Female Eating Disorders Research Paper

Mary Briody Mahowald recognizes that many feminists believe that eating disorders among women stems from a "rebellion against patriarchy through rejection of one's own sexuality" ( Mahowald, 299). However, she also points out theories that focus more on sexism and class discrimination.

Many people are unaware of the background of eating disorders. Women are more likely than men to develop an eating disorder and they usually develop in childhood before the age of 20 (Ross-Flanigan 1). Women as well as men can develop an eating disorder; it is just more likely for a woman to develop one. Eating disorders are usually developed in adolescent or childhood years when a person is influenced the most. Also “Eating disorders are psychological conditions that involve overeating, voluntary starvation, or both. Anorexia nervosa, anorexic bulimia, and binge eating are the most well-known types of eating disorders” (Ross-Flanigan 1). Many people assume that an eating disorder is when a person staves themselves; they do not realize that it can involve overeating as well. Some eating disorders also involve purging, but not all. People with an eating disorder fear gaining weight even when they are severely underweight. They do not lack an appetite (Ross-Flanigan 1). These people are

At present, these eating disorders have an effect on roughly 25 million Americans, of which almost 25% are of the male gender. Out of all the psychological disorders, anorexia has the highest mortality rate. The whys and wherefores include malnourishment, substance abuse and reckless suicides. Eating disorders can happen to anyone; no matter whether they’re male or female, rich or poor, old or young. According to many researchers, eating disorders are caused by more than just food. There are numerous

It was originally considered that, like bulimia nervosa and anorexia nervosa, binge-eating disorders occurred in females at a rate of 10 to 1 (Striegel-Moore and Franko, 2003). But studies have shown that a significant portion of men have binge-eating disorder as well ( Early trials showed that although the samples were not separated for race or gender, it became evident that binge-eating disorder affected both differing races and genders in similar ways. These studies lead to the first “large-scale surveys to examine eating disorders in male and non-White populations” (Striegel-Moore and Franko, 2003, p. S22). Studies have shown that “approximately 29% of subjects in weight control programs met the criteria for [binge-eating disorder],” (Spitzer, Yanovski, Wadden, Wing, Marcus. Stunkard, Devlin, Mitchell, Hasin, & Horne, 1992, p. 137). Possible risk factors for binge-eating disorder are still largely unknown at this time (Striegel-Moore and Franko, 2003), although some similarities amongst clients have been identified. These include: preoccupation with body image and weight, impairment in social functioning, significant time of adult life spent dieting, and a history of mental health concerns including alcoholism, depression, and anxiety (Spitzer et al., 1992).

Eating disorders have traditionally been a “woman’s problem.” It has not been until recently that we have recognized the fact that males are suffering from these deadly disorders as well. It has been generally agreed upon that anywhere from five to 15 percent of all reported cases of eating disorders are attributed to men. This paper will examine its incidence in males and the physical and psychological aspects associated with having an eating disorder.

Eating disorders are largely considered to be a "female disease". Statistics seem to validate this perception – of the estimated five million-plus adults in the United States who have an eating disorder, only ten percent are thought to be male ((1)). Many professionals, however, hold the opinion that these numbers are incorrect – it is impossible to base the statistics on anything other than the number of adults diagnosed with eating disorders, and men are much less likely than women to seek help for such a problem ((2)). This means that the male population probably suffers more from eating disorders than the numbers show.

In longing to reach the norm many people fall victim to these detrimental illnesses. Sadly, women are more subject to these eating disorders than men, the number of men suffering from eating disorders is on the rise. Our culture puts pressure on each of its inhabitants to attain this ideal body type that is unrealistic for most people. The images that pollute television and magazines make us all feel inadequate if we don't meet the credentials of slenderness; therefore, continuing the role of our society in the development of eating disorders.

As expected, there are females in this group. But there are males too and they’re of all ages- children, teenagers, working professionals, middle-aged people and octogenarians. Eating disorders are more common than we think and people who have them should not feel alone or ashamed to admit

These ideas have not just been secluded to magazines but medical journals as well, many recent scholarly articles have been written on this growing topic. One scholarly article focusing on the lack knowledge and treatments available to men was written by medical experts Jane Dalgliesh and Katherine Nutt. The two published their article, “Treating men with eating disorder in the NHS” in the May 2013 issue of Nursing Standard. Dalgliesh and Nutt emphasize that fact that eating disorders are still focused on females when diagnosing. Specific medical symptoms like “amenorrhea” (the absence of menstrual periods) it harder to confirm that a male has an eating disorder and the medical field needs to update what they look for (Dalgliesh). In addition to mentioning the issues arising from the currently set and used symptoms for diagnosing, the authors criticize the field when they move on to the treatments for patients, or the lack thereof. Dalgliesh and Nutt confirm that some facilities refuse to house male patients because lack of resources and preparedness which should never be a reason to turn someone in need

A main cultural implication for an eating disorder is gender. Even though men can still have eating disorders, they are more likely to happen to women, or young girls. This is due to or societal views. The prevalence of anorexia nervosa is most common among Caucasian females. In our society, we view females a certain way and hold our standards very higher. This makes females feel self-conscious about themselves and their bodies. With Joan, she often struggled to be what everyone else wanted her to be. Women in different cultures do not have to deal with these views on social media. According to our textbook, females have a .9% prevalence rate for anorexia nervosa where males only have a 0.3. It also says in our textbook that Caucasian males have preferred females with skinnier bodies then African American males. This view makes females want to be thinner and causes them to eat less or

There was a study done by Woodside et al. (2001) who compared men with an eating disorder and to men who didn’t. What they found were men with eating disorders showed great differences from men without. “Men with eating disorders tend to have more psychiatric disorders and seem to suffer from greater life dissatisfaction than men without eating disorders,” (Woodside et al., 573, 2001). Other common reasons why men tend to fall into eating disordered behavior would be past weight problems, sexual abuse and trauma, depression, exercise and body image, and pressure from the media.

How do eating disorders affect men? Though most people view eating disorders as women’s diseases, men can suffer from them too. This question is important because eating disorders seem to be gender biased, and not a lot of thought or research has been put towards men with eating disorders. The three major eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder. Around 30 million people will suffer from one of these three diseases over their lifetime. Men make up 10 million of these, a significant portion, but people still see eating disorders as affecting mostly women. Part of this reason, though, is that eating disorders are seen as for women only, so some men who have an eating disorder will not seek treatment

More women worry about their weight than men. It is a fact that among the adults, 38% of the women and 24% of the men were trying to lose weight. When you hear about Anorexia and Bulimia most people think of females. What people do not know is tons of males suffer from the same problem. I believe males should be more looked upon when it comes to this subject. Gymnasts, runners, body builders, rowers, wrestlers, racers, dancers, and swimmers are especially helpless against dietary problems on the grounds that their games require weight limitation. Approximately 10% of eating disordered individuals coming to the attention of mental health professionals were male, and Eating disorders do not discriminate on the basis of gender. Men can and do develop eating disorders.

There is something obviously wrong with these statistics. Women who subject themselves to these circumstances are fighting against their own body make-ups in order to fulfill the standards put out by the media. In order to change these staggering statistics in the future, we must examine what the media does to make girls and women obtain eating disorders.

habit. Eating disorders can affect both males and females, but this researcher found that it affects