AI in Eating Disorders: Support Tool or Silent Risk?
AI in Eating Disorders: Support Tool or Silent Risk?
Publish Date: 2026-06-13 10:33:00
Source Domain: www.psychologytoday.com
Eating disorders are among the most deadly mental health conditions, particularly for youth. It has been estimated that someone dies from an eating disorder-related issue once every 52 minutes (Deloitte Access Economics, 2020). Despite this, many eating disorders go untreated, with 20 to 25 percent of people never receiving professional care for their symptoms (Solmi et al., 2024). In conjunction with mental health professionals, artificial intelligence (AI) could, in theory, help meet this need by providing accessible, low-cost therapeutic guidance until professional help is available. But a growing body of research suggests that, currently, AI is nearly as likely to cause harm for those with an eating disorder as it is to help provide effective care or prevention.
A Promising Possibility
Most people experience an eating disorder in isolation, not because they don’t want help, but because help is hard to reach. For many, it’s too expensive, and there aren’t enough specialists for individualized treatments. This means waitlists to get initial treatment can stretch for months.
AI cannot replace specialized human care for eating disorders, which are complex and clinically serious conditions. But early research suggests these tools may offer short-term support by helping slow symptom escalation while individuals wait for treatment. In 2025, a rigorous clinical trial tested an AI chatbot called Therabot with adults who were at high risk for eating disorders. Results showed that individuals using Therabot had large reductions in eating disorder–related symptoms compared to those who were waitlisted and rated the experience as comparable to working with a human therapist (Heinz et al., 2025). A randomized controlled trial of Brazilian adolescents aged 13 to 18 found that a brief 72-hour chatbot intervention improved body satisfaction, with the greatest benefits observed among participants who reported higher baseline body-related distress…
