What parents need to know about ‘Bigorexia’

Societies often establish rigid beauty standards, making many individuals question their appearance and feel pressured to alter it to fit societal norms.

Although body image concerns were once primarily associated with women, they now affect men just as significantly.

One such issue is bigorexia, also known as muscular dysmorphia, which impacts hundreds of thousands of men. Similar to anorexia, it involves an obsessive focus on body image—but instead of striving for extreme thinness, individuals with bigorexia are fixated on gaining muscle mass, constantly feeling they aren’t muscular enough.

However, Dr. Jason Nagata from the UCSF Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine points out that, unlike anorexia, which is often noticeable to parents or doctors, muscle-focused disordered eating can be disguised as “healthy habits,” making it harder to detect.

The Role of Social Media
Experts suggest that the rise of social media influencers promoting unattainable, hyper-masculine physiques has contributed to this disorder. Many men feel dissatisfied with their bodies, striving for the perfection they see in magazines and online.

Kara Becker, a certified eating disorder therapist and director at Newport Healthcare, describes bigorexia as a psychological condition and a type of body dysmorphic disorder, where individuals develop a distorted self-image, fixating specifically on muscle size and physical appearance.

Clinical psychologist Amy Gooding explains that people with bigorexia often perceive themselves as smaller or less muscular than they actually are. This distorted belief can lead to harmful behaviors, such as compulsive exercise and strict dieting to achieve extreme leanness.

The term muscular dysmorphia was first introduced in 1997. While there is still much to learn about its causes and treatment, experts debate whether it should be classified as an eating disorder, a behavioral addiction, or a form of body dysmorphic disorder.

Potential risk factors include a history of bullying, loneliness, unhealthy masculinity ideals, low self-esteem, and the pervasive influence of social media.

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