The Adonis Complex - by Harrison G Pope & Roberto Olivardia & Katherine A Phillips (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

A HEALTH CRISIS THAT STRIKES MEN OF ALL AGES
Trying everything from compulsive weight lifting to steroids, more and more boys and men are taking the quest for physical perfection beyond the bounds of normal behavior. The Adonis Complex -- the groundbreaking book that first gave a name to this phenomenon and sparked nationwide interest in the subject -- identifies for the first time the symptoms and warning signs of this dangerous problem, including:

• An obsession with exercise, sometimes to the exclusion of all other activities
• Binge eating, anorexia nervosa, and bulimia
• The abuse of steroids, muscle-building supplements, and diet aids

But perhaps more important, it offers readers an explanation of the underlying causes of the Adonis complex, together with hands-on advice for those who have experienced body obsessions themselves, or who see these problems in a boy or man they love.

Review Quotes

Publishers Weekly Compelling [and] convincing...A provocative look at what has been, until now, a largely unexplored subject.

Time magazine cover story Groundbreaking. Ripped male bodies are used today to advertise everything that shapely female bodies advertise: not just fitness products, but also dessert liqueurs, microwave ovens, and luxury hotels. The authors of The Adonis Complex want guys to rebel against those images, or at least see them for what they are: a goal unattainable without drug use.

William Pollack, Ph.D. author of Real Boys: Rescuing Our Sons From The Myths Of Boyhood Ten years after The Beauty Myth we finally understand the relationship between society's expectation of boys and men and how they think about their bodies.

About the Author

Harrison G. Pope, Jr., M.D., is a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and chief of the Biological Psychiatry Laboratory at McLean Hospital. He lives in Concord, Massachusetts.