Men begin to develop their body image when they are still children, based on parental cues. When they begin attending school, their body image develops further. The media also influences the development of the body image men have. Under ideal circumstances, men develop realistic body images. They understand what a healthy body looks like and have realistic expectations about what they should weigh.
Unfortunately, if men grow up with criticisms about their appearance, their body image may suffer. Men that are regularly exposed to unrealistic images in the media may also experience a poor body image. Even little boys that play with GI Joe figures may find their body image suffers; a GI Joe toy, if extrapolated into human size, would be taller than the average man and have bigger biceps than any body builder. This gives boys an unrealistic ideal to live up to.
Problems With The Body Image Men Have Today
A counselor at the Milwaukee School of Engineering reports that over the past decade, male college students have expressed increasing degrees of dissatisfaction with their bodies. Men that regularly read fitness magazines express greater dissatisfaction than those that don’t read such magazines. Male body image suffers when men are exposed to images of unrealistic male bodies."
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