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Associations between interoceptive sensitivity, intuitive eating, and body mass index in patients with anorexia nervosa and normal‐weight controls
Author(s) -
Richard Anna,
Meule Adrian,
Georgii Claudio,
Voderholzer Ulrich,
Cuntz Ulrich,
Wilhelm Frank H.,
Blechert Jens
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
european eating disorders review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.511
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1099-0968
pISSN - 1072-4133
DOI - 10.1002/erv.2676
Subject(s) - anorexia nervosa , body mass index , psychology , normal weight , eating disorders , interoception , perception , clinical psychology , audiology , developmental psychology , medicine , overweight , neuroscience
Reduced perception of bodily signals and low levels of intuitive eating have been reported in patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) compared with normal‐weight individuals. However, findings have been inconsistent and treatment progress might account for some of these inconsistencies. Thirty‐seven inpatients with AN and 39 normal‐weight controls completed a heartbeat perception task and the Intuitive Eating Scale–2. Patients with AN reported lower intuitive eating than controls, whereas interoceptive sensitivity did not differ between groups. Higher interoceptive sensitivity was related to higher intuitive eating across both groups. In patients with AN, both higher interoceptive sensitivity and intuitive eating correlated with the number of days in the hospital and with higher body mass index (BMI), when controlling for BMI at admission. These relationships suggest that interoceptive sensitivity and intuitive eating improve during treatment. Future research should determine whether these improvements promote weight gain or follow it.