Midlife Women Are at Great Risk of Eating Disorders: What To Know (Flow Space, 2026)

Tier 2: Professional organization or credentialed expert guidance
Publisher: Flow Space (Penske Media Corporation) · Published: August 10, 2026 · Accessed: August 25, 2026

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Claims this source supports

• A BMC Medicine study that surveyed 5,500 women found about 15% met criteria for an eating disorder (Flow Space reporting).
• A JAMA Network Open study found one-in-five women have dealt with an eating disorder by age 40 (Flow Space reporting).
• Penn Medicine supervising psychologist Susan Murray: in the 1990s about 5% of inpatient eating-disorder admissions were women 40 and over; in the early 2000s it was about 12%; her 2026 estimate is higher.
• Midlife women with eating disorders are less likely than younger women to cite body image concerns as the trigger; they more often cite stressors like divorce, loss, health concerns, caregiving, or becoming an empty nester.
• Perimenopause/menopause physical changes, aging pressure, and the increasing popularity of GLP-1s all play a role in midlife eating-disorder risk.