Implicit approach-avoidance tendencies toward food and body stimuli absent in individuals with anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and healthy controls

Objective Body and food-related information are thought to activate cognitive biases and contribute to the maintenance of eating disorders (ED). Approach-avoidance biases may play an important role in the maintenance of dietary restriction and excessive food intake. Therefore, the present study aimed to examine approach-avoidance biases toward food and body stimuli in individuals with anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), and healthy controls (HC). Methods The study included 42 individuals with AN, 24 individuals with BN, and 38 HCs. We used two implicit Approach-Avoidance Tasks (AAT) to assess approach-avoidance biases: participants completed a Food-AAT (high-calorie vs. low-calorie food) and a Body-AAT (thin vs. normal weight bodies). Additionally, explicit ratings of food and body stimuli were assessed. Results There were no significant Group × Stimulus × Direction interactions in the implicit Food-AAT or implicit Body-AAT. In explicit ratings, individuals with AN and BN reported less urge to eat and more regret if they ate high-calorie and low-calorie food; individuals with AN and BN rated normal weight bodies as less normal weight, less attractive and less desirable than HCs. There were no group differences in explicit ratings of the thin body. Discussion We did not find evidence for biased approach-avoidance tendencies toward food or body stimuli in individuals with AN or BN. Future studies are necessary to understand conflicting findings regarding approach-avoidance biases toward food and body stimuli in individuals with ED

Exposure to the thin beauty ideal : Are there subliminal priming effects?

Objective: Previous research suggested that exposure to the thin beauty ideal propagated by the media is associated with body dissatisfaction and the development of disordered eating. Given recent suggestions regarding the role of automatic processes, we aimed to enhance our understanding of automatic, unconscious responses to body pictures and the association with the internalization of the thin ideal and the severity of eating disorder symptoms. Method: An affective priming task with body pictures of different weight as primes and a normal-weight body picture as target, which had to be evaluated with regard to attractiveness and desirability, was administered to healthy women with either subliminal prime presentation (Experiment 1) or conscious presentation (Experiment 2). Results: Subliminal presentation did not affect the evaluation of the normal-weight tar-get, although strength of evaluative shifts was significantly associated with internalization of the thin ideal. In contrast, the conscious presentation of the ultra-thin prime decreased and of the obese prime increased desirability and attractiveness ratings of the target. Discussion: Prevention strategies focusing on the critical evaluation of the thin ideal are important. Future studies are warranted to enhance our understanding of automatic, unconscious processes in women experiencing eating disorders

Nahrungsbezogene Impulsivität bei Binge Eatern in Abhängigkeit von der emotionalen Befindlichkeit

Impulsives Verhalten und Beeinträchtigungen der inhibitorischen Kontrolle scheinen bei der Entstehung und Aufrechterhaltung der Adipositas und insbesondere bei Patienten mit Binge Eating Störung (BES) eine wichtige Rolle zu spielen. Ferner konnten verschiedene Studien zeigen, dass Überessen oder auch Essanfälle häufig auf negative Gefühlszustände oder subjektives Stresserleben folgen und den Betroffenen als Emotionsregulationsstrategie dienen. Aufgrund dessen wurde in der vorliegenden Studie untersucht, ob Impulsivität und inhibitorische Kontrolle besonders beeinträchtigt sind, wenn nahrungs-assoziierte Reize präsentiert werden und ob ein Zusammenhang zur aktuellen emotionalen Befindlichkeit besteht. Betrachtet wurden sowohl adipöse Probandinnen mit und ohne BES als auch gesunde normalgewichtige Kontrollprobandinnen

Approach and avoidance: Relations with the thin body ideal in women with disordered eating behavior

Recent research suggests that automatic cognitive biases are linked to body dissatisfaction and disordered eating behavior. However, little is known about automatic action tendencies in the field of body image research. The aim of the present study was to examine approach and avoidance biases toward the thin body ideal and normal weight bodies and whether these are pronounced in individuals showing disordered eating behavior. Participants were divided into a group with disordered eating behavior (n = 55) and without disordered eating behavior (n = 45). To assess approach and avoidance tendencies, the Approach-Avoidance Task was used during which the participants were instructed to approach or avoid thin and normal weight body pictures. Our results indicated faster push than pull movements towards thin and normal weight body pictures. However, participants with and without disordered eating behavior did not differ with regard to their reactions. Furthermore, we found positive associations between the avoidance of normal weight body pictures and perceived pressure to confirm to media ideals. Future research is warranted to replicate our findings and to extend our knowledge on approach and avoidance biases toward body pictures in patients suffering from eating disorders

Body-related cognitive distortions (thought–shape fusionbody) associated with thin-ideal exposure in femalestudents — an ecological momentary assessment study

Etiological models of eating disorders (EDs) describe body dissatisfaction (BD) as one of the major influences fostering dysfunctional body-related behavior and disordered eating behavior. BD is influenced by repeated exposure to thin ideals that evoke high self-ideal discrepancy and result in body-related cognitive distortions such as thought-shape fusion body (TSF-B). The aim of the study was to investigate the covariation of daily media exposure and the experience of TSF-B in a naturalistic setting. It was further analyzed whether TSF-B is associated with self-ideal discrepancy, dysfunctional body-related behavior and disordered eating behavior. Moreover, person-related predictors of TSF-B were explored. Altogether 51 healthy female students (mean age 21.06 years, SD=1.76) participated in an ecological momentary assessment study with 4 daily surveys during 10 consecutive days. Exposure with thin ideals in contrast to exposure to unspecific media contents went along with the experience of TSF-B. TSF-B was associated with higher self-ideal discrepancy, dysfunctional body-related behavior as well as more pronounced disordered eating behavior, suggesting that TSF-B is a common phenomenon in young healthy females' everyday life. A main effect of trait measures (e.g. preexisting BD) on TSF-B was observable, but no moderating effect. Thus, a specific vulnerability has not been detected

Short-term effects of media exposure to the thin ideal in female inpatients with an eating disorder compared to female inpatients with a mood or anxiety disorder or women with no psychiatric disorder

Objective Previous research demonstrated that the exposure to media portrayals of the thin body ideal negatively affects body satisfaction and mood of healthy women and thus represents a sociocultural risk factor for the development of eating disorders. However, at present, it is not known whether negative effects of the thin ideal are pronounced in eating-disordered patients. Method Female inpatients with a current diagnosis of anorexia nervosa (N = 36), bulimia nervosa (N = 32), or mood or anxiety disorder (N = 31), and women with no current psychiatric diagnosis were randomly assigned to exposure to magazine pictures depicting the thin female body ideal or landscape scenes in two experimental phases (leafing through a magazine followed by instructed imagination of a picture from the magazine). The groups were compared on measures of body satisfaction and mood that were collected before and after the two phases. Results Leafing through a fashion magazine was not associated with negative effects on body satisfaction or mood in all groups. Imagining the thin ideal resulted in a decrease in body satisfaction and a decrease in positive mood. We found no diagnosis-specific effects indicating no stronger negative impact of the thin ideal on eating-disorder patients. Discussion Given the lacking differences between eating-disordered patients and controls, these findings underline the importance of future research to enhance our understanding of what happens when patients are exposed to external or internal stimuli of media images of the thin ideal