Sensory processing, notably taste/smell and hypersensitivities, was associated with a broad range of eating behaviours in autism, although no study looked at disordered eating outcomes.

There are clear implications for the development of sensory-based eating interventions in clinical and subclinical populations, highlighting the need for considering and adjusting for unique sensory needs in treatment approaches.

A broader investigation of different sensory profiles and disordered eating outcomes across development will allow us to untangle the role of sensory processing in autism and eating behaviours.

ARFID prevalence estimates vary widely across studies and are highest in specialist feeding clinics. The one incidence study to date suggests that new presentations to clinical care are relatively rare.

ARFID has a high rate of psychiatric comorbidity especially with anxiety disorders.

Further epidemiological studies, especially using national surveillance methodology, will help planning and resource allocation for this patient group.

‘Mindful eating’ added to treatment as usual (TAU) is more effective than TAU alone for reducing the emotional eating pattern of obese and overweight patients in primary care (PC) settings.

The programme produced improvements in secondary outcomes such as external eating, the severity of bulimic symptoms, the frequency of binge episodes, and some mindfulness and self-compassion facets.

The body mass index (BMI) and other physiological variables were not significantly reduced by the ‘Mindful eating’ programme; future studies should try to overcome some methodological shortcomings of the present study.

Early intervention for eating disorders is in its infancy.

We summarise existing early intervention approaches for eating disorders from around the globe.

We propose key policy, service, clinician, and research recommendations to progress early intervention for eating disorders.

Eating disorders in childhood and adolescence negatively impact many areas of development and functioning in children, adolescents, and their families.

Psychoeducation for children, adolescents and parents plays an important role in the treatment of eating disorders.

Psychoeducation can lead to positive outcomes for patients, their caregivers or both. It can lead to weight gain, a decrease in eating disorder symptoms, and a reduction in caregiver burden.

Psychoeducation appears to be an effective treatment for eating disorders, but there is a need for more randomized controlled trials in this area.

This scoping review indicates that autistic women exhibit both eating behaviours frequently seen in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and disordered eating behaviours, similar to those of women with eating disorders.

The review also indicates that studies investigating these eating behaviours of autistic women are still very scarce, and those that are available often lack a comprehensive assessment of the ASD diagnosis.

Future studies are needed to confirm the findings and to further explore how and why autistic women eat the way they eat, in order to help to adapt current treatment modalities to meet the unique needs of these women.