Male Athletes and Eating Disorders

Heterosexual males with eating disorders tend to be performance-focused.  In other words, their disordered eating, purging, and exercise patterns are geared to enhance their physical prowess, as evidenced by athletic performance.  Anorexic and bulimic males often develop eating disorders in connection with athletic performance.  In addition, athletic teams and coaches frequently instill unhealthy eating and exercise habits as components of physical conditioning.  Binge-eating disorder in males has also been linked with anxiety over physical competitiveness.  In addition, some male athletes in certain sports, such as football, are encouraged to overeat.

Anorexic and bulimic males often develop eating disorders in connection with athletic performance.  They focus on their percentage of body fat and severely restrict their diets (or purge certain foods) based on which foods they believe will and won’t give them a competitive edge.  These men develop food phobias and extreme eating, purging, and exercise schedules as a means to improve their athletic performance.  The athletes who are most vulnerable to these behaviors are those that participate in sports which pay particular attention to body weight.  Examples include crew, boxing, wrestling, gymnastics, running, body building, horse racing, dancing, and swimming.

Males who are fixated on athletic performance to this extreme may also engage in other drastic behaviors such as steroid use and compulsive exercise.  A study conducted in 1995 (Blouin & Goldfield) found that eating disorders and the associated attitudes of perfectionism and low self-esteem are effective predictors of steroid use in bodybuilders.

Athletic teams and coaches often instill unhealthy eating and exercise habits as components of physical conditioning.  Male athletes are required to sacrifice properly caring for their bodies in favor of the short-term goals of the team or team leadership.  Ironically, these attitudes can undermine health and athletic performance in the long run.  High school and college wrestlers are notorious for participating in “weight-cutting” prior to competition.  Weight cutting usually involves the use of laxatives, severe diet restriction, excessive exercise and perspiration, and other drastic measures which cause wrestlers to lose 4 to 10 pounds within a couple of days.  Wrestlers have reported engaging in this process as often as 10 times in a season.  

Testosterone, the key hormone in male physical build, may also play a role in the origins of eating disorders.  A study conducted in 1986 (Andersen and Mickalide) indicated that men with anorexia may have persistent or pre-existing problems with producing testosterone. 

According to a 2007 study by Harvard, up to 40% of binge eaters are male.  A 1999 study of NCAA athletes found that male athletes are more likely than female athletes to overeat on a daily basis. Binge-eating has recently been recognized as the most prevalent eating disorder in the United States.  Binge eating among males is condoned by popular culture, but it is not condoned for females.  Consuming large amounts of food has a long tradition in American society as a masculine activity; it has never been positively associated with females.  Research links male binge eating with low self-esteem, especially relating to physical competitiveness and sexual attractiveness. Binge-eating is also strongly linked obesity and with genetics.

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REFERENCES AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Andersen et al. Osteoporosis and osteopenia in men with eating disorders. The Lancet, Vol. 355; June 3, 2000: pp: 1967-1968

Blouin, AG, & Goldfield, GS. (1995) Body Image and Steroid Use in Male Bodybuilders.  International Journal of Eating Disorders. 1995 Sep;18(2):159-65.

Michigan State University (2008, March 4). Testosterone Could Guard Against Eating Disorders. ScienceDaily. Retrieved August 15, 2008, from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080303164518.ht

National Collegiate Athletic Association. (1999) Athletes and Eating Disorders:  The National Collegiate Athletic Association Study.  Retrieved on August 15, 2008 from http://www.csmfoundation.org/NCAA_Study.pdf