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High levels of disordered eating linked to differences in brain structure - new study

Last updated

10/01/25

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Structural brain differences appear to play a role in the development of restrictive, emotional or uncontrolled eating behaviours, according to new research funded by the Foundation and led by the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s College London. More than half of 23-year-olds in the study showed these unhealthy eating habits.

Eating disorders affect over 1.2 million people in the UK. The National Institute for Heath and Care Excellence estimates that hospital admissions in England for eating disorders increased by a staggering 84% between 2015 and 2021.

To address this alarming rise, there is an urgent need for more research to identify risk factors, common characteristics, and potential early interventions to support people living with life-threatening eating disorders.

Thanks to the findings of this recent study, researchers are closer to understanding the complex brain mechanisms underlying eating disorder behaviours in young people.

Our findings emphasise the critical role of brain development in shaping eating habits.
Dr Zuo Zhang
King's College Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN)
Dr Zuo Zhang

The IoPPN study, published in Nature Mental Health, explores the links between genetics, brain structure and disordered eating behaviours in young people.

Led by Foundation-funded researchers, Dr Zuo Zhang and Prof Sylvane Desrivières, the study highlights the importance of ‘brain maturation’ in determining eating disorder traits in young people - the process by which the volume and thickness of the outer brain layer decreases during adolescence.

The researchers analysed data from a sample of 996 adolescents from the IMAGEN longitudinal cohort in England, Ireland, France and Germany. This well-known European study has followed 2,000 young people from the age of 14 onwards to examine how biological, psychological and environmental factors during adolescence may influence brain development and mental health.

Participants provided genetic data, completed questionnaires about their wellbeing and eating behaviours, and had an MRI scan at ages 14 and 23. At age 23, participants were categorised into three types of eating behaviours: healthy eaters (42%), restrictive eaters (33%) and emotional or uncontrolled eaters (25%).

Restrictive eating behaviours, such as dieting and purging, involve deliberately eating less to control body weight and shape. In contrast, emotional or uncontrolled eating behaviours, like binge-eating, involve eating or overeating when feeling negative emotions or compulsive urges.


Research findings suggest that there is a strong link between emotional and uncontrolled eating, and the tendency to internalise mental health issues like anxiety or depression – something that could be exacerbated with age if patients are left untreated.

Similarly, while common symptoms of externalising psychopathology, such as impulsivity and hyperactivity, often decrease with age, young people with disordered eating behaviours may continue to struggle with these issues into adulthood.

The study additionally reveals that restrictive eaters are more likely to diet throughout their adolescence compared to healthy eaters. Unhealthy eating behaviours are also linked with an increased genetic risk for higher body-mass-index (BMI).

Lastly, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from the study suggests that brain maturation is delayed and less pronounced in those with disordered eating behaviours. In other words, young people displaying eating disorder symptomology could be affected by a slower than typical progression of brain development.

We must improve education aimed at addressing unhealthy dietary habits and maladaptive coping strategies. This could play a crucial role in preventing eating disorders and supporting overall brain health.
Prof Sylvane Desrivières
King's College Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN)
Sylvane Desrivieres

Dr Zuo Zhang comments, “Our findings reveal how delayed brain maturation during adolescence interconnects genetics, mental health challenges, and disordered eating behaviours in young adulthood, emphasising the critical role of brain development in shaping eating habits."

The cerebellum, a brain region that controls appetite, is notably affected. In young people with a genetic risk for high BMI, reduced cerebellum maturation has been linked to a tendency toward restrictive eating behaviours in adulthood.

The study highlights how genetic risk for higher BMI, along with inadequate coping habits for mental health difficulties during adolescence, can contribute to unhealthy eating behaviours through their effects on brain maturation. These findings could help to enhance researchers’ understanding of adolescent neurodevelopment related to eating disorders.

“We must improve education aimed at addressing unhealthy dietary habits and maladaptive coping strategies. This could play a crucial role in preventing eating disorders and supporting overall brain health,” adds Prof Sylvane Desrivières.


Read the full paper here: https://www.nature.com/article...

This article is based on an IoPPN news story.