Can men have eating disorders?
Absolutely. The long-cited statistic with regard to men and eating disorders is that up to 10% of total eating disorders occur in men. However, this statistic could easily be too low, as the diagnostic criteria for eating disorders have been written largely with respect to women, and are only recently being reviewed. Amenorrhea, a long-held criterion for anorexia, is clearly a non-issue in men. In addition, the cultural ideal for men prizes muscularity over thinness. Thus, an anorexic man may be at a normal body weight and yet still be restricting food intake and putting his body through undo stress.