title: Sex differences in psychosocial impairment associated with eating-disordered behavior: what if there aren't any?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We sought to test the hypothesis that eating-disordered behavior (EDB) is associated with comparable levels of impairment in psychosocial functioning in men and women.
  
  
  METHODS
  Postal questionnaires that assessed EDB (binge eating, purging, extreme dietary restriction, excessive exercise and weight/shape overvaluation) and psychosocial impairment (general psychological distress, life satisfaction and social support) were completed by a general population sample of men (n=957) and women (n=1899).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Binge eating, purging and overvaluation were associated with comparable levels of psychosocial impairment for both men and women and this was the case for each of the three measures of psychosocial functioning employed. Extreme dietary restriction was associated with greater psychosocial impairment in women than in men, whereas excessive exercise was not associated with psychosocial impairment in either women or men.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There appear to be few differences between men and women in terms of psychosocial impairment associated with EDB. It may no longer be appropriate to base the development of eating disorder prevention programs on the premise that EDB is primarily a problem of women. Health professionals may be more likely to see more men with EDB in their practices in the future.
authors.affiliation: Research School of Psychology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia. Electronic address: Caroline.Bentley@anu.edu.au.
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bentley
authors.affiliation: Research School of Psychology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia; Department of Psychology, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Mond
authors.affiliation: School of Sociology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia; Australian Demographic & Social Research Institute, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.
authors.forename: Bryan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rodgers
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002032:Bulimia / Q000523:psychology; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D012737:Sex Factors; D012944:Social Support; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Eating-disordered behavior; Prevention; Psychosocial functioning; Sex differences