What is the Difference Between Body Dysmorphic Disorder and Anorexia

The key difference between body dysmorphic disorder and anorexia is that body dysmorphic disorder is a condition where people are obsessed with one or more perceived flaws in their appearance, while anorexia is a condition where people are concerned more about their body shape, size, or weight.

Body dysmorphic disorder and anorexia are two disorders that cause body image problems in many people. However, these are two different disorders. Body dysmorphic disorder is a mental health disorder, whereas anorexia is an eating disorder.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Body Dysmorphic Disorder 
3. What is Anorexia
4. Similarities – Body Dysmorphic Disorder and Anorexia
5. Body Dysmorphic Disorder vs. Anorexia in Tabular Form
6. FAQ – Body Dysmorphic Disorder and Anorexia
7. Summary – Body Dysmorphic Disorder vs. Anorexia

What is Body Dysmorphic Disorder?

Body dysmorphic disorder is a mental health disorder characterized by being overly concerned with outward appearance and perceived flaws. The symptoms of this condition include being extremely obsessed with a perceived flaw in appearance that others can’t see, a strong belief that they have a defect in themselves that makes them ugly, a belief that others take special notice of their appearance in a negative way, engaging in activities to hide the perceived flaws like styling, makeup, or clothing, constantly comparing appearance with others, seeking reassurance about appearance from others, having a perfectionist tendency, seeking cosmetic procedures with little satisfaction, and avoiding social situations.

Body dysmorphic disorder can be caused due to various reasons such as family history, negative evaluations of body image, abnormal brain function, and abnormal levels of a brain chemical called serotonin. Moreover, risk factors for body dysmorphic disorder include having relatives with body dysmorphic disorder, negative life experiences like childhood teasing, personality traits like perfectionism, societal pressure, and having mental conditions like anxiety or depression.

Body dysmorphic disorder can be diagnosed through family or medical history, psychological evaluation, and physical symptoms evaluation. Furthermore, treatment options for body dysmorphic disorder are cognitive behavioral therapy, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and lifestyle and home remedies.

What is Anorexia?

Anorexia is an eating disorder characterized by a persistent effort to maintain an extremely low body weight through insufficient food intake or excessive exercise. The symptoms of this condition may include altered body image, low body weight, extreme fear of becoming fat, poor nutritional status, dehydration, being very thin, stomach pain, constipation, lethargy, withdrawal from social situations, loss of interest in sex, mood changes, and depression. Anorexia can be caused by genetic changes, obsessive-compulsive personality traits, and environmental factors (modern Western culture emphasizing thinness). Moreover, the risk factors for anorexia are genetics, dieting, starvation, and transitions like a new school, home or job, a relationship breakup, death or illness of loved ones, and a change that can bring emotional stress.

Anorexia can be diagnosed through physical examination, complete blood count (CBC), and more specialized blood tests to check electrolytes and protein, psychological evaluation, X-rays, and electrocardiograms. Furthermore, treatment options for anorexia may include medical care such as feeding through a tube that is placed in the nose and goes to the stomach, restoring a healthy weight, family-based therapy, individual therapy, antidepressants, or other psychiatric medications.

What are the Similarities Between Body Dysmorphic Disorder and Anorexia?

• Body dysmorphic disorder and anorexia are two disorders that cause body image problems in many people.
• Both conditions involve appearance-related ritualistic or repetitive behaviors.
• They can be diagnosed through physical symptoms and psychological evaluations.
• Both can be treated through medications and specific therapies.

What is the Difference Between Body Dysmorphic Disorder and Anorexia?

Body dysmorphic disorder is a condition where people are obsessed with one or more perceived flaws in their appearance, while anorexia is a condition where people are concerned more about their body shape, size, or weight. Thus, this is the key difference between body dysmorphic disorder and anorexia. Furthermore, the risk factors for body dysmorphic disorder include having relatives with body dysmorphic disorder, negative life experiences like childhood teasing, personality traits like perfectionism, societal pressure, and having mental conditions like anxiety or depression. On the other hand, the risk factors for anorexia include genetics, dieting, starvation and transitions like a new school, home, or job, a relationship breakup, death or illness of loved ones, and a change that can bring emotional stress.

The infographic below presents the differences between body dysmorphic disorder and anorexia in tabular form for side-by-side comparison.

FAQ: Body Dysmorphic Disorder vs. Anorexia

What is body dysmorphic disorder also known as?

Dysmorphophobia is another name for body dysmorphic disorder.

What are the 2 types of dysmorphia?

Two types are muscle dysmorphia and BDD by Proxy (BDDBP).

What is the opposite of body dysmorphia?

Reverse body dysmorphia is the opposite of BDD.

Summary – Body Dysmorphic Disorder vs. Anorexia

People experiencing both body dysmorphic disorder and anorexia may share common features, such as excessive mirror-checking, frequent use of concealing clothing, and avoidance of social situations with friends due to concerns about their physical appearance and fears of how others might perceive them. However, body dysmorphic disorder is a mental health disorder characterized by being overly concerned with outward appearance and perceived flaws. On the other hand, anorexia is an eating disorder where people try to keep their weight as low as possible by not eating enough food or exercising too much. So, this summarizes the difference between body dysmorphic disorder and anorexia.

Reference:

1. “Body Dysmorphic Disorder.” Johns Hopkins Medicine.
2. “Anorexia Nervosa: Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis, Treatment.” WebMD.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Anorexia” By evelina zachariou (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 DEED) via Flickr
2. “Woman in White Head Towel Touching Her Neck” (CC0) via Pexels