Body dysmorphia sufferers have abnormal visual processes

People suffering from body dysmorphic disorder, or BDD — a severe mental illness characterised by debilitating misperceptions that one appears disfigured and ugly — process visual information abnormally, even when looking at inanimate objects, according to a new UCLA study. The researchers found that patients with the disorder have less brain activity when processing holistic visual elements that provide the “big picture,” regardless of whether that picture is a face or an object.