I've been reading this textbook Tuval got from the library called Men's Lives and it's a pretty good primer on masculinity.  It's got 10 chapters:

1. Perspectives on Masculinity
2. Boyhood
3. Collegiate Masculinities
4. Men and Work
5. Men and Health
6. Men in Relationships
7. Male Sexualities
8. Men in Families
9. Masculinities in the Media
10. Men, Movements, and the Future

So far the most interesting chapter for me is the one on men and health.  Don Sabo reports on male athletes (symbols of strength and health) who often sacrifice their health in pursuit of ideal masculinity.  This ideal has several aspects.

For instance, boxing is considered one of the most manly sports even though there is clinical evidence linking it to neurolgoical harm (or brain damage). Men's sports also glorify pain and injury to one's body and the competition's in order to win.  Add to this the ongoing debate to keep or drop fighting in professional men's hockey. Personally, i stopped playing league hockey in grade 11 becasue it was just too dangerous.  Too bad because i love the game.

Also, 6.6% of American male high school seniors use or had used anabolic steroids in 1988 with two-thirds of these guys being athletes.  Health risks linked with these steriods include: liver disease, kidney problems, atrophy (shrinkage) of the testicles, elevated risk of injury, and premature skeletal maturation. Can someone find a more current statistic?

The National Film Board of Canada has a short documentary about teenage body image and male health.  It's called Shredded.

Sabo concludes that individual men can work toward better personal health, yet without challenging and changing the ideals of masculinity, the majority of men will continue to harm themselves.  Can we look to movies and magazines for hope?

Don Sabo finishes with a reflection on Superman the hero and Christopher Reeve the actor.  Reeve played the "man of steel" in several films and became paralyzed after a horseback riding accident.  Sabo writes: "...behind the cultural facade of mythic masculnity, men are vulnerable. Indeed, as we have seen in this chapter, some of the cultural messages sewn into the cloak of masculinity can put men at risk for illness and early death".

Sadly enough, when you search "men's health" in Google you get Men's Health magazine and you don't get any of this type of thinking or reflecting.  What you get is: stomach toning, sex tips, supplement taking, arm size, body fat, fitness foods, more sex tips, workout ideas, sexy women to look at, female flirting signs, best and worst sandwiches, smootie ideas, and more sex tips.

Yikes! I guess i prefer a different media diet about my health. How about you?

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Paul does media education workshops and is trying to eat more fruits and vegatables and drink more water.