Eating disorders climb worldwide, and clinicians worry about GLP-1 misuse

A JAMA Psychiatry study finds anorexia and bulimia incidence up 71% since 1990, while clinicians report GLP-1 misuse among patients.

A study in JAMA Psychiatry, led by Ruhai Bai of the Children's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, estimated the global burden of anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa across 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2023. It pooled survey and study data and used statistical models to fill gaps. Incidence rose 71% over the period. An estimated 18.1 million people had one of the two disorders in 2023, costing about 3.83 million disability-adjusted life years. The researchers project 21.8 million affected by 2050.

The study did not look at causes, and Bai says population growth does not fully explain the rise. It also did not assess GLP-1 drugs. That link comes from clinicians. Cheri Levinson, a University of Louisville clinical psychologist, says she sees more and sicker patients, many misusing GLP-1s. In a small study by her team this year, 30% of people with eating disorders had used the drugs and about 10% appeared to have misused them. She also reports children developing disorders after prescriptions, and children as young as 11 buying the drugs through TikTok. A Gallup survey this year found 15% of Americans had used a GLP-1 for weight loss.

This matters for access because GLP-1s are the most promising route to affordable obesity treatment. If safety concerns about vulnerable patients grow, the likely response is more screening and caution, which could add steps and cost between patients and the drugs. That is our inference. The visible reporting does not describe any prescribing limits or screening requirements.

The evidence is early. Levinson's data come from a small study, her view of worsening trends is anecdotal, and her suggestion that numbers could double again is speculation. There is no good data on trends after 2023, and causation between GLP-1s and eating disorders is not established. Watch for larger studies and any guidance on screening. The source text was also truncated, so the full detail sits with MIT Technology Review.

Source: MIT Tech Review