1. Excessive bodybuilding as pathology? A first neurophysiological classification.
- Author
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Maier MJ, Haeussinger FB, Hautzinger M, Fallgatter AJ, and Ehlis AC
- Subjects
- Adult, Behavior, Addictive psychology, Female, Functional Neuroimaging, Humans, Male, Prefrontal Cortex physiopathology, Psychopathology, Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared, Young Adult, Body Dysmorphic Disorders physiopathology, Body Dysmorphic Disorders psychology, Body Image psychology, Somatosensory Cortex physiopathology, Weight Lifting psychology
- Abstract
Objectives: Excessive bodybuilding as a pathological syndrome has been classified based on two different theories: bodybuilding as dependency or as muscle dysmorphic disorder (MDD). This study is a first attempt to find psychophysiological data supporting one of these classifications. Methods: Twenty-four participants (bodybuilders vs healthy controls) were presented with pictures of bodies, exercise equipment or general reward stimuli in a control or experimental condition, and were measured with functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Higher activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) while watching bodies and training equipment in the experimental condition (muscular bodies and bodybuilding-typical equipment) would be an indicator for the addiction theory. Higher activation in motion-related areas would be an indicator for the MDD theory. Results: We found no task-related differences between the groups in the DLPFC and OFC, but a significantly higher activation in bodybuilders in the primary somatosensory cortex (PSC) and left-hemispheric supplementary motor area (SMA) while watching body pictures (across conditions) as compared to the control group. Conclusions: These neurophysiological results could be interpreted as a first evidence for the MDD theory of excessive bodybuilding.
- Published
- 2019
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