1. The Neuroscience of Body Image

2. 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

3. The Neuroscience of Body Image

4. 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

5. 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

7. The Neuroscience of Body Image

8. 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.

9. The Neuroscience of Body Image
Downing et al, Science 2001

10. The Neuroscience of Body Image
Downing et al, Science 2001

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

12. The Neuroscience of Body Image

13. 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.

14. The Neuroscience of Body Image
Anorexic patients fMRI ; Neuropsychol 2008

15. The Neuroscience of Body Image

16. 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

17. 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

18. The Neuroscience of Body Image

19. The Neuroscience of Body Image

20. The wandering vagus nerve

21. 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.”

22. 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

23. The Neuroscience of Body Image

24. The Neuroscience of Body Image

26. 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