Which statement best describes health anxiety in Illness Anxiety Disorder?

• A. It involves a high level of anxiety about health and alarm about personal health status
• B. It is primarily about fear of dying from any illness
• C. It always accompanies overt somatic symptoms
• D. It is unrelated to health status

Answer: (A)

Illness anxiety disorder centers on a persistent preoccupation with having or acquiring a serious illness, which drives a high level of anxiety about health and frequent alarm about one’s own health status. This focus is the key: despite little to no serious somatic symptoms, the worry about health remains intense and persistent.

This makes the first statement the best description. It captures both the level of health-related anxiety and the reactive alarm about personal health. The other ideas don’t fit as well: fearing dying from any illness misses the core focus on having or acquiring a serious illness rather than death itself; somatic symptoms aren’t required and can be minimal or absent in this condition; and being unrelated to health status directly contradicts the defining preoccupation.