Study: Gay Men Compete to Be Thin

MODEL CITIZENS X390 (RYAN PFLUGER) | ADVOCATE.COM

Competition and not personal desires are what drive women and gay men to lose weight, according to a new study published in the Journal of Evolution and Human Behavior.

The study found a natural competitive instinct among individuals of both groups to compare themselves to others who are seen as more successful. The study did not find the same results among lesbian women or heterosexual men.

Norman Li of Singapore Management University, who conducted the study, said the behavior is evolutionary. People in the West tend to gain weight as they age, therefore equating thinness with youth, he said, according to New Scientist magazine.

The constantly piqued competitive nature (thanks to an ever-present media saturated with images of thin models) can lead to psychological issues such as eating disorders, depression, and workaholism.

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Reader Comments

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Name: Dixon Butts
Date posted: 11/17/2010 8:59:38 PM
Hometown: Cumming, GA

Comment:
Ooh! I love sausage. LOL
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Name: Johnny
Date posted: 9/7/2010 12:51:47 PM
Hometown: New Orleans

Comment:
All these boys need is a good meal and I mean a good meal. Red Beans and Rice with Sausage, and Bread Puddin, and a Po-Boy for a snack. Yeah you right!
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Name: Shane
Date posted: 9/6/2010 5:41:47 AM
Hometown: Redondo Beach CA

Comment:
Many men gay and straight will get and stay thin and in shapeto get laid. I find that the most attractive men are the ones who have high self esteem and are willing to engage in a conversation. Both thin and chunky guys have what it takes when they are healthy and outgoing and truly enjoy their life and who they are but lets also be honest here everyone loves a nice set of ABS.
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Name: Jeffrey
Date posted: 9/3/2010 6:17:51 PM
Hometown: new york

Comment:
It all boils down to sexual desire. As a recent comment stated (I think the one before mine), men's desire is primarily visually based, women's primarily emotionally based. Hence straight men get to look like slobs, straight women and gay guys have to worry about their looks (in this case, the most recent 'look' for the gays being the waif) and my best girlfriend is attracted to guys I'd never consider bedding in at least a hundred, if not a million years, because they fit an emotional or intellectual profile that appeals to her. The lesbians get the last laugh. Good for them. They deserve it.
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Name: Roman
Date posted: 9/3/2010 5:11:31 PM
Hometown: Seattle

Comment:
Men by nature are visually and sexually stimulated. In order to get a hot fit guy in bed, you yourself need to fit the profile. Gay men don’t workout to be healthy, they do it to have more sex! This does not apply to heterosexual men, because women are emotional by nature and that’s harder to get in bed. Analyze it all you want but it always comeback to primal instinct!
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Name: Ernie
Date posted: 9/3/2010 4:16:23 PM
Hometown: Savannah, GA

Comment:
This is really a sad commentary. If we as a community could only value the individual for who they are, not what they look like, we would all be happier. I have binged and purged and did not like myself, I gained weight and still did not like myself, I lost the weight and …. Now, I know who I am, who my friends are, and I feel grounded. It is not what is around the waste or between the legs, but what is in the heart that matters.
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Name: Greg
Date posted: 9/3/2010 12:08:48 PM
Hometown: Providence RI

Comment:
This implies that the "good" reason to stay thin would be a purely abstract concern for health and cholesterol and that kind of stuff. That wouldn't work for most people either.
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Name: Micca
Date posted: 9/3/2010 7:26:59 AM
Hometown: Florida

Comment:
Oh My! Give me a tall thin man any day of the week! I love thin men! I have a tall thin partner and I am an older potbellied senior who is loved by this thin man! I have the best... a tall man, a young man, and a THIN man! Different strokes, guys, for different folks!
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Name: scott
Date posted: 9/3/2010 4:05:21 AM
Hometown: portland

Comment:
I know gay men of all shapes and sizes, the one thing that seems to be true overall is that they usually put more effort into their appearance than straight guys (on the average). I see very few gay slobs but lots of straight ones.
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Name: Liam
Date posted: 9/3/2010 2:22:07 AM
Hometown: Portland

Comment:
From what I've seen and experienced, Gay men are vicious about body image and incredibly cruel and rude. Look at what we're told to be and what happens when we don't live up to those expectations.

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