Stereotypically, when the topic of body confidence is broached, people often assume women must be the subject, but high street chemist Superdrug have highlighted just how much men are affected too.
The company has recently revealed part two of its ‘Perceptions of Perfection’ campaign, where it asked designers across the globe to retouch an image to reflect the ideal male body in their country.
The images that you can see are the edited photos received.
Superdrug contacted designers around the world with the following brief:
Photoshop and retouch this man to make him more attractive to the people of your country.
We are studying attraction and how that differs across the world. Multiple designers are involved, each from a different country.
All changes, including those to his shape, form, coloration, etc., are up to you. You can modify any feature. We recommend against further covering his form with clothing as your submission may not be accepted.
Chief Executive of YMCA England, and founding partner of the Be Real campaign for body confidence, Denise Hatton said:
Superdrug’s second ‘Perceptions of Perfection’ report shines a much-needed light on the pressures men across the globe face regarding body image.
Men suffer equally with women around low body confidence as many strive to attain a standard of ‘attractiveness’ that is both often unobtainable and, as this report shows, driven by cultural perceptions and advertising ideals.
Our own research found that 40% of men in the UK felt pressure from television and magazines to have a ‘perfect’ body and this has negative effects on how they view themselves and others.
We hope this report helps to empower men to place their physical and mental health above appearance to ensure we become a nation where body confidence is, in fact, the cultural norm.
Let’s just chalk off the U.S. as a potential emigration destination right now then, but kudos to Australia where the dad-bod is clearly king.
On the whole, the images suggest a hint of realism as to what a male body should look like, but there are clearly certain standards around the world which men are also under pressure to conform to.
If you are experiencing a form of body dysmorphic disorder, eating disorder, or health issue related to appearance don’t suffer in silence – speak to someone who can help.
