Brain Structure Differences May Influence Disordered Eating in Young Adults: Study Finds - Video

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

The study, published in Nature Mental Health, investigates the links between

genetics, brain structure and disordered eating behaviours in young people. Researchers found that the process of ‘brain maturation’, whereby the volume and thickness of the cortex (the outer layer of the brain) decreases during adolescence, is a factor in whether teenagers develop restrictive or emotional/uncontrolled eating behaviours in young adulthood.

The researchers analysed data from 996 adolescents in the IMAGEN longitudinal cohort in England, Ireland, France and Germany. 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 per cent), restrictive eaters (33 per cent) and emotional or uncontrolled eaters (25 per cent).

The study found that the three groups had different patterns of mental health and behaviour over time.

Young people with unhealthy eating behaviours at age 23 had higher levels of both internalising problems (for example, anxiety or depression) and externalising problems (for example, hyperactivity, inattention or conduct problems) at age 14, compared to healthy eaters. Internalising problems significantly increased with age between 14 to 23 among unhealthy eaters. Although externalising problems decreased with age in all groups, overall levels were higher among those with emotional or uncontrolled eating.

Restrictive eaters dieted more throughout adolescence compared to healthy eaters. Emotional/uncontrolled eaters increased their dieting between ages 14 to 16 and binge eating between ages 14 to 19, compared to healthy eaters. Unhealthy eating behaviours were linked with obesity and increased genetic risk for high BMI.

Results also indicated that brain maturation was delayed and less pronounced in unhealthy eaters. In particular, reduced maturation of the cerebellum – a brain region that controls appetite – helped explain the link between genetic risk for high BMI and restrictive eating behaviours at age 23.

Reference: Yu, X., Zhang, Z., Herle, M. et al. Relationships of eating behaviors with psychopathology, brain maturation and genetic risk for obesity in an adolescent cohort study. Nat. Mental Health 3, 58–70 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44220-024-00354-7