A flat, lean stomach, with defined, toned muscles, flawless, tanned skin, and a body fat percentage less than an average preschooler's age. Sounds like a familiar description of any given model in Cosmo, Mademoiselle, or Glamour. But in today's society, this description now applies to any Men's Health, GQ, or Details magazine you thumb through. These media images, once only aimed at women, are now increasingly present in male culture and are putting the pressure on men to look perfect. However, the negative results of these images that have been seen in women in the form of eating and image disorders are now beginning to increasingly spread throughout the male segment of the population. These results are harder to spot, though, "because men often attempt to control their weight more by over-exercising than under-eating, and may appear to be physically fine," according to Steve Bloomfield, the Eating Disorders Association spokesperson. Whether through steroids or eating disorders, males face a new threat in terms of body perfection.
             THE RISE IN MALE IMAGES IN THE MEDIA AND THE ADONIS COMPLEX
             Being male in America used to be easy. There was hardly a worry about weight, looks, or health. But over the last 20 to 30 years there has been cultural revolution happening that has made men flock to gyms, buy into diet fads, hire personal trainers, and spend more than double what women spend on exercise clothing, equipment, membership, and instruction. All are trying to attain the perfect body, as seen in so many media outlets, and are making it an obsession. Looking at a study done by Psychology Today on men's dissatisfaction with their body, this obsession proves evident. Of the men surveyed in 1997, 43 percent felt unhappy with their present appearance, compared to only 15 percent in 1972. This rise, according to three researchers from Harvard and Brown, is due to what they have labeled as the Adonis Co...