Eating disorders during a coronavirus pandemic

Eating disorders are primarily characterized as psychiatric disturbances of body weight and shape and are the deadliest psychiatric mental illnesses. It is important to consider the impact of COVID-19 on individuals with eating disorders, the clinical implications, and how treatment expectations and delivery has changed during this global pandemic. We outline that due to restrictions exacerbated by COVID-19, individuals have relied on their eating disorder symptoms as coping mechanisms, engaging in more bingeing and dieting. Research acknowledges that the media during COVID-19, the limits of exercise due to lockdown, food access, family dynamics, and decreased social support due to isolation have all impacted eating disorder symptomatology. In response to COVID-19, treatment delivery has changed significantly, with a heavier reliance on telehealth and creative ways of managing regular weighing and food monitoring.