Eating disorder symptoms and corresponding evidence-based treatments: a narrative review
Year: 2026
Type: review
Abstract: Eating disorders affect millions worldwide and are associated with serious medical complications, functional impairment, and increased risk of mortality. Yet current treatments are only effective for 40–55% of people, underscoring a dire need for improved and novel interventions. Limited treatment response may be due to (a) the high heterogeneity of eating disorder symptoms and (b) high rates of co-occurrence with other transdiagnostic symptoms, which are not currently addressed in standard treatments. To address this gap, recent work has adopted a symptom-focused perspective to clarify how transdiagnostic symptoms interact and maintain pathology. This approach aims to guide more personalized treatment by identifying symptoms most relevant for each individual. However, this requires a clearer understanding of how eating disorder symptoms and co-occurring symptoms relate to one another. The present review synthesizes 30 common eating disorder and co-occurring symptoms and outlines the associated evidence-based treatments. These symptom–treatment connections are derived from prior empirical symptom network analysis and organized to help clinicians and researchers better understand the functional role of each symptom and the interventions used to address them. By linking symptoms with their corresponding treatment approaches, this review offers a comprehensive and practical reference to support refinement of existing treatment and development of personalized, symptom-level interventions. This framework may assist clinicians and researchers in selecting targeted strategies for individuals. Eating disorders are serious mental health conditions that affect how people think and feel about food, their body, and themselves. They can look very different from person to person, and many symptoms overlap with anxiety, depression, or trauma, which can make it hard to know what to prioritize in treatment. This review highlights 30 symptoms commonly seen across eating disorders—not just anorexia, bulimia, or binge eating disorder. For instance, these include fear of gaining weight, body checking, perfectionism, binge eating, guilt, and anxiety about eating in front of others. For each symptom, we summarize the best available treatments supported by research. Treatments include approaches such as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). We also outline which symptoms are emotional, behavioral, physical, or related to thinking patterns. The goal is to support more personalized care. Rather than providing the same treatment based on diagnosis, we recommend focusing on the symptoms that are most distressing or maintain the eating disorder. This supports delivering care that is more consistent with a person’s presenting symptoms.
Source: Journal of Eating Disorders
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,190
OpenAlex ID: W7119517500