“20% of Anorexics are Men” is the to-the-point title of an article in the September issue of
GQ, which profiles male anorexics and highlights some of their difficulties. Some takeaways:
- The number of male anorexics is rising quickly. One contribution may be the increased focus on hard-to-attain physical attributes like the six-pack
- Risk factors include being overweight as a youth and getting teased for it; a family history of eating disorders or obesity; being gay; and having participated in a sport that emphasizes speed or weight control (distance running, wrestling, etc.).
- Anorexia has the highest mortality rate of any mental illness--between 5 and 10 percent--a result of both suicide and health complications. It lasts longer in men (8 years) than women, in part because men are likely to wait longer to get treated.
- Even with recovery, there are likely to be health complications which can affect life expectancy. The prolonged deprivation can weaken the heart muscles, the bones, and cause cognitive damage which may lead to medical issues long after treatment is completed.
The photos that accompany the article are arresting and disturbing, as are the sad stories of the suffering men profiled. Included are one man on the verge of death, so emaciated that the fat from the pads on his ear that seal his Eustachian tube is gone, leading him to hear a constant rushing of air; and a subclinical anorexic, whose weight is low but not dangerously so, but who tightly controls his exercise and food intake so as to maintain it. What is striking in all of these stories is the amount of focus and energy on food and exercise, and the isolation that accompanies it. Either because of the time and energy devoted to losing or maintaining weight or the need to hide the extent of restriction from others, the men profiled appear lonely, virtually friendless and withdrawn from others. It is truly a sad and moving article.
