Supplementary file 1_Sex and age effects on binge eating spectrum disorders in young adults: a path analysis.docx

While demographic factors are known to influence eating disorder expression, the specific contributions of sex and age remain unclear. This study examined the impact of sex and age on the clinical presentation of BSED in young adults and explored the underlying pathways using path analysis.</p>Method<p>The sample comprised 187 young adults (119 women, 68 men; 20–45 years) diagnosed with bulimia nervosa (BN, N = 41), binge eating disorder (BED, N = 35), night eating syndrome (NES, N = 30), or OSFED with binge episodes (N = 81).

Measures included eating disorder symptomatology, emotion regulation, impulsivity, drive-to-eat behaviors (food cues, food craving and hunger), and psychological state (anxiety-depression, obsessive-compulsive and perceived stress).</p>Results<p>Sex and age differences were observed only for hunger and food cue responsiveness, with women reporting higher hunger and younger men higher cue responsiveness; no differences emerged for emotion regulation, impulsivity, or psychopathology.