Tag Archives: body image

Brian Cuban to Break Silence on Eating Disorders in Men

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Eating disorders among boys and men have come to be known as a silent epidemic. While an estimated 10 million American men will struggle with a clinically significant eating disorder at some point in their lives, the issue isn’t widely addressed.

Penn State alum and best-selling author Brian Cuban is looking to change that. As part of UHS’s Love Your Body Week (October 27-31), Cuban will speak about his successful recovery from depression, 27 years of eating disorders, body dysmorphic disorder, and drug addiction. An advocate for mental health awareness, Cuban seeks to break the male eating disorder stigma and reassure others that recovery is possible.

The event is free of charge and will be held Monday 10/27 at 7 pm in the HUB Auditorium.

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Researchers now studying link between social media and poor body image

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Could Facebook be serving up a side of low self-esteem along with the latest news and gossip? A recent study suggests that the more time young women spend on Facebook, the more likely they are to suffer from poor body image.

Researchers at the University of Strathclyde, Ohio University, and University of Iowa surveyed 881 female college students about their Facebook use, eating habits, and body image. On average, women in the study spent almost an hour and a half per day browsing their news feeds and looking at photos. Women who spent more time on the site, especially those wanting to lose weight, were more likely to compare their bodies to those of peers, as well as feel bad about their bodies.

While these findings don’t prove that Facebook and other social media sites cause poor body image, they’re still a cause for concern—body dissatisfaction is a strong risk factor for dieting and eating disorders.

Up to this point, most criticism has targeted mass media and the fashion industry’s use of super-thin models and photo retouching techniques. This study is among the first to examine the effects of social media on body image.

Social media users tend to present the best “version” of themselves, even going so far as to retouch photos.  These idealized images may affect women even more than mass media images since they’re supposedly more realistic coming from friends and peers.

Read more here and be sure to let us know what you think in the comments.

#LoveYourBody Week Kicks Off with Mirrorless Fitness Classes

On Campus,

If you’ve been to a class in the White Building this week, you may have noticed something different – the mirrors have been covered!

In honor of #loveyourbody week, the mirrors will be covered this week so that students can focus less on how their body looks and more on how their body feels.mirrorless fitness class

Students are also encouraged to write on the mirrors what they love about their body.

Have you see the covered mirrors yet?  Feel free to leave your words of inspiration here, or follow us on Instagram (@psu_health), Twitter (@healthpennstate) or Facebook (Healthy Penn State) for more inspiration and other #loveyourbody week events.