EastEnders fans praise soap as Ben raises awareness of male eating disorders
EastEnders fans have praised the soap as Ben Mitchell discussed battling an eating disorder.
The character has secretly been battling an eating disorder which sees him occasionally binge on food before forcing himself to be sick, while at times he refrains from eating. In recent months, Ben has been hit with tragedy and trauma after he was raped by barman Lewis and the death of Lola Pearce (Danielle Harold), the mother of his daughter who suffered from an inoperable brain tumour.
During Wednesday night's episode, Ben was seen lashing out at a punch bag in the boxing gym, before opening up to Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) about his struggles. It came just days after Honey Mitchell (Emma Barton) confronted Ben about his condition after spotting a series of signs in a bid to break the stigma that eating disorders only affect women.
Ben Mitchell (Max Bowden) bravely opened up about his struggles with an eating disorder (BBC)Ben eventually opened up to his husband Callum (Tony Clay) in emotional scenes as he confessed to "avoiding food", as Callum went on to say "I noticed that you hadn't been eating as much as normal, I just thought that was down to some stupid PT regime." But Ben said: "I don't eat enough but other times I can't eat fast enough. And I have this urge to get rid of it all, I have a problem."
As mechanic Ben became emotional, his husband began to comfort him and asked how he found himself struggling with eating. "One day, I didn't eat and in my head, I was saying I didn't need to, or I could if I wanted to – but I didn't," Ben said, before going on to say: "Bby the end of the day, I felt like I felt like I'd achieved something. And I was telling myself that it was because I was training and I was getting into shape and that I was doing something for myself."
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The character went on to say he felt "so good" and as though he had "released a lot of pain" after forcing himself to be sick on one occasion. Following his turbulent times, Ben went on to say that food has been the "only thing I had a choice over," before saying he has hopes to stop but didn't know if he was able to do so.
Ben was comforted by his on-screen husband, Callum Highway (Tony Clay) (BBC)Shortly after the scenes aired, fans flocked to Twitter to praise actor Max Bowden who plays Ben, with one writing: "It's ok to not like Ben but there's no denying that Max Bowden has been brilliant in every issue-based storyline he has had, his portrayal of a man with so much trauma & mental health has been so real, he deserves the praise, & Tony Clay does too." A second commented: "'I have a problem'. Such a small sentence that packs such a big weight for Ben as a character. For him to even vocalise that out loud. Is huge. This is a guy who has been taught his whole life to internalise his feelings and 'be a man'. So impactful."
A third viewer went on to say: "@MaxBowden as a recovering bulimic, watching Ben's struggle completely pulled at the heartstrings… kudos to you for portraying such a delicate subject with such a stellar performance." Another typed: "Thought it that was a really good Ben talking to Callum scene, detailing how the eating disorder makes him feel [i.e. a sense of control in his... Insane life / of late]. The first step is admitting you have a problem, after all."
Research suggests that around one in four (25%) of people with an eating disorder are men. In the UK alone, it's believed that between 1.25 and 3.4 million people are affected by an eating disorder, with The Priory Group claiming that around 25% of those are men alone.
If you're worried about your health or the health of somebody else, you can contact SEED eating disorder support service on 01482 718130 or on their website, here.
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