It is perhaps a common misconception that eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia are primarily illnesses that affect women; however research suggests that up to 20 per cent of sufferers are male.

Judith Hare, a nutritionist for Bournemouth-based organisation I-Eat, said: “Men's eating disorders are not taken so seriously, and it's not so easy for guys to accept they have a problem, let alone come forward and address it.”

Men's eating disorders are just starting to become more widely acknowledged. Gerald, who suffered from bulimia from the age of 12 through to 19, now volunteers for I-Eat is helping to raise awareness of male eating disorders by telling the story of how he con conquered his illness into schools.

“At school I was always self-conscious and battled with rejection and self-esteem issues,” said Gerald. “I had no control over any aspect of my life and bulimia was my way of getting some control over hurts from my past. It was easy to hide my illness at school and I never talked to anyone about it.”

Gerald added: “Male eating disorders are still taboo; men often feel shame around what is considered a female illness, so keep silent despite their suffering. I eventually turned to I-Eat for help and they helped me overcome my illness and look at the issues surrounding it.”

I-Eat has been helping both men and women with eating disorders since 2008 by holding food groups teaching nutrition and healthy eating. “We look at what could be the root cause of the illness,” said Judith, “we set goals and targets towards eating regular meals and implementing a healthy change of routine - and hopefully a new way of life.”

Gerald is undoubtedly one of I-Eat's success stories. “I'm now living a normal happy way of life,” he said. “I can eat whatever I want - even takeaways when I am feeling lazy!”

For more information on I-eat, visit www.i-eat.org.uk, or more generally about eating disorders in the UK, see www.b-eat.co.uk. For details about a South Coast organisation specifically for male sufferers, visit www.mengtedstoo.co.uk.