Weight, fitness and body image were once seen very much as female preoccupations. Pressure to be slim or obtain unrealistic body shapes has driven a huge diet and wellness industry aimed at women, and there’s no doubt that young women can still feel angry and frustrated or anxious and insecure about the level of scrutiny their shape and size receive.
However, there has been a marked cultural shift over the last decade that has gathered pace in recent years, and now men of all ages are reporting that they feel under pressure to conform to a certain type of physique.
Body ideals and the risks of obesity in men
While this new male body ideal doesn’t yet carry the same historic weight of sexism and exploitation that can affect women, it can still be a confusing and psychologically damaging issue. According to the latest research, 68.6 per cent of men in the UK are overweight or obese, compared to 59 per cent of women.
For men, obesity heightens the risk of developing serious health conditions including diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and various types of cancer. A less discussed health problem that is associated with male obesity is erectile dysfunction (ED). This is the inability to get an erection long enough for a satisfactory sexual experience.
ED can be caused by the extra inflammation that is found in the bodies of obese men, and it can also be a result of the previously mentioned obesity-related health conditions.
It’s always important to visit the doctor if you experience persistent ED because it could be a sign of a serious underlying condition. If these are ruled out, you may be prescribed an oral medication or a topical treatment such as Eroxon Stimgel, designed for external use.
At the same time as the concerns about the overweight and obese mount, more men are suffering psychological trauma or harming themselves through extreme diets, punishing fitness routines, or the use of anabolic steroids to achieve a certain body shape.
The body image conundrum
So where should the lines be drawn between being unhealthy and overweight, having an acceptable ‘dad bod’, and a ripped and lean physique? This is a complex topic, and there are probably no easy answers.
As recently as 2016, the dad bod ( a slightly overweight but also reasonably well-proportioned male physique) was fashionable and acceptable, and celebrities such as Chris Pratt were comfortable being photographed in this shape.
However, over the past few years, men’s health magazines have switched to features about how to get rid of a dad bod and get ripped and lean, or unrealistically bulky and muscular. Is this helping men to improve their health and ward off disease, or is it fuelling the multi-billion pound diet and fitness juggernaut that had traditionally preyed on female insecurities?
The dark side of fitness goals
Some men are turning to the use of dangerous anabolic steroids as a shortcut to achieving this fashionable aesthetic of washboard stomachs and broad shoulders. These can have dangerous side effects, such as high blood pressure, mental and emotional disorders, an increased risk of stroke and heart attacks, seizures, liver disorders, and hormone imbalance.
Some men are also resorting to risky diets, with inadvisable use of supplements, severe calorie restriction, laxatives, caffeine overdose, and other misuse of prescription drugs. There has also been a sharp rise in the number of men diagnosed with eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia in the past ten years.
Young men are also increasingly prone to body dysmorphia, which is a disproportionate obsession with appearance or a specific body part, that the person perceives as flawed. Sufferers can have a worse quality of life and be prone to other mental health issues such as anxiety, low self-esteem and depression.
A balanced perspective
It can take a good deal of mental strength for younger men to resist the bombardment of ideal body images on TV, social media, film and so on. It may be driven by a loss of traditional masculine identity, or the relentless marketing machine of the diet industry, or perhaps a combination of factors.
However, there’s no doubt that being reasonably fit and not overweight is good for our long-term health. It may be that the key is to focus on what’s best for your own physique, interests and capabilities, and experience the contentment of self-acceptance.
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