Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get Started
close window
Housecall Archives
About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
close window
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Causes
By Mayo Clinic staffIt's not known specifically what causes body dysmorphic disorder. Researchers believe that, like many other mental illnesses, body dysmorphic disorder may result from a combination of causes:
- Biochemical. Some evidence suggests that naturally occurring brain chemicals called neurotransmitters, which are linked to mood, may play a role in causing body dysmorphic disorder. In particular, the neurotransmitter serotonin may have a causal role.
- Genes. Some studies show that body dysmorphic disorder is more common in people whose biological family members also have the condition. This may indicate a genetic pathway behind body dysmorphic disorder.
- Environment. Your environment, life experiences and culture may contribute to body dysmorphic disorder, especially if they involve negative experiences about your body or self-image.
References
- Moore DP, et al. Body dysmorphic disorder. In: Moore DP, et al. Handbook of Medical Psychiatry. 2nd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby, Inc.; 2004. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/107599999-2/0/1243/0.html. Accessed Aug. 20, 2008.
- Castle DJ, et al. An update on body dysmorphic disorder. Current Opinion in Psychiatry. 2006;19:74-78.
- Buescher LS, et al. Body dysmorphic disorder. Dermatologic Clinics. 2006;24:251-257.
- Body dysmorphic disorder. In: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM-IV-TR. Arlington, Va.:American Psychiatric Association, 2000. www.psychiatryonline.com. Accessed Aug. 20, 2008.
- Hunt TJ, et al. The mirror lies: Body dysmorphic disorder. American Family Physician. 2008;78(2):217-222, 223-224.
- Phillips KA, et al. Body dysmorphic disorder: Treating an underrecognized disorder. American Journal of Psychiatry. 2008;165(9).
- Hall-Flavin DK (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Oct. 17, 2008.
