14 DAY TRIAL // A short while back, it was revealed that an increasing number of male athletes was starting to show the classic signs of eating disorders, prompted by their desire to be more competitive and faster than their direct rivals. A new poll comes now to indicate that, worryingly enough, it’s not only athletes who are affected by this, as also men all over, who are peer pressured into looking like Hollywood male stars.
British fashion website MyCelebrityFashion has carried out a poll among over 3,000 female respondents, aged 17 to 35, and the results it has got back are more than enough to place the current concept of “being fit” under a huge question mark. Men, it seems, are starting to feel more and more pressure from their peers to lose weight and look like renowned actor Leonardo DiCaprio, for instance, the poll has revealed.
When asked if they know a man showing signs of an eating disorder, of the 3,000 respondents, 31 percent have chosen the “Boyfriend / Fiancé / Husband” option, while 37 seven percent have said they have a friend who might be having eating issues. Oppositely, a mere 11 percent have stated that they know no such person who might be having an eating disorder. The same poll has shown that men are beginning to feel just as pressured as women are to fit a certain standard and this, quite understandably, is set by the glitzy Hollywood.
“This is a deeply concerning trend that needs addressing in order to make sure that people get the help and support that they need.” Managing Director at MyCelebrityFashion Jilly Tovey told the British media. At the same time, Jovey announced that the website would soon put a link to another website dealing specifically with counseling and advising people who suffer from eating disorders.
Another worrying finding of the same poll is that more and more people take up crash diets on a regular basis. Thus, 42 percent of respondents have admitted to embarking on four such diets last year, 13 percent have said they crash dieted over ten times in the same period, while more than two thirds have come clean about skipping meals on a daily basis in their attempt to lose weight. Contrastingly, just 23 percent of the respondents have revealed that they are happy with their current appearance.