[Male anorexia and bigorexia : barriers to detection and treatment].

Abstract

Eating disorders (ED) are less frequently observed and reported in men than in women, giving rise to a common belief that ED, particularly anorexia nervosa, are exclusively women's diseases. This misconception has led to a significant delay in research on ED in men, resulting in a lack of recognition of symptoms specific to male presentations, a lack of screening and diagnostic tools, and a lack of appropriate treatments and research on their efficacy. Furthermore, diagnostic clarification is needed to distinguish (or incorporate) the symptoms of bigorexia (muscle dysmorphia), which is currently classified under obsessive-compulsive and related disorders rather than ED.