Men Need Nourishment Too
Today is the last day of Men’s Health Week, so I wanted to post about men’s nutrition. Despite the stereotype that eating disorders only occur in women, about one in three people struggling with an eating disorder is male, and subclinical disordered eating behaviors (including binge eating, purging, laxative abuse, and fasting for weight loss) are nearly as common among men as they are among women. Men just don’t talk about it much. And, they tend to struggle longer before they reach out for help.
It’s also well known that eating disorders are incredibly prevalent in men’s sports such as wrestling, cross country/track, swimming and diving, and body building. In fact, males are more likely to engage in disordered eating behaviors to develop greater muscularity. Similar to girls and women receiving the message that “thin” is ideal, men receive messaging from a young age that the “ideal” male body is muscular.
A recent study showed that up to 60% of boys living in the U.S. report purposely manipulating their diet to increase their muscularity. Further, 90% of college-aged American males report a desire for greater muscularity. And, boys as young as 6 prefer muscular body types.
That being said, many men have entered our practice feeling confused and overwhelmed with how to put together a nutritious meal that meets their body’s needs or tends to a recently diagnosed medical diagnosis such as diabetes or IBS.
With these things in mind, are you or a male in your life struggling to find balance in your meals or don’t know what to eat or how much? Do you worry about the food choices you are making or find yourself obsessing over how your body looks? If so, please check out the contact page on the website and let us help you find the right answers for you!
Written by Trinny Duncan, Student Intern and Peggy Pratt, PhD, RDN, LDN, CEDS-C
Sources: https://www.wpa.org.uk/health-wellbeing/articles/nutrients-for-men , Gorrell, S., & Murray, S. B. (2019). Eating Disorders in Males. Child and adolescent psychiatric clinics of North America, 28(4), 641–651, McLean, S. and Wertheim, E. (2018). Preferences for being muscular and thin in 6-year-old boys. Body Image, 26, 98-102.