Altered brain structure may play a role in eating disorders, MRI data suggest
Differences in brain structure may play a role in disordered eating behaviors, according to new data shared Friday.
Eating disorders can include undereating, binging and purging after eating. Each of these behaviors can have significant consequences for physical health. Although disordered eating falls under the umbrella of mental health disorders, experts recently uncovered evidence via MRI suggesting that these behaviors could be owed, at least in part, to anatomical alterations in the brain.
The team believes that uncontrolled disordered eating behaviors, which typically begin during adolescence, could further impact the long-term trajectory of brain development. This new information could pave the way for more targeted interventions, authors of the new paper suggested.
“Our findings reveal how delayed brain maturation during adolescence links genetics, mental health challenges and disordered eating behaviors in young adulthood, emphasizing the critical role of brain development in shaping eating habits,” first author of the study Xinyang Yu, PhD, student at King’s College London’s Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN), said in a release on the findings.
For the study, researchers analyzed genetic, behavioral and MRI data from 996 adolescents in the IMAGEN longitudinal cohort in England, Ireland, France and Germany. Each participant underwent MR imaging at ages 14 and 23 and were categorized into three groups based on their eating behaviors: healthy, restrictive, and emotional or uncontrolled eaters.
Imaging of unhealthy eaters (restrictive and emotional/uncontrolled groups) indicated that unhealthy dietary habits at younger ages were linked to delayed or less pronounced brain maturation based on measurements of the volume and thickness of the brain’s cortex. This was especially notable in the cortex of the cerebellum, which controls appetite. The latter finding could help explain instances of higher BMI observed in the 23-year-olds with restrictive eating habits, the authors suggested.
Unhealthy eating behaviors at age 14 also correlated with mental health issues, like anxiety and depression, but BMI was not found to be related.
“By showing that different unhealthy eating behaviors are linked to differential trajectories of mental health symptoms and brain development, our findings may inform the design of more personalized interventions,” Zuo Zhang, IoPPN research fellow, said.
The team did not specify whether the observed alterations in brain structure were a result of or a precursor to disordered eating.
The team suggested their findings could play an important role in spreading awareness of how unhealthy dietary habits in adolescence affect long-term brain health.
The study was published in Nature Mental Health.
In addition to her background in journalism, Hannah also has patient-facing experience in clinical settings, having spent more than 12 years working as a registered rad tech. She began covering the medical imaging industry for Innovate Healthcare in 2021.