shapes society, and society shapes science. If we want to see a difference regarding male body dysmorphia, something needs to change.

Many men who suffer from body dysmorphia know that it is a feminized illness. Olivardia, an instructor at Harvard Medical School says: ” Almost every male [I’ve seen in my practice] has always brought in gender identity” (Weintraub). The men saw body dysmorphia as a feminine issue. As a result, men were less likely to open up about their problem or seek help than women. The stereotypes surrounding body dysmorphia are stopping males from coming to terms with their disorder (Bell 108). It is very problematic that men are not seeking medical or psychological attention that could save their lives because society has told them they should not be suffering from the disorder in the first place. In order to make men feel more comfortable opening up about their disorder, the stigma surrounding it desperately needs to be removed.

 The problem with this is that society has created a gender binary (Hird 349). You are either a man or a woman and society has constructed what it means to be male or female. Men are supposed to be tough and to not express their feelings. Women, on the other hand,  are expected to be emotional and fragile (Prentice 269). If a male is suffering from body dysmorphia, it means that they no longer fit into the constructed male values. They are no longer tough and macho; rather, they are perceived sensitive and vulnerable. The problem with binaries is that if you do not fit into one of the two categories, then where do you belong? This causes people to feel as though they are outsiders and it can reinforce or even worsen their body dysmorphia.

The stigma attached to body dysmorphia  also causes the disorder to be more difficult to recognize in men than in women. Most people are aware that body image issues are prevalent in females and therefore can recognize the signs. If the public is unaware that men can have body dysmorphia, how can they know to look for or diagnose it? Even women who have body image concerns have a hard time believing that men struggle with similar issues (Pope 201). The lack of awareness makes it difficult for people to spot the symptoms and to step in to try and help. The men who need help are afraid to ask for it and the people around them who could reach out to them have no idea that it is even an issue men have. This creates a very slim chance of those men suffering from the disorder to get the treatment they need.

            There needs to be a bigger emphasis on male body issues in the context of public health initiatives. The public needs to be educated on these issues, especially parents, teachers and counselors of young boys. With the feminine stigma attached to body dysmorphia, we cannot wait for men to come to us with their concerns, as it is unlikely they will do so themselves. Schools and health care professionals need to be able to provide information and resources to male youth just as they do for females (McCabe 635). The same self-confidence and body image workshops that are created for young girls need to include young boys. Educating society on male body dysmorphia is the first step in crushing the stigma.

Growing up in the public school system, I saw the stigma being placed around the disorder at a young age. When I first learned about body issues, all of the images and stories were centered around females. This painted a clear picture in my mind that body dysmorphia was something that only affects girls. Thankfully, as I have matured and become more educated, I have learned to think more critically and have begun to question these stigmas and stereotypes.

While researching this topic, I found it really hard to find to good resources for males who have body dysmorphia. The amount of information, workshops, awareness, and aid available for females who have this disorder is much greater. It is important to target them at a young age and educate them on this issue. Doing so can help prevent or help to overcome body image issues, as men and women are most affected by body dysmorphia in their adolescence (Smolak 18). However, only a select few school programs that address body dysmorphia include young boys. The majority of the programs only focus on female self-esteem and body issues.  Unless this dichotomy is resolved, future generations of children will grow up thinking that body dysmorphia is a female-only disorder.

 In recent years, more attention has been brought to this issue but it is not enough to harbor change. Most of the research on the matter of male body image has focused on muscle dysmorphia in males. While this is an important health and medical issue, it is not the only one. Male eating disorders such as bulimia and anorexia are on the rise (Tartakovsky). Consequently, equal resources for men and women need to be available. The first step is conducting more research. The second step is educating the youth and raising awareness on the issue, especially among parents, teachers and counsellors.  The third step is to quash gender stereotypes and the gender binary society has constructed. If we as a society can work to accomplish those three steps, the stigma of male body dysmorphia would be erased and males may start to feel more comfortable reaching out for help about their disorder, and improving their overall health and mental well-being.

Works Cited

Bell, Kirsten, and Darlene McNaughton. "Feminism and the invisible fat man." Body & Society 13.1 (2007): 107-131.

Campbell, Denis. “Body Image Concerns More Men Than Women, Research Finds. “The Guardian. 6 Jan. 2012. Web. 1 Mar. 2015.

Grogan, Sarah, and Helen Richards. "Body image focus groups with boys and men." Men and masculinities 4.3 (2002): 219-232.

Hird, Myra J. "Gender's nature Intersexuality, transsexualism and the ‘sex’/’gender’binary." Feminist theory 1.3 (2000): 347-364.

Leit, Richard A., James J. Gray, and Harrison G. Pope. "The media's representation of the ideal male body: A cause for muscle dysmorphia?." International Journal of Eating Disorders 31.3 (2002): 334-338.

McCabe, Marita P., and Lina A. Ricciardelli. "A prospective study of pressures from parents, peers, and the media on extreme weight change behaviors among adolescent boys and girls." Behaviour research and therapy 43.5 (2005): 653-668.

Phillips, Katharine A. "Psychosis in body dysmorphic disorder." Journal of Psychiatric Research 38.1 (2004): 63-72.

Pope, Harrison, Katharine A. Phillips, and Roberto Olivardia. The Adonis complex: The secret crisis of male body obsession. Simon and Schuster, 2000.

Prentice, Deborah A., and Erica Carranza. "What women and men should be, shouldn’t be, are allowed to be, and don’t have to be: The contents of prescriptive gender stereotypes." Psychology of Women Quarterly 26.4 (2002): 269-281.

Smolak, Linda. "Body image in children and adolescents: where do we go from here?." Body image 1.1 (2004): 15-28.

Tartakovsky, Margarita M.S."Eating Disorders in Men." Psych Central.com. N.p., 7 Oct. 2008. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.

Weintraub, Karen. “The Boston globe on Makes & Eating Disorders.” ANAD. National Association of Anoerxia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, 14 Nov. 2011. Web. 2 Mar. 2015.

Wright, Jan, Christine Halse, and Gary Levy. "Preteen Boys, Body Image, and Eating Disorders." Men and Masculinities (2015): 1097184X15575158.