{"id":26406,"date":"2025-06-25T15:51:45","date_gmt":"2025-06-25T15:51:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/?p=26406"},"modified":"2025-06-25T15:51:48","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T15:51:48","slug":"new-study-reveals-diverse-roots-of-disordered-eating-in-college-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/new-study-reveals-diverse-roots-of-disordered-eating-in-college-students\/","title":{"rendered":"New Study Reveals Diverse Roots of Disordered Eating in College Students"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-blockquote uagb-block-e7eb3fc3 uagb-blockquote__skin-border uagb-blockquote__stack-img-none\"><blockquote class=\"uagb-blockquote\"><div class=\"uagb-blockquote__content\">A new multi-institutional study reveals diverse patterns of disordered eating among college students, challenging stereotypes and underscoring the importance of tailored mental health support.<\/div><footer><div class=\"uagb-blockquote__author-wrap uagb-blockquote__author-at-left\"><\/div><\/footer><\/blockquote><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-content-justification-space-between is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-b0ffac9c wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\"><div style=\"font-size:16px\" class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-post-author\"><div class=\"wp-block-post-author__content\"><p class=\"wp-block-post-author__name\">The University Network<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share uagb-social-share__outer-wrap uagb-social-share__layout-horizontal uagb-block-ee584a31\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-ec619ce7\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"facebook\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 512 512\"><path d=\"M504 256C504 119 393 8 256 8S8 119 8 256c0 123.8 90.69 226.4 209.3 245V327.7h-63V256h63v-54.64c0-62.15 37-96.48 93.67-96.48 27.14 0 55.52 4.84 55.52 4.84v61h-31.28c-30.8 0-40.41 19.12-40.41 38.73V256h68.78l-11 71.69h-57.78V501C413.3 482.4 504 379.8 504 256z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-32d99934\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?url=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"twitter\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 512 512\"><path d=\"M389.2 48h70.6L305.6 224.2 487 464H345L233.7 318.6 106.5 464H35.8L200.7 275.5 26.8 48H172.4L272.9 180.9 389.2 48zM364.4 421.8h39.1L151.1 88h-42L364.4 421.8z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-social-share-child uagb-ss-repeater uagb-ss__wrapper uagb-block-1d136f14\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__link\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?url=\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"linkedin\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-wrap\"><span class=\"uagb-ss__source-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M416 32H31.9C14.3 32 0 46.5 0 64.3v383.4C0 465.5 14.3 480 31.9 480H416c17.6 0 32-14.5 32-32.3V64.3c0-17.8-14.4-32.3-32-32.3zM135.4 416H69V202.2h66.5V416zm-33.2-243c-21.3 0-38.5-17.3-38.5-38.5S80.9 96 102.2 96c21.2 0 38.5 17.3 38.5 38.5 0 21.3-17.2 38.5-38.5 38.5zm282.1 243h-66.4V312c0-24.8-.5-56.7-34.5-56.7-34.6 0-39.9 27-39.9 54.9V416h-66.4V202.2h63.7v29.2h.9c8.9-16.8 30.6-34.5 62.9-34.5 67.2 0 79.7 44.3 79.7 101.9V416z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Disordered eating among college students is a multifaceted issue that demands personalized mental health care, according to a new study by researchers from the University of Cincinnati, West Virginia University School of Public Health, Miami University and West Virginia University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;The study highlights how complex disordered eating can be and emphasizes the need for personalized mental health care,&#8221; co-author Rose Marie Ward, a psychology researcher at the University of Cincinnati, said in a news release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to the National Eating Disorders Association, eating disorders are most prevalent among young adults. But there\u2019s a persistent but flawed belief that eating disorders predominantly affect white, affluent, teenage girls. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This study, <a href=\"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/article\/10.1186\/s40337-025-01299-7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">published<\/a> in the Journal of Eating Disorders, reveals that disordered eating is far more demographically widespread with diverse causes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The researchers examined the health survey data of 1,362 college students aged 18-24. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The findings identified five distinct patterns of disordered eating behaviors, each linked to varying levels of anxiety, distress tolerance and alcohol use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One notable finding revealed that nearly 8% of the students exhibited high anxiety levels coupled with severe disordered eating. Approximately 70% of this group identified as women and displayed elevated scores across multiple psychological risk factors, indicating the presence of several overlapping mental health challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;This finding is important because it shows that anxiety plays a major role in the most severe cases of disordered eating,&#8221; added Ward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Another unexpected discovery was a group comprising nearly 10% of the sample, mostly male students, who engaged in excessive exercise and muscle-building behaviors. This group reported some of the lowest levels of anxiety and emotional distress. The behavior is reminiscent of what some term &#8220;drunkorexia,&#8221; where individuals balance heavy drinking with compensatory eating and fitness habits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;These results show that disordered eating isn\u2019t one-size-fits-all,&#8221; Ward added, emphasizing that some students might use food, exercise or alcohol in ways masked as healthy behaviors but which indicate deeper issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The study&#8217;s findings suggest that seemingly healthy behaviors, like excessive exercise, could be overlooked, particularly in individuals who do not show typical signs of emotional distress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;Our findings challenge the idea that disordered eating only exists in extreme or obvious forms,&#8221; added lead author Elizabeth Claydon, an assistant professor at the West Virginia University School of Public Health. &#8220;By recognizing the full range of behaviors and their psychological roots, we can create more effective, customized support systems for students.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:9px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Source:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uc.edu\/news\/articles\/2025\/06\/study-of-college-students-and-disordered-eating.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">University of Cincinnati<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Disordered eating among college students is a multifaceted issue that demands personalized mental health care, according to a new study by researchers from the University of Cincinnati, West Virginia University School of Public Health, Miami University and West Virginia University. &#8220;The study highlights how complex disordered eating can be and emphasizes the need for personalized [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"single-no-separators","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[403,280,404,402],"class_list":["post-26406","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-health","tag-miami-university","tag-university-of-cincinnati","tag-west-virginia-university","tag-west-virginia-university-school-of-public-health"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"The University Network","author_link":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/author\/funky_junkie\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Disordered eating among college students is a multifaceted issue that demands personalized mental health care, according to a new study by researchers from the University of Cincinnati, West Virginia University School of Public Health, Miami University and West Virginia University. &#8220;The study highlights how complex disordered eating can be and emphasizes the need for personalized&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26406","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26406"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26406\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26419,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26406\/revisions\/26419"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26406"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26406"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26406"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}