Not only Woman Struggling with Body Image. Men Too!!!
Body shaming of woman is a topic that mentioned all the time, but how about men’s?
People always fight and protest for woman’s body shaming everywhere, such as in magazine, tv shows, etc. But seems like not a lot of people care and talk about same issues happens to men. Body shaming of men now actually being a thing, it is having a lot of impacts on mental health of men, especially young men. Men body image is always a problem that hidden inside but never get attention, but there are a few serious consequences occur due to body image. Eat disorders and depression are two main impacts from body image on young boy.
Eating disorders is a serious problem that can affects to body and mental of victims, and one of the reasons cause eating disorders is body image. First, let talk about “what is eating disorders?”. It is an illness that disturbance people eating behaviour and related to thought and emotion, people who have eating disorders tend to preoccupy with food and their body weight. Many young males have been suffering from eating disorders. The term “locker room talk” have been explored lately, it is the way boys and young men talk about each other .
“The ratio of boy has eating disorders is more than ever, closer to 1 in 4 boys”
Research also shows that boys who being teased tend to have issues like weight gain, binge eating, and extreme weight-control measures. About 29 percent of young male trying to lose weight, 29 percent are on diets, and 51 percent try to prevent weight gain.
A reported by Cruz, boys who try to lose weight or on diet are wants to be larger and more muscular. Boys often likely to doing unhealthy things, such as excessive amounts of exercise and abuse steroid. Another research shows by Cruz, the ratio of boy has eating disorders is more than ever, closer to 1 in 4 boys. It means that close to 25 percent boys around us are struggling with eating disorders.
Depression is also one of the impacts from body image. Social media pages are like our “portfolio online” that people can look at and judging by what we say and post. The beauty that fit to the appearance ideal is praised, and gained those “likes”, “comments”, “follows”. On the other hand, things that are different from the beauty ideal are receive insults, judgments and criticisms. That is one of the reasons created the insecure of young male. From there, many young boys growing up being insecure about how they look because they don’t fit the social beauty ideal. Since the past, male identity to guys is traditional masculine, a little skinny or belly is ok. But now a day, due to the develop of social media, men’s body standard is also changing.
The beauty that fit to the appearance ideal is praised, and gained those “likes”, “comments”, “follows”
As reported by “Rise of the ripped”, it’s mentioned that many men now are obsessed with being lean and muscular. They wanted that “Calvin Klein model’s body”, which called ‘spornosexuals’, defined as lean but broad shoulders, small hips in the coveted V-shape, ‘cut’ arms, abs, and no body hair. That type of body is advertised everywhere, from the Hollywood film to glossy magazines, billboard advertising, and social media posts. Aren’t we should teach our kids to love themselves more?
Aren’t we should teach our kids to love themselves more?
Why are we hailing and supporting things that make our children become inferior and lack of confidence. According to Coffey, she stated that one in five young males struggling with mental health illness without seeking for health. Coffey also interviewed 11 man, and 8 of them are not feel comfortable with how they look, and pressure to be muscular.
Impacts of men’s body image are serious issues that need to be noticed. It is can effects to young male in a long term. Most of boys are struggling with body image because they affair to share and talk about it. Adult should be more open to share with boys and try to understand from their perspective. Don’t let the beauty ideas of social kill our kids.
