Food insecurity is associated with eating disorders independent of depression and anxiety: Findings from the 2020–2021 Healthy Minds Study

Abstract

The association between food insecurity and EDs was replicated in a large, national sample of university students. To our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the independence of this relationship after adjusting for depression/anxiety. This finding supports the hypothesis that specific mechanisms, rather than general psychological distress, likely underlie the food insecurity-ED relationship.