Health · 2026-10-31 · Afternoon briefing

Global eating disorders up 71% as new drugs add to risks

The global incidence of anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa increased by 71% between 1990 and 2023, according to a new report in the journal JAMA Psychiatry. An estimated 18.1 million people were affected by these conditions last year, a figure projected to reach 21.8 million by 2050. The study, led by researchers at the Children’s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, calculated that in 2023 these disorders cost the world the equivalent of 3.83 million years of healthy life.

The trend coincides with the growing popularity of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, which clinicians fear are exacerbating the problem. A recent US study found that 30% of people with eating disorders had used GLP-1s, with 10% appearing to misuse them. A separate Gallup poll suggested 15% of all Americans have used such drugs for weight loss, while US hospitalisations for eating disorders doubled between 2018 and 2020.

Researchers also point to social media as a significant environmental factor. A University of Melbourne study found that TikTok’s algorithms delivered 4343% more “toxic eating disorder videos” to users with the conditions than to other users. Some of those individuals were fed more than 1,000 problematic videos per month.

Summary written by Cup of News with AI from the sources below. Check the originals for the full story.

Read the sources

• GLP-1 Drugs and Eating Disorders: What Research Shows About Benefits, Misuse, and Mental Health
• The Thin Line: GLP-1 Drugs and the Rise of Disordered Eating
• Eating disorders are on the rise. GLP-1s could make things worse.
• How GLP-1 drugs may be leading to new eating disorders
• Are GLP-1s Increasing Eating Disorder Risk?

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