Ethnicity and Spirituality as Risk Factors for Eating Disorder Symptomatology in Men

Abstract

The present study investigated ethnicity, spirituality, body shame, body mass index (BMI) and age as risk factors for eating disorder symptomatology in men. A representative nonclinical sample of Canadian men (N = 603) was surveyed. Body shame and BMI explained a portion of the variance in eating disorder symptomatology. Ethnicity was indirectly related to eating disorder symptomatology through spirituality, body shame and BMI. Aboriginal men had lower spirituality and Asian men had greater body shame. Older men were at greater risk for eating disorder symptomatology by virtue of higher BMIs and body shame. These findings have implications for assessing men’s health risk factors and developing interventions addressing gender, including beliefs about health and masculinity, and initiatives to promote health.