Beyond Weight Loss: GLP-1 Usage and Appetite Regulation in the Context of Eating Disorders and Psychosocial Processes

Background/Objectives: Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) have revolutionised higher weight and diabetes treatment, but their effects on appetite and reward also intersect with eating, emotional, and body image processes, posing new challenges for eating disorder (ED) re-search and care. This narrative review integrates emerging evidence on how GLP-1RA usage shapes eating behaviours, emotional functioning, and body image within a biopsychosocial and equity framework. Method: Using a narrative, non-systematic approach, recent empirical, theoretical, and clinical literature on GLP-1RA use and its psychological and behavioural effects was thematically synthesised across biological, psycho-logical, and sociocultural domains. Results: GLP-1RAs reduce hunger and binge-eating frequency, indicating potential benefit for binge-type EDs (e.g. bulimia nervosa, binge-eating dis-order). However, evidence for restrictive EDs remains limited, and appetite suppression may reinforce rigid control or perfectionistic tendencies. Alt-hough short-term reductions in emotional eating have been reported, the long-term psychological and mental health safety of GLP-1RA use is unclear. Moreover, rapid, pharmacologically driven weight loss can destabilise body perception, while pervasive social media portrayals of GLP-1RA usage fre-quently glamorise thinness and perpetuate weight stigma. These psychoso-cial dynamics intersect with broader structural inequities—such as disparities in healthcare access and affordability—that disproportionately affect special populations (adolescents and those from culturally/ethnically diverse or so-cioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds), for whom research remains scarce. Conclusions: GLP-1RA use sits at the intersection of metabolic innova-tion and psychological vulnerability. Integrating developmental, cultural, and lived-experience perspectives through co-designed research and multi-disciplinary clinical monitoring will be essential to mitigate stigma, address inequities, and ensure safe, inclusive, and psychologically informed GLP-1RA usage.