Eating Disorders in Men and Boys
Society tends to depict eating disorders as “female” illnesses, but this couldn’t be further than the truth. Men and boys get eating disorders too, but stereotypes and media depictions continue to center girls and women. As a result, millions of men and boys go undiagnosed and suffer alone—many without even realizing they have a problem.
There are a lot of reasons why so many men and boys continue to slip through the cracks of eating disorder treatment: shame and stigma, differences in eating disorder symptoms, and lack of competent care, to name a few. Because of these barriers, it often takes getting extremely sick for a man or boy to finally get a diagnosis, meaning men and boys tend to enter treatment at a later stage and with more severe eating disorder symptoms.
The good news is that evidence-based treatment works just as well for men and boys as it does for women and girls. With increased awareness about what eating disorders in men and boys look like and how to best support them, all men and boys can get the treatment they need.
Facts and statistics about eating disorders in men and boys
- One third of all people reporting eating disorder behaviors are men or boys, including approximately a quarter of those with anorexia and bulimia, half of those with binge eating disorder, and a majority of those with ARFID.¹
- Eating disorders may present differently in men and boys, with a focus on muscularity rather than weight loss.²
- Men and boys represent 25% of individuals with anorexia and face a higher risk of dying. This is in part because they’re often diagnosed later—many people mistakenly assume men and boys don’t have eating disorders.³
- Men with eating disorders have a later onset of illness than women, generally later in their teenage years as opposed to adolescence or early-mid teenage years.⁴
- Men who were bullied in childhood often develop disordered eating and engage in compensatory exercise.⁵

Common questions about eating disorders in men and boys
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How Equip supports men and boys with eating disorders
We know that men and boys face specific challenges in eating disorder recovery, and our treatment model is designed to help them successfully overcome each. We have a diverse team of providers that includes both men and boys with lived experience of overcoming an eating disorder and family members who have supported their sons in eating disorder recovery. This mentorship component can be crucial to recovery.
Our providers have experience working with men and boys struggling with all types of eating disorders, and practice with a nuanced and informed approach to the specific ways eating disorders show up in men and boys. We also offer a support group specifically for caregivers of boys and men.
If you think you or a loved one may be struggling with an eating disorder, finding prompt treatment is vital.
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Proven results for
eating disorder patients
After completing treatment
improve to subclinical levels of eating disorder symptoms
improve to subclinical levels of anxiety
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Dive DeeperLearn about the nuances of eating disorders, treatment, life in recovery, and more on our blog.
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References
- Sim, Leslie. Our Eating Disorders Blind Spot: Sex and Ethnic/Racial Disparities in Help-Seeking for Eating Disorders. Mayo Clinic Proceedings. VOLUME 94, ISSUE 8, P1398-1400, AUGUST 2019
- Social and economic cost of eating disorders in the United States of America.” Report for the Strategic Training Initiative for the Prevention of Eating Disorders and the Academy for Eating Disorders, June 2020
- Becker, Anne E et al. “Ethnicity and differential access to care for eating disorder symptoms.” The International journal of eating disorders vol. 33,2 (2003): 205-12. doi:10.1002/eat.10129
- Goeree, Michelle Sovinsky, Ham, John C., & Iorio, Daniela. (2011). Race, Social Class, and Bulimia Nervosa. IZA Discussion Paper No. 5823.
- Robinson, Thomas N. et al. Ethnicity and body dissatisfaction: Are Hispanic and Asian girls at increased risk for eating disorders?, Journal of Adolescent Health, Volume 19, Issue 6, 1996, Pages 384-393, ISSN 1054-139X, https://doi.org/10.1016/S1054-139X(96)00087-0.
- Striegel-Moore, R H et al. “Recurrent binge eating in black American women.” Archives of family medicine vol. 9,1 (2000): 83-7. doi:10.1001/archfami.9.1.83
- Akoury, Liya M. et al. “Disordered Eating in Asian American Women: Sociocultural and Culture-Specific Predictors.” Front. Psychol., 04 September 2019 Sec. Eating Behavior Volume 10 - 2019 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01950
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