First do no harm: the impact of assessing for ultra-processed food addiction on dietary restraint in patients with and without eating disorders during residential treatment

UPFA-informed assessment, psychoeducation and/or treatment did not increase EDE-Q restraint scores. Instead, they declined significantly in ED patients, with no worsening observed. Modest post-treatment correlations between UPFA and EDE-Q global scores but not EDE-Q restraint scores suggest partial but incomplete overlap between EDs and UPFA symptomatology, with caloric restraint confined to EDs alone. These results support their nosological distinction and the feasibility of concurrent treatment without worsening ED-related dietary restraint.