The Neuroscience of Body Image

The Neuroscience of Body Image Overview How does the brain process body image? Is there a difference between the sexes? Prevalence of eating disorders Brain functioning in eating disorders Clinical experience with body image

The Neuroscience of Body Image

The Neuroscience of Body Image Different ideal shapes for boys & girls Men more interested in shape than weight Women more likely to self describe as fat, diet more Women more likely to self assess as overweight, men as underweight compared to objective standards Men see underweight as being bad, women as good. In one study, 4% women wanted to become bigger compared to 47% of women wanting to slim down. Among 18 yr old boys, equal numbers want to be larger and smaller Dieting normal in girls but not in boys

The Neuroscience of Body Image Univ. of London study- 111 boys and 124 girls ages 16-18, in school mean body wgt of girls 57 kgs (125 lbs) mean body wgt of boys 69 kgs (152 lbs) EAT, self esteem, reason for exercise, contour drawing surveys completed. Furnham et al, J Psychol 2002

The Neuroscience of Body Image

The Neuroscience of Body Image 80% of girls AND boys dissatisfied with their weight. However, nearly as many boys wished to be heavier (36%) as thinner (43%) Only 9 girls wished to be heavier; 75% chose an ideal figure thinner than theirs Girls/women exercise to lose weight, boys/men not necessarily.

The Neuroscience of Body Image Downing et al, Science 2001

The Neuroscience of Body Image Downing et al, Science 2001

The Neuroscience of Body Image Devue et al, Brain Research, 2007

The Neuroscience of Body Image

The Neuroscience of Body Image Face recognition vs body recognition Right frontal cortex, insula and cingulate gyrus main regions in self recognition. Posterior sensory areas versus more anterior (evolved, neocortex) association areas.

The Neuroscience of Body Image Anorexic patients fMRI ; Neuropsychol 2008

The Neuroscience of Body Image

The Neuroscience of Body Image Self versus other images 10 AN women, 10 normal controls. Difference: no activation of the insula and the attentional areas of brain when viewing self Prior study showed activation of amygdala in AN patients Role of the amygdala and insular cortex AN suppress emotional & perceptual processing

The Neuroscience of Body Image 13 men and 13 women left amygdala activated only in women left prefrontal cortex and hippocampus activated only in men Shirao et al, 2005

The Neuroscience of Body Image

The Neuroscience of Body Image

The wandering vagus nerve

The Neuroscience of Body Image 1998 metanalysis of 222 studies over 50 years Feingold & Mazella, 1998 Pre-1970, 70s, 80s, 90s Ages 12-14, 14-16, 16-18, 18-23, 23-35, >35 N= 37,627 Results: body satisfaction: men vs women Men vs women, self assesment on looks “The analysis shows dramatic increases in the numbers of women among individuals who have poor body image. Moreover, these trends were found across multiple conceptualizations of body image, including self-judgments of physical attractiveness.”

The Neuroscience of Body Image 54 cases of eating disorders associated with brain lesions Simple changes occur w hypothalamic lesions AN and BN type changes occur with right frontal and temporal damage Uher & Treasure, J Neurol Neurosurg 2005

The Neuroscience of Body Image

The Neuroscience of Body Image

The Neuroscience of Body Image The plastic brain Shaped by experiences and memories The phantom limb syndrome Change the brain, control the eating disorder Change the brain, change society