The Role of Disgust Emotion in Eating Disorders and Its Relationship with Dissociative Symptoms

Abstract

Background: Disgust is a central emotion in eating disorders, influencing both their development and maintenance. High sensitivity to disgust has been associated with restrictive and purgative behaviors, as well as with greater severity of eating disorder symptoms. Despite its importance, the different aspects of disgust are rarely examined in depth, limiting the understanding of its role in these disorders. Since the emotion of disgust is more closely linked to the body and food than other emotions, the aim of this paper is to understand its possible role in eating disorders and obesity. Method: In a case-control study, 313 women (155 with eating disorders and obesity in the clinical group and 158 in the control group) were assessed using various questionnaires, including measures of disgust, dissociation, and symptom severity. Results: The results showed that the clinical group reported greater symptom severity, more dissociative symptoms, and higher sensitivity to disgust than the control group. It is noteworthy that there were significant differences between subtypes of the clinical group, particularly in disgust related to hygiene, sexual content and deterioration and disease. Conclusions: These findings highlight the importance of considering disgust in the evaluation and treatment of eating disorders, emphasizing the need for further research on this emotion to develop more effective therapeutic interventions that address this complex emotion in the context of eating disorders and obesity.

Keywords: disgust; dissociation; eating disorders; obesity; self-disgust.