Researchers and students from the Faculty of Psychology at Samara University have uncovered the neurobiological mechanism through which perfectionism affects the human brain—potentially leading to severe mental health conditions such as anorexia nervosa, a life-threatening eating disorder characterized by partial or complete food refusal, drastic weight loss, and deteriorating physical health.
“Anorexia nervosa is one of the most treatment-resistant psychiatric disorders,” explained Alina Kopaneva, a psychology student at Samara University and co-author of the study. “Even after weight restoration, relapse rates remain extremely high. Our research sought to understand why. We hypothesized that two key factors interact: perfectionism—the relentless pursuit of an unattainable ideal—and a physiological ‘breakdown’ in the brain’s ability to process bodily signals like hunger, satiety, and fatigue. Essentially, the individual becomes so fixated on control that they lose touch with their body, entering an altered state of consciousness where rigid rules and ideals override physical reality. In this study, we identified precisely how perfectionist mindsets ‘disconnect’ the brain’s natural link between awareness and bodily sensation.”
According to the researchers, perfectionist beliefs create stable neural patterns that systematically distort and suppress interoceptive signals—the brain’s internal perception of bodily states. The core pathological mechanism is hypercontrol: patients with anorexia exhibit heightened activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, a brain region responsible for cognitive control and inhibition of automatic processes. This hyperfunction leads to the conscious disregard of basic physiological cues, corroborated by reduced activation in the anterior insular cortex—a key area for interoception.
In effect, perfectionism causes the brain to deceive itself, establishing maladaptive interpretations:
· hunger is perceived as “weakness”;
· physical discomfort becomes a “sign of successful control”;
· satiety signals are interpreted as a “threat to self-discipline.”
This mechanism, the authors argue, explains the hallmark features of anorexia: emotional numbing and the inability to recognize physiological needs. Initially, suppressing interoceptive signals demands significant cognitive effort—but as the disorder progresses, these patterns become automatized through entrenched neural pathways.
“This explains why patients often resist nutritional rehabilitation,” emphasized Konstantin Lisetsky, Doctor of Psychological Sciences and Head of the Department of Developmental Psychology at Samara University. “The higher the level of perfectionism, the weaker the connection to one’s body. And the most severe physiological consequence of eating disorders is multi-organ dysfunction—sometimes culminating in infertility. Under chronic starvation, the body deactivates reproductive function as ‘non-essential.’”
The team stresses the urgent need to develop differentiated therapeutic protocols tailored to specific types of perfectionism and to investigate the neuroplasticity of the insular cortex during recovery. Critically, they advocate integrating interoceptive training into standard treatment protocols to achieve sustainable remission.
“Our findings explain why conventional treatments often fail,” added Kopaneva. “You can restore a patient’s weight, but if they still can’t sense hunger, fullness, or fatigue, relapse is almost inevitable. These results empower clinicians to move beyond simply ‘making someone eat’—toward teaching them to reconnect with their body. Even in otherwise healthy individuals who live at a frantic pace—skipping sleep, eating on the go, ignoring stress—this mind-body connection gradually dulls. They lose the ability to distinguish: Am I tired or burned out? Am I hungry or just anxious? Rebuilding that awareness fundamentally transforms quality of life, enabling people to feel joy in movement, vitality, and genuine well-being.”
Photo by Victoria Staroselskaya
