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Mind Warp
What did light up in the anorexic brains, and what stayed lit throughout the guessing game, was the caudate region—a section of the brain involved in linking actions to outcomes and planning. "Healthy women were able to make a guess, feel a moment of delight or disappointment, and move on," explains the study's lead author, Walter Kaye, director of the eating disorder research program at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. "But women who had suffered from anorexia felt no thrill at winning and were plagued by a need to strategize and avoid guessing wrong." The findings mesh with some well-known characteristics of the eating disorder, which is most prevalent in white, affluent females. "Anorexics have trouble experiencing immediate pleasures and are typically preoccupied with a fear of making mistakes," says Kaye. "Now we can see that this cause-and-effect brain circuit is overactive and that the reward center is muted."
Researchers have yet to determine whether faulty brain functioning causes OCSD or vice versa, and neither study manages to hint at new treatment strategies. Still, experts hope the findings may contribute something even more fundamental. "The thing that's been missing in psychiatry is the ability to relate behavioral disorders to some part of the brain that isn't working right," says Kaye. "We are learning more and more that conditions like anorexia are not willful acts meant to punish parents or get attention; they are serious medical conditions." With a little more hard evidence, he may just win over the skeptics.
© 2007
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Member Comments
Posted By: goldeniangel @ 05/29/2008 4:15:18 PM
Comment: As someone who has problems with seeing her body as it really is, I know that it's not just a matter of re-training the brain... that can help yes, but I do worry that there are people out there worse off than me in this way, that are being ignored or told they can fix it on their own. There's really only a certain amount you can do on your own. I've lost 15 lbs in the past year - I gained because I couldn't see the changes to my body originally, and then became obsessed with weight loss after a (now ex) boyfriend told me I was fat. I couldn't see the gain, and I can't see the loss... only before when I looked in the mirror I always saw myself as skinny, after the ex told me I was fat I finally saw myself as I really was - not fat, but definitely overweight. That lasted until I started losing and now it changes from day to day whether I look in the mirror and see fat, normal, or skinny. But I know that what I'm looking at isn't real... how my clothes fits IS. It's in my head, I can look at other things than the mirror to know what's really going on, but that doesnt' mean that I've actually gotten better.
Posted By: Rune @ 02/11/2008 12:07:45 PM
Comment: BBD is a paralyzing disease that needs to be taken seriously. I let the disease control my life; I avoided social functions, dressed in hats and baggy clothes, and had thoughts of suicide. I suffered with it for years before I was able to overcome my embarassment and seek out help. Finding the right doctor is key, I went through 3 physicians before I found one that correctly diagnosed me and came up with an effective treatment plan. One doctor had never heard of BDD, and when I explained it to him shrugged me off and told me I looked fine. If you think you or someone you know has this disorder, seek help. You can have every comestic procedure under the sun, and you will never be happy. Facing up to your problems and seeking care will make you much happier than that second nose job, believe me.
Posted By: feelinsassy2006 @ 01/05/2008 1:52:25 PM
Comment: If you are thin and beautiful people treat you like a body only. They treat you like you have no depth. Body image is an illusion the same that people associate with blonds. The disorder is that the general public associate everyone lumped as a group instead of free thinking individuals. No wonder young girls/some boys do anything for thinness, looks...shame