Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsWhat Is Body Image?Negative Body ImageBody Image Issues in Eating DisordersBody Dysmorphic DisorderTreatmentStrategies to Try at Home

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

What Is Body Image?

Negative Body Image

Body Image Issues in Eating Disorders

Body Dysmorphic Disorder

Treatment

Strategies to Try at Home

Body image distressis often seen as a symptom of aneating disorder. However, not every person with an eating disorder has a problematic body image, and many people who do not have eating disorders have poor body image.

So how can we understand the relationship between body image and eating disorders? This article discusses how body image and eating disorders are connected and some treatments that can help.

1:28Watch Now: Common Signs of an Eating Disorder

1:28

Watch Now: Common Signs of an Eating Disorder

Body image is the subjective image people have of their own body, which is distinct from how their body actually appears.

Body image is a complex construct and is made up of beliefs, thoughts, perceptions, feelings, and behaviors. The way we see ourselves and our bodies have an impact on our health, our mental health, and our relationships.

A healthy body image involves an objective perception of one’s appearance and the ability to separate one’s value as a person from how one looks.

Studies show that approximately 50% of preadolescent girls and 30% of boys dislike their bodies. Around 60% of adult women and 40% ofadult menhave a negative body image.

A recent large scale study of 18- to 79-year-old Icelanders showed that nearly 43% were dissatisfied with their body weight, and over 71% thought they needed to lose weight.

Even though the average BMI was higher among males, more females than males were dissatisfied with their body weight in every age group.

How the Media Effects Body Image

Negative Body Image and Other Disorders

Body dissatisfaction may lead to dieting and disordered eating, which can be gateway behaviors to an eating disorder.

Body dissatisfaction is not only a risk factor for or symptom of an eating disorder, but it can also be a risk factor for depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem. Thus, it is a common target for prevention efforts.

Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is another psychiatric disorder, classified as a type ofobsessive-compulsive and related disorders.People with BDD are preoccupied with one or more nonexistent or slight defects or flaws in their physical appearance, including body shape.

To be diagnosed with BDD a person must:

However, if the individual’s body image concerns only occur within the context of an eating disorder, only the eating disorder is diagnosed.

It is not uncommon for patients to have both an eating disorder and BDD (the latter focusing on concerns other than weight or body fat).

Muscle Dysmorphia

Body weight and size dissatisfaction have long been recognized as an issue among women, but it has recently been identified as an increasing problem among men. One type of body dysmorphic disorder, muscle dysmorphia, affects primarilymen and boys who desire to be more muscular.

Because many people with muscle dysmorphia engage in exercise and changes in eating designed to influence body weight and shape, several researchers believe that muscle dysmorphia is actually a version of anorexia nervosa more closely aligned with traditional male gender norms.

Treatment for Negative Body Image

Body image is often one of the last symptoms of an eating disorder to improve during treatment.Even accounting for different treatments and symptoms, the stages of recovery from an eating disorder follow a fairly similar pattern.

Almost universally, weight recovery and behavioral changes appear to precede psychological recovery. And some degree of body image distress and preoccupation may persist after recovery from an eating disorder since it is not typical for people in our society to be entirely free of body image concerns.

A variety of interventions have been designed to target a negative body image. These interventions fall into several broad categories, including:Cognitive-behavioral therapyFitness trainingMedia literacySelf-esteem enhancementPsychoeducationGratitude

A variety of interventions have been designed to target a negative body image. These interventions fall into several broad categories, including:

In many cases, treatments incorporate more than one category of intervention. For example, cognitive-behavioral treatments and media literacy programs often include psychoeducation.

Cognitive-Behavioral Interventions

Cognitive-behavioral interventionsare those most frequently utilized to address body image.These interventions help individuals modify dysfunctional thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that contribute to negative body image.

The techniques used include:

Fitness Training

Fitness training interventions include exercises geared at improving physical capabilities such as muscle strength.Objective improvements in physical fitness are not as important as perceived improvements.

Media Literacy Interventions

Media literacy interventionsteach individuals to critically evaluate and challenge the media images and messages that can contribute to negative body image.For example, images of very thin models and messages such as “Thin is beautiful” can be challenged.

Techniques used in media literacy interventions include education and advocacy training.

Self-Esteem Interventions

Self-esteem strategies used in the treatment of negative body image focus on identifying and appreciating individual differences both in regards to body image and internal qualities and talents. Strategies also focus on building healthy coping skills.

Psychoeducation

Psychoeducational strategies teach individuals about issues related to negative body image including its causes and consequences. Psychoeducational strategies are often used in combination with one of the other types of interventions.

Gratitude-Based Interventions

A newer line of body image interventions includes gratitude-based strategies such asgratitude journals, lists, reflections, and meditations. Such interventions seek to increase appreciation for non-appearance-based aspects of oneself.

Here are some self-help strategies based on some of the interventions above that you can do on your own to improve body image:

Keep a Body Gratitude Journal

One way to achieve this is to keep a body gratitude journal. Try to write something daily that is positive about your body.

Examples of Body GratitudeYou can include things like, “I had a good hair day,” “My legs allowed me to hike up the canyon,” or “My arms allowed me to hug my child.” At first, It may be hard, but it will get easier with practice.

Examples of Body Gratitude

You can include things like, “I had a good hair day,” “My legs allowed me to hike up the canyon,” or “My arms allowed me to hug my child.” At first, It may be hard, but it will get easier with practice.

Clean Your Social Media Feed

People often face a daily barrage of images and messages emphasizing thinness and/or the attainment of an ideal physique. To counteract these messages, it is essential to find messages that support body acceptance and the inclusion of a range of bodies.

You may want to create abody-positivePinterest board. It’s also a good idea to stop following social media sites that promote the thin or fit ideal.

Buy Clothes That Fit Now

Many people resist buying clothes that fit and either wear shapeless clothes or dangle themselves the reward of shopping or fitting into old clothes “when they lose the weight.” This misguided exercise increases misery in the present and does nothing to increase motivation.

Instead, buy at least a few essential items that fit now and make you feel good. Most people find that this makes them feel more confident and reduces anxiety and self-disparagement when getting dressed.

Challenge Avoidance and Stop Body Checking

Avoidance and body checkinghave been implicated in the persistence of eating disorders.Avoidance can involve the complete covering up, refusing to wear appropriate clothes for the situation (wearing a hoody in the summer, refusing to wear shorts or a sleeveless top on a summer day, refusal to swim because of anxiety over wearing a swimsuit) or complete avoidance of doctors who might weigh them.

Avoidance and body checking only perpetuate anxiety. The goal should be moderation. Those who avoid should practice exposure, and those who obsessively check should stop.

If checking is an issue, try keeping track of the number of times you check and then try to cut that back gradually. Exposure can also be gradual. For example, wear sleeveless shirts around the apartment for increasing periods before eventually venturing outside wearing them.

Act Out Against the Thin Ideal

Some of the most effective eating disorder prevention programs, such asThe Body Project, are based on the principle of cognitive dissonance.Cognitive dissonanceis the idea that when attitudes and behaviors conflict, a person experiences discomfort and tries to align attitudes with behaviors.

People are encouraged to engage in activities that actively resist cultural pressures toward the thin ideal. Such activities include writing a peer or young girl a letter encouraging her to embrace a more diverse range of beauty or writing a company that has engaged in fat-shaming or thin-centric behaviors a letter explaining why that bothers you.

Change Negative Body Language

A Word From Verywell

There are numerous movements suggesting people should aim to love their bodies. This may not be possible. A more reasonable goal for some might be to work toward appreciating and accepting their bodies.

Body image will not likely improve without effort, and the above activities must be performed over time. Improving body image is an appropriate goal fortherapy, whether or not an individual is experiencing disordered eating.

If employing these strategies independently is not helping over time and body image is having a negative effect on overall well-being or daily functioning, don’t hesitate to seek help from a professional.

Disordered Eating Treatments

13 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

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