When people think about eating disorders, they never think of a male with eating disorder. They probably picture anorexic female models starving themselves to maintain a double-zero figure. Or they might imagine teenagers with body dysmorphia or bulimia.

However, this is not the complete picture of those who suffer from eating disorders and food addiction. The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) website reveals that around one in three people coping with an eating disorder is male. This problem manifests itself in a range of related conditions:

  • Binge eating – periods of extravagant or out-of-control eating.
  • Purging – forced vomiting, to empty the stomach (sometimes in cycles with binging.)
  • Laxative abuse – is another strategy used by men to avoid weight gain.
  • Fasting and extreme dieting – not eating at all or restricting consumption.

Unfortunately, a mixture of cultural bias and prejudice leads men to hide such behaviors from their loved ones, and sometimes even from themselves.

The Double Bias Effect – Preventing Men Seeking Treatment

Men are already less likely to seek mental health treatment than women. The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) estimates that six million American men suffer from depressive disorders each year. The World Health Organization (WHO) report in 2018 revealed that suicide is three times more prevalent in men than in women in high-income countries. Men are less likely to reach out to mental health services when they are suffering.

In addition, there is a second social stigma attached to eating disorders – they are seen as feminine (or pejoratively, effeminate) and sometimes associated with gay men. There is some truth to the latter claim — gay men make up 5% of the population but constitute 42% of men who admit to eating disorders, according to NEDA.

This disparity can dissuade some straight men from admitting to themselves or to friends and family that they have a problem. These two cultural biases compound to make it less likely that men will seek treatment for eating disorders and food addictions.

Things are Changing, Albeit Slowly

In 2019, Dr. Who actor Christopher Eccleston gave an interview to BBC’s children’s current affairs program Newsround. In the interview, he admitted to suffering from anorexia for years. He subsequently wrote about his eating problems and body dysmorphia in his autobiography, I Love the Bones of You.

Among other well-known male role models who have spoken out recently about the topic are Elton John, Kings of Leon’s Caleb Followill, Russell Brand, and Billy Bob Thornton. These high-profile stories help reduce stigma and make it possible for men suffering from anorexia or bulimia to admit their problems and seek treatment.

Male eating disorders are being studied more assiduously, and the pressures and causes which lead men to develop these conditions are becoming clearer.

Factors that can contribute to a male eating disorder include:

  • A previous history of obesity
  • Participation in a sport or industry that prioritizes thinness (athletics, fashion, film)
  • Excessive dieting behavior
  • Homosexuality

It’s important to recognize that last factor, given the hugely disproportionate prevalence of eating disorders in the LGBTQ+ community.

The COVID-19 pandemic aggravated these conditions in both men and women. Yale’s Program for Obesity, Weight and Eating Research (POWER) described a pattern common to both children and adults during lockdowns. As Dr. Janet Lydecker, Ph.D. of POWER put it: “They’re stressed and lonely, and they have access to food, so we do see more binge-eating. And then they gain weight and are desperate to lose it, so we see more restrictive eating.”

The only upside of such an uptick in negative eating behaviors is that public awareness of male eating disorders is on the rise. We can only hope that this results in more men (and women) seeking clinical help for this often-insidious problem.