Eating Disorder

An eating disorder is marked by extremes. It is present when a person experiences severe disturbances in eating behavior, such as extreme reduction of food intake or extreme overeating, or feelings of extreme distress or concern about body weight or shape.

What is an Eating Disorder?

Eating disorders are a type of serious mental health condition characterized by severe disturbances in eating behaviors and related thoughts and emotions.

What Causes Eating Disorders?

Eating Disorder Signs

Eating Disorders Diagnosis

Eating Disorder Treatments

Eating Disorder Symptoms

Night Eating Disorder / Syndrome

Binge-Eating Disorder Causes

Binge-Eating Disorder Treatment

Binge-Eating Disorder Signs and Symptoms

What Causes Binge Eating Disorder?

Health Risks of Binge Eating Disorder

See more featured articles »

What is Pica Eating Disorder?

Diabulimia Eating Disorder

Emotional Overeating

What is Rumination Disorder / Syndrome?

What is Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder?

Eating Disorders in Children

Early Attachment and Anorexia

What is Binge Eating Disorder?

What Does a Diagnosis of Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS) Mean?

Eating Disorders and Social Media

Latest Eating Disorder News and Research

New review explores the key gender differences in sleep, circadian rhythms and metabolism

A new review of research evidence has explored the key differences in how women and men sleep, variations in their body clocks, and how this affects their metabolism.

12 Apr 2024

New hope for binge eating and bulimia: GLP-1 drugs could be the key

GLP-1 receptor agonists show promise in reducing binge eating behaviors in disorders like bulimia nervosa, offering a new avenue for treatment with minimal side effects.

4 Mar 2024

Early childhood appetite traits linked to adolescent eating disorders, study finds

The longitudinal relationships between appetitive qualities in early childhood and eating problem symptoms in adolescence.

23 Feb 2024

Overcoming barriers to eating disorder treatment for low-income patients

Individuals with eating disorders who have low income are frequently misdiagnosed and lack adequate access to appropriate therapy, according to researchers from Weill Cornell Medicine and Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.

20 Feb 2024

Early childhood food responsiveness may predict eating disorder symptoms

An enthusiastic response to food in early childhood may be linked to a higher likelihood of experiencing eating disorder symptoms in adolescence, according to a new study led by researchers at UCL and Erasmus University Rotterdam.

20 Feb 2024

Adolescent males with anorexia nervosa have higher mortality rates

Anorexia nervosa affects males as well as females, and affected males have a sixfold higher mortality rate than males in the general population. A new article published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) aims to raise awareness of this life-threatening eating disorder.

20 Feb 2024

What is the prevalence of use of nonprescribed and medically unapproved weight-loss products in adolescents?

The researchers used four major databases to collate relevant studies on the use of nonprescribed weight loss aids by teenagers around the world.

10 Jan 2024

The link between circadian rhythm and night eating syndrome

Night eating syndrome (NES) symptomatology and its possible links with circadian rhythm.

9 Jan 2024

Research identifies genetic connection between anorexia and morning chronotype

New research indicates that the eating disorder anorexia nervosa is associated with being an early riser, unlike many other disorders that tend to be evening-based such as depression, binge eating disorder and schizophrenia.

4 Jan 2024

Eating disorder claim lines increase significantly from 2018 to 2022

From 2018 to 2022, eating disorder claim lines increased 65 percent nationally as a percentage of all medical claim lines.

15 Nov 2023

Does narcissism drive our body image and dietary choices?

Study evaluates the relationship between narcissism and body image concerns, revealing how narcissistic traits influence desires for thinness and muscularity, and related dietary behaviors, with variations noted across genders.

13 Nov 2023

Pediatric mental health crisis skyrocketed and persisted during the pandemic

Mental health crises among children and adolescents requiring emergency department care skyrocketed during the pandemic and have stayed elevated despite a return to normalcy, according to a study by Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian investigators.

20 Oct 2023

New research calls for shift in thinking about ultra-processed food addiction

Researchers from the United States, Brazil, and Spain, including scientists with the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, published an analysis in a special edition of the British Medical Journal with a timely and controversial recommendation: It's time for an international shift in the way we think about ultra-processed food.

9 Oct 2023

Eating disorder emergency room visits and hospitalizations increased during COVID-19 pandemic

Emergency department (ED) visits and hospital admissions for eating disorders increased during the COVID-19 pandemic in adolescents aged 10–17 years, as did ED visits among young adults and older adults, according to new research published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.221318.

3 Oct 2023

New brain biomarker predicts recovery from treatment-resistant depression

Using a novel deep brain stimulation (DBS) device capable of recording brain signals, researchers have identified a pattern of brain activity or "biomarker" related to clinical signs of recovery from treatment-resistant depression.

20 Sep 2023

Cyberbullying victimization and perpetration associated with eating disorder symptoms in adolescents

In a study of US adolescents, both victims and perpetrators of cyberbullying were more likely than other youth to experience eating disorder symptoms.

7 Sep 2023

ADHD linked to risk for several common and serious mental health issues

The hyperactivity disorder, usually referred to as ADHD, is an independent risk factor for several common and serious mental health issues, finds research published in the open access journal BMJ Mental Health.

5 Sep 2023

Floatation therapy may be a novel treatment for anorexia nervosa

A trailblazing study conducted by researchers at the Laureate Institute for Brain Research (LIBR) in Tulsa, Okla., has made significant strides with a novel technique for treating anorexia nervosa (AN), an eating disorder characterized by low body weight, body image abnormalities, and anxiety.

29 Aug 2023