Males at Risk for Eating Disorders

By Mary Anne Morrow, Remuda Ranch Programs for Eating and Anxiety Disorders

 PHOENIX, July 2 - As many as five to ten million males in the U.S. struggle
quietly with an eating disorder because they're ashamed to admit they have the illness, reports Remuda Ranch Programs for Eating and Anxiety Disorders
(www.remudaranch.com). Healthcare professionals, family members and close friends often are unaware of the high-risk behaviors in males that may signify an eating disorder. Therefore, effective intervention is often not
available to the male population.

"It is a reality that boys and men do have eating disorders and ignoring the
problem may only allow it to get to a life threatening state," said Sam
Lample, therapist and assistant clinical director of ReddStone, a Remuda Program for Boys.  "Early and proper diagnosis from healthcare providers could be a powerful force in preventing male eating disorders from becoming as common as they have become in females."

Reddstone (www.remudaranch.com/reddstone/index.php) is an inpatient program
that treats boys 17 and under who are struggling with anorexia, bulimia, and binge-eating disorder.   

Research suggests that at least 1 in 4 pre-teen cases of anorexia are male.
There are thousands of males with eating disorders in our society.
Historically, it was thought that the ratio of boys to girls with eating
disorders was 1:10, but more recent research indicates that it may be closer
to 1:3.

"Over the past 10 years, the male body has come under much scrutiny, much
like the female body has for decades," adds Lample.  "Boys see images in the
media and are inundated with the message that they need to look that way or
they're inadequate."

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