title: Visual evaluation of food amount in patients affected by Anorexia Nervosa.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The study compares visual evaluation of an amount of food and an amount of nonedible objects in patients affected by Anorexia Nervosa and control subjects.
  
  
  METHODS
  59 anorexic subjects were asked to evaluate an amount of candies and plastic bricks shown to them. Their answers were compared to both the real number of objects and the parallel evaluations given by 56 control subjects.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were no significant differences in stimuli evaluation between patients affected by AN and control subjects. Both groups reported a significantly lower number of both candies and bricks in comparison to their real number.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In an experimental condition not related with food intake there is the same under-evaluation of the amount of presented food and nonedible objects among patients affected by AN and Control Subjects. The clinical finding of overestimation of food intake among patients affected by AN seems not to be due to a perceptive bias.
authors.affiliation: Studi Cognitivi Research Group, Post-graduate Cognitive Psychotherapy School, Foro Bonaparte 57, 20121 Milano, Italy. piervinai@tin.it
authors.forename: Piergiuseppe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vinai
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cardetti
authors.forename: Noemi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ferrato
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vallauri
authors.forename: Gabriella
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Carpegna
authors.forename: Donatella
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Masante
authors.forename: Gianluigi
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Luxardi
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Todisco
authors.forename: Fausto
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Manara
authors.forename: Giovanni Maria
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Ruggiero
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sassaroli
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000856:Anorexia Nervosa / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000178:diet therapy / Q000523:psychology*; D052018:Bulimia Nervosa / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D002182:Candy; D004193:Discrimination Learning; D004435:Eating; D002149:Energy Intake; D005260:Female; D005502:Food; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010469:Perceptual Distortion; D012016:Reference Values; D012858:Size Perception; D015430:Weight Gain