Film by Men’s Health shows how social media and supplements drive dangerous obsessions

Fitness influencers and supplement ads dominate social media, bombarding users with messages about achieving the perfect body. But what happens when the pressure to look perfect spirals into an unhealthy or even dangerous obsession?Statistics reveal that one-third of all new eating disorders are among men and boys, with a significant portion affecting young males ages 12 to 14.This issue is the focus of the new film “Generation Flex,” available on Very Local. The documentary, produced by Men’s Health, dives into the pressures young men face regarding body image and fitness.Click here: Watch on Very LocalThe film follows four boys on their mission to bulk up. According to the producer, the boys share their lives in intimate and vulnerable ways, revealing their journeys, fears, and anxieties around fitness and body image.Director Dorenna Newton explained one of her biggest takeaways while making the film was understanding just how impressionable kids are.”One is the surprising fact that young men read a headline ‘You can get six-pack abs in 10 days if you do this.’ We as adults know that’s simply not true. So realizing that kids just take this stuff at face value, that was a huge eye opener for me as a filmmaker,” she said.Newton also noted the way social media is shaping these ideals. “If you see an image constantly appearing in your social feed, you start to think it’s true. You think everyone looks like that. Maybe it’s genetics, maybe they’re older, maybe they had a trainer. There are so many ‘maybes’ that kids just don’t realize,” Newton said.She, as a mother, has witnessed how pervasive these pressures can be for young people.”I saw him starting to work out all the time in a way that just kind of, you know, he was a healthy kid, which you want them to work out. But working out too much, eating a diet that was sort of full of misinformation that clearly he had got from sort of sources cobbled together himself. And, you know, it was frightening to see that,” Newton said.Rich Dorment, the editorial director for Men’s Health and executive producer of the film, highlighted the growing trend of boys and young men developing a need for hyper-masculinity, which has long-term impacts on their physical and mental health.The documentary offers an unflinching look at teenage boys on a mission to bulk up at nearly any cost. The boys navigate a dark world filled with intense social media pressure and questionable supplements.Dorment emphasized a critical but often overlooked issue of the lack of federal regulation for nutritional supplements.”What that means is that more often than not, what appears on the label isn’t necessarily what’s inside the bottle,” Dorment said. “So whenever somebody is ordering something online, particularly from a place that isn’t well-known, you’re really gambling.”He added that this lack of regulation can lead to devastating consequences.”Unfortunately, this has led to deaths, to permanent damage, the worst-case scenarios that we often have nightmares about. It happens in large part because people are buying things and using things that they don’t understand,” Dorment said.The film serves as both a cautionary tale and a wake-up call for a generation of boys caught up in the quest for unattainable muscle.”Generation Flex” is streaming on the Very Local App starting Thursday, Jan. 9. The film is also available to stream on mensealth.com, Tubi, and Roku. The film is available to rent or buy on Apple TV+, Amazon Prime Video, and Google Play.

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