Male anorexia: causes, symptoms and particularities.

Less frequent, but these cases also exist.

We have all seen or heard of a case of anorexia at one time or another.

Almost always the image that comes to mind when talking about this disorder is that of an adolescent girl in the middle of puberty or a woman recently entered adulthood, with an obsessive fear and/or rejection of gaining or maintaining her current weight and a distorted image of her body, leading to an overvalued idea of her body. that lead to an overvalued idea of the need to lose weight.

However, although the female sex is the most common in clinical practice, the existence of a relevant sector of men suffering from this disorder should not be forgotten. We are therefore talking about the existence of male anorexia.

Facing the concept of anorexia: what are we talking about?

To understand this disorder it is necessary to visualize what we are talking about. Anorexia is one of the most common eating disorders, with a prevalence that has increased from about 0.5% to 5% of the world's population. prevalence has increased from around 0.5% to 5% of the world's population in just a few years, a percentage that continues to rise over the years. population in just a few years, a percentage that continues to rise over the years. Of this percentage, 90% of the cases are female (generally between 14-18 years of age), and 10% of them are male. It is the mental disorder with the highest risk of death in adolescence, being one of the few psychiatric disorders capable of causing the death of the affected person by itself.

The symptoms that lead to the suspicion and diagnosis of this disorder are the refusal to maintain a minimum body weight, fear of gaining weight, a distorted perception of one's own body image that induces weight loss through different strategies, either by cessation of intake, being this type of anorexia of restrictive type, or by compensation strategies (vomiting or exercise) in the case of purgative/compulsive anorexia. These phenomena have induced him/her to lose at least 15% of his/her body weight, with no feeling of illness on his/her part. In addition in the case of women there is also the presence of amenorrhea or lack of menstruation..

Epidemiology of male anorexia

As mentioned above, 10% of cases of anorexia occur in males. Within the male population suffering from anorexia, according to the studies carried out, there seem to be some groups at risk.

Homosexual population

Studies show that the gay population (as well as, although to a lesser extent, the bisexual population) are at a higher risk of suffering from anorexia, with a high proportion of cases in the gay population.There is a high proportion of cases in this sector of the population. One hypothesis as to the reason for this higher prevalence proposes that it is due to the existence of great emotional tension in the identity formation stage when assuming one's sexual orientation. This high tension and fear of rejection facilitates vulnerability to eating disorders by attempting to reduce them through fixation on one's self-image.

Social rejection

Another group with a high number of cases is bullying and social rejection.. Those individuals with a history of social rejection due to being overweight have a higher risk of developing male anorexia. As in the previous case, a great deal of stress is caused during identity formation resulting in vulnerability and a fixation with one's own body shape and the ideal of male beauty.

Elite athletes/models

A final high-risk group is that of child athletes, who, in the face of the establishment of a set of standards for their own body shape, are often the most vulnerable.who, faced with the establishment of too high performance expectations by adults, tend to have a lower tolerance to failure, trying to compensate for it with a lower intake and a higher level of physical exercise.

Distinctive features of male anorexia

Male anorexia, although it shares most of its characteristics with its female counterpart, has a number of peculiarities that make it more common.male anorexia, presents a number of peculiarities that are beginning to be explored.

Social perception of illness

One of the differences stems from the lack of social perception of this disease in men.. Given the high prevalence of eating disorders in the female sex, there is a social image that these disorders do not occur in men, that there is no male anorexia. While in the case of females anorexia has been established as a problem of high priority and importance, in the case of men this disorder has been frequently underestimated, receiving little attention and not being little researched.

Self-perception

Likewise, the gender role traditionally attributed to men implies that they should act as protectors, having to show strength and conceal their strength.having to show strength and hide weaknesses. As a general rule, this means that the individual does not actively seek help to deal with these problems, nor when expressing his emotions.

There is often a sense of weakness and social judgment that induces them to keep behaviors secret even when they become aware of the disease. Also, many of the acquired behaviors, such as excessive physical exercise, are seen by those suffering from the disease as something they could not live without, so that there is a high resistance to seek professional help. There is also a tendency to underestimate the effects and severity of the symptoms of the disorder and its effects.

Behavioral pattern

In the case of men, the typical behavioral pattern also changes. As with women, society and the prevailing canon of beauty in today's society puts constant pressure on body image. In the case of women, this canon induces them to be thin. In the case of men, however, in addition to thinness, there is also the need to maintain a toned and muscular body.

Thus, although in women the most frequent subtype of anorexia is restrictive anorexia, in which they reduce their intake and go on varied diets, in the case of male anorexia the subtype of restrictive anorexia is more frequent, in the case of male anorexia, the purgative/compulsive subtype is more frequent, in which attempts are made to reduce weight.In the case of male anorexia, the purgative/compulsive subtype is more frequent, in which an attempt is made to reduce weight by means of behaviors that compensate for caloric gain and also generate Muscle mass. Thus, it is more common for males to exercise compulsively.

Treatment of male anorexia

There are also some variations in the treatment of anorexia in men.

Male anorexia, as mentioned above, tends to be underestimated, tends to be underestimated and underdiagnosed, with the result that men with this disorder often do not receive treatment and support appropriate to their needs. and support appropriate to their needs. As a general rule, men tend to take longer to seek consultation due to this problem, which in principle makes it more difficult and slows down the overcoming of the disorder.

However, male anorexia has a slight advantage over its female counterpart. The response to treatment tends to be faster in males in the first phase of therapy, more behaviorally directed, due to an apparent better understanding and follow-up of direct treatments. It should be noted that this type of disorder in men often occurs in conjunction with an idea of personal weakness or extravagance. This means that a specific diagnosis often brings some relief, given the better understanding of what is happening to them. As a result, they have a better reaction.

The treatment of this disorder is a complex phenomenon. The basic objectives of the treatment would be the restoration of weight to a healthy level, the treatment of physical and psychological complications, the improvement of motivation and eating patterns, and the modification of the perception of body image, adjusting it to reality. In this sense common treatments are systematic desensitization, exposure with response prevention and body image modification. and body image modification. Likewise, the improvement of the support network and relapse prevention are also proposed.

In conclusion, it should be noted that in both males and females anorexia nervosa is a serious disorder that can lead to the patient's death and should be treated with the highest priority, seriousness and respect.

Bibliographic references:

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