Neural mechanisms of perceptual and affective body-image disturbance during own-body and ideal-body estimation

Reduced body-image disturbance by body-image interventions is associated with neural-response changes in visual and social processing regions: a preliminary study

“…Developing symptoms of an eating disorder is most common among adolescent females; thus, research on the relationship between body-image disturbance and eating disorders has focused mainly on this demographic. Recent studies have revealed that a non-clinical community sample also experience body-image disturbance as strong as those of individuals with eating disorders ( 3 – 6 ). Furthermore, individuals with relatively high body-image disturbance are more likely to develop symptoms associated with eating disorders ( 7 , 8 ).…”

“…Perceptual disturbance involves distorted perception of one’s body size and shape, such as overestimating one’s body size ( 5 , 13 – 15 ). This component is quantified as the discrepancy between one’s perceived and actual body size (perceived–actual discrepancy) ( 3 – 6 , 15 ). Previous studies have associated perceptual disturbance in association with attentional bias ( 4 , 16 , 17 ).…”

“…These studies revealed that individuals with greater perceived–actual discrepancy exhibited specific fixation patterns, such as focusing on the waist. Neurological studies have demonstrated that perceptual disturbance is related to brain activation in bodily visual and attentional processing regions, such as the extrastriate body area, inferior parietal lobule, and anterior cingulate cortex ( 3 , 6 , 18 – 21 ). Notably, we found that perceived–actual discrepancy was correlated with increased activation of the left anterior cingulate cortex and functional connectivity between the left extrastriate body area and the right anterior insula when participants were estimating their own body size ( 6 ), implying that perceptual disturbance was related to attentional processing rather than visual processing only ( 22 , 23 ).…”

“…Affective disturbance, observed in almost all eating disorders, is related to the excessive influence of weight and shape on self-esteem, a core psychopathological symptom ( 2 , 9 ). This component is quantified as the discrepancy between one’s perceived and ideal body size (perceived–ideal discrepancy) ( 3 – 6 , 15 ). Previous studies found that affective disturbance was associated with body-image concerns ( 5 , 15 , 24 , 25 ).…”

“…These studies revealed that the degree of affective disturbance was correlated with eating disorder inventory scores related to body-image concerns, such as body dissatisfaction. Neurological studies have demonstrated that affective disturbance is related to brain activation in emotional and socio-cognitive processing regions, such as the insula, amygdala, precuneus, and temporoparietal junction ( 3 , 6 , 20 , 26 – 29 ). In particular, we revealed that perceived–ideal discrepancy correlated with an increase in activation of the right temporoparietal junction and decrease in functional connectivity between the left extrastriate body area and the right precuneus when participants were estimating their ideal body size ( 6 ).…”