Addressing Eating Disorder Disparities Among BIPOC Patients

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Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) are often underrepresented in eating disorder research and often overlooked regarding diagnosis and treatment.¹

Organizations like the Renfrew Center, however, aim to bridge the gap in awareness, treatment, and access to resources for BIPOC individuals who may be struggling with eating disorders. In light of BIPOC Mental Health Awareness Month, the Renfrew Center published a study in collaboration with Florida Atlantic University assessing the organization’s Unified Treatment model, addressing both symptoms of and underlying psychological mechanisms associated with eating disorders.

Using this treatment model, participants in the study—analyzing treatment outcomes for 470 BIPOC individuals—experienced a 34% reduction in eating disorder symptoms, a 27% reduction in depression symptoms, and a 17% reduction in anxiety symptoms.¹

Yet, despite these findings, access to resources like the Renfrew Center for BIPOC individuals remains disparate. This is often fueled by misconceptions about who is primarily associated with eating disorders, Gayle Brooks, PhD, vice president and chief clinical officer at The Renfrew Center, said in an interview with The American Journal of Managed Care^® (AJMC^®).

“The field is certainly shifting, and understand that BIPOC individuals or anyone who's really from a marginalized population experiences eating disorders at similar rates as White people and in some instances may have more vulnerability,” she said. “But they're much less likely to be diagnosed and receive treatment.”

Kelly Emelianchik-Key, PhD, an associate professor of clinical mental health counseling at Florida Atlantic University, said in an interview with AJMC that she uses clinical assessment tools to help incoming clinicians and psychologists omit bias when evaluating patients.

“We can't also judge them visually on appearance because eating disorders look very differently,” she said. “I think people are looking for one specific thing when you gauge for an eating disorder, but that's not an actual representation of who comes in.”

References

1. Research on eating disorder treatment outcomes for BIPOC communities. The Renfrew Center. July 16, 2026. Accessed July 29, 2026. https://renfrewcenter.com/the-renfrew-center-publishes-new-study-on-bipoc-treatment-outcomes