Boys and Body Image
By Juleen K. Buser, Ph.D., and Kimberly Hoff | May 2023
15-year-old Hank has always been thin and a little smaller than other boys his age. He seems healthy, has friends and does well in school. After winter break, he comes back to school with a new focus – on working out. He talks constantly about lifting weights, how he’s going to get big and strong. He’s started eating large lunches and drinking protein shakes. No one seems concerned by his new behavior. After all, boys want to grow up big and strong, right? It’s what they hear from the time they are little. There’s nothing to worry about here. Or is there?
When we hear the words “eating disorder” and “body image,” it’s generally girls who come to mind, not boys. We think about this country’s pervasive diet culture, the never-ending quest to be thin and the social media posts and ads targeted to girls and woman promoting unrealistic body images. We may not think about are the pressures and images boys and men face to be big, with well-defined muscles. Male students, however, are faced with these issues every day, and their disordered eating and behaviors can easily be overlooked.
School counselors need to be aware of the overall reality of male body image and disordered eating. Without this knowledge, we may overlook symptoms and fail to identify male students struggling with disordered eating symptoms or body dissatisfaction. We may also miss an opportunity to design a prevention program or intervene with individual students.
What is different?
In general, males seem to struggle with body image and disordered eating concerns centered on a quest for muscles, with behaviors that promote certain types of weight gain.
The number of adolescent males struggling with muscularity-focused disordered eating and body image issues is troubling. At follow-up in young adulthood, the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health found that almost 22 percent of males in the study reported having had disordered eating patterns linked with a quest for muscularity. Such patterns included intentionally eating higher amounts or different types of foods and using supplements and steroids.
Instead of talking about dieting and losing weight, males may talk about going to the gym, eating more protein and/or trying to build muscles. With the exception of steroid use, many of these attitudes and behaviors are socially acceptable. Although dieting is also socially acceptable in many ways, cultural awareness is growing about the triggering nature of language around dieting and weight loss. The same degree of progress hasn’t been made about the detrimental nature of language related to increasing muscularity.
A student, for example, who talks about going to the gym more to lift weights or shares he is using protein powder at meals to build muscles may not be viewed as saying or doing anything overtly concerning. Involvement in certain sports, such as wrestling or gymnastics, may add pressure to gain muscle. And males who identify as BIPOC or LGBTQ may be at increased risk for body image issues and disordered eating.
It’s vital to identify male students struggling with body image and disordered eating. Following are some potential warning signs:
Prevention and Intervention
Prevention programs designed specifically for male body image and disordered eating concerns are rare, but a few are available. The Body Project: More Than Muscles, by the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), is an evidence-based workshop geared toward male-identified students that aims to promote a healthy, realistic body ideal. The program is offered over two sessions, each lasting two hours. NEDA offers trainings in this curriculum on an ongoing basis. NEDA also offers a curriculum for males who identify as LGBTQ, called The PRIDE Body Project.
School counselors can take several steps when ascertaining the presence and intensity of disordered eating symptoms among male students:
Based on type and severity of symptoms, meeting with the student’s parents/guardians may be necessary. Be ready to offer referrals for individual counseling outside of school and/or a medical assessment by a trained professional.
The quest to build muscles is a struggle many male students experience. Such a quest can lead to body dissatisfaction and disordered eating practices. Knowledge about the specific warning signs of males seeking a muscular body ideal is vital for school counselors. With this awareness, you can help identify struggling students, deliver appropriate prevention programs and facilitate external treatment options when needed.
Juleen K. Buser, Ph.D., is a professor at Rider University. Kimberly R. Hoff is a graduate student at Rider University.
When we hear the words “eating disorder” and “body image,” it’s generally girls who come to mind, not boys. We think about this country’s pervasive diet culture, the never-ending quest to be thin and the social media posts and ads targeted to girls and woman promoting unrealistic body images. We may not think about are the pressures and images boys and men face to be big, with well-defined muscles. Male students, however, are faced with these issues every day, and their disordered eating and behaviors can easily be overlooked.
School counselors need to be aware of the overall reality of male body image and disordered eating. Without this knowledge, we may overlook symptoms and fail to identify male students struggling with disordered eating symptoms or body dissatisfaction. We may also miss an opportunity to design a prevention program or intervene with individual students.
What is different?
In general, males seem to struggle with body image and disordered eating concerns centered on a quest for muscles, with behaviors that promote certain types of weight gain.
The number of adolescent males struggling with muscularity-focused disordered eating and body image issues is troubling. At follow-up in young adulthood, the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health found that almost 22 percent of males in the study reported having had disordered eating patterns linked with a quest for muscularity. Such patterns included intentionally eating higher amounts or different types of foods and using supplements and steroids.
Instead of talking about dieting and losing weight, males may talk about going to the gym, eating more protein and/or trying to build muscles. With the exception of steroid use, many of these attitudes and behaviors are socially acceptable. Although dieting is also socially acceptable in many ways, cultural awareness is growing about the triggering nature of language around dieting and weight loss. The same degree of progress hasn’t been made about the detrimental nature of language related to increasing muscularity.
A student, for example, who talks about going to the gym more to lift weights or shares he is using protein powder at meals to build muscles may not be viewed as saying or doing anything overtly concerning. Involvement in certain sports, such as wrestling or gymnastics, may add pressure to gain muscle. And males who identify as BIPOC or LGBTQ may be at increased risk for body image issues and disordered eating.
It’s vital to identify male students struggling with body image and disordered eating. Following are some potential warning signs:
- Commenting about increasing muscles, wanting to look more muscular, working out to gain weight for increased muscularity
- Focusing on being small or underweight
- Using substances to increase muscle mass, such as supplements, steroids and/or nutritional powders
- Eating or avoiding certain foods to gain muscularity
- Eating beyond a feeling of fullness with the aim of weight gain
- Focusing on the nutritional content of foods and avoiding or eating certain foods based on that concern
- Following self-imposed food rules and/or concern with control over food, anxiety or stress related to deviating from self-imposed food rules
Prevention and Intervention
Prevention programs designed specifically for male body image and disordered eating concerns are rare, but a few are available. The Body Project: More Than Muscles, by the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), is an evidence-based workshop geared toward male-identified students that aims to promote a healthy, realistic body ideal. The program is offered over two sessions, each lasting two hours. NEDA offers trainings in this curriculum on an ongoing basis. NEDA also offers a curriculum for males who identify as LGBTQ, called The PRIDE Body Project.
School counselors can take several steps when ascertaining the presence and intensity of disordered eating symptoms among male students:
- make detailed observations
- convey a concern for students’ well-being and health
- work to build trust with them
- meet with them to talk about their goals
- advocate for them to seek help
Based on type and severity of symptoms, meeting with the student’s parents/guardians may be necessary. Be ready to offer referrals for individual counseling outside of school and/or a medical assessment by a trained professional.
The quest to build muscles is a struggle many male students experience. Such a quest can lead to body dissatisfaction and disordered eating practices. Knowledge about the specific warning signs of males seeking a muscular body ideal is vital for school counselors. With this awareness, you can help identify struggling students, deliver appropriate prevention programs and facilitate external treatment options when needed.
Juleen K. Buser, Ph.D., is a professor at Rider University. Kimberly R. Hoff is a graduate student at Rider University.