Trying to be ‘girly’ or ‘macho’ puts teenagers at a greater risk of cancer, researchers warn.

This is because girls who want see themselves as very feminine are more likely to use sunbeds and less likely to exercise, a study shows.

And boys who want to be seen as masculine are more likely to smoke because they perceive it as ‘manly’.

However, boys who define themselves as the least masculine and girls who define themselves as the least feminine are also more likely to smoke.

Researchers believe this may be in response to being seen as outsiders or because of bullying due to their ‘gender non-conformity’ or perceived sexual orientation.

The American study, published online by the Journal of Adolescent Health, was the first to look at cancer risk behaviours in teenagers based on how macho or girly they saw themselves.

Andrea Roberts, research associate at Harvard School of Public Health, said: ‘Our findings indicate that socially constructed ideas of masculinity and femininity heavily influence teens’ behaviours and put them at increased risk for cancer.

‘Though there is nothing inherently masculine about using tobacco, or inherently feminine about using a tanning booth, these industries have convinced some teens that these behaviours are a way to express their masculinity or femininity.’

The researchers studied 9,435 teenagers.

Boys who described themselves as ‘very masculine’ were 55 per cent more likely to smoke while the most feminine girls were 32 per cent more likely to use sunbeds and 16 per cent more likely to be physically inactive.

Written by reporters and published at The Daily Mail, April 15, 2014.

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