Emotion regulation and body image across the eating disorder symptom severity spectrum: a comparative analysis of young and middle-aged women

Findings underscore the need for developmentally informed, transdiagnostic approaches to ED prevention beyond early adulthood. Subscale-level analyses revealed that commonly defined "risk factors" may also be associated with adaptive or protective patterns, highlighting the complexity of these associations across the female lifespan. These insights support more nuanced, strength-based approaches to inform early detection, prevention, and intervention across the ED spectrum.