*3.2. Eating-Related Symptomatology: EDEQ, SSES, SEES, DEBQ, PSRS, FCTQ, & YFAS 2.0*

EDE-Q total scores of disordered eating varied significantly between groups, *F*(2, 125) = 62.82, *p* < 0.001, *η*<sup>2</sup> = 0.50, with OB-BED scoring higher than OB and CO, *p*s < 0.008, and OB scoring higher than CO, *p* < 0.001. Expectedly, the analysis of subcategory scores replicated the effect, *F*(8, 244) = 20.88, *p* < 0.001, *η*<sup>2</sup> = 0.27, Wilk's Λ = 0.41, with OB-BED and OB showing higher scores than CO on Restraint, Eating Concern, Weight Concern, and Shape Concern scales, *p*s < 0.002. With the exception of restraint, *p* = 1.00, OB-BED also scored consistently higher than OB, *p*s < 0.007.

Emotional eating according to SEES subscales varied by group, *F*(8, 250) = 9.23, *p* < 0.001, *η*<sup>2</sup> = 0.23, Wilk's Λ = 0.60, with OB-BED scoring lower on the happiness subcategory than CO, *p* = 0.02, but not OB, *p* = 1.00. OB-BED scored higher on the sadness, anger, and fear subcategories than both OB and CO, *p*s < 0.001. With the exception of higher sadness scores for OB than CO, *p* = 0.03, OB and CO were not significantly different, *p*s > 0.07.

SSES mean scores for general stress eating tendencies also differed significantly between groups, *F*(2, 127) = 29.77, *p* < 0.001, *η*<sup>2</sup> = 0.32, with CO scoring lower than OB, *p* = 0.04, and OB-BED, *p* < 0.001, and OB scoring lower than OB-BED, *p* < 0.001.

On the DEBQ, scores differed between groups across restraint, external eating and emotional eating subscales, *F*(8, 246) = 11.31, *p* < 0.001, *η*<sup>2</sup> = 0.27, Wilk's Λ = 0.53. CO scored significantly lower on restraint eating behaviors than OB, *p* = 0.03, but not lower than OB-BED, *p* = 1.00, with OB and OB-BED remaining comparable, *p* = 0.21. On the external eating subscale, OB-BED scored higher than OB and CO, *p*s < 0.001, with OB and CO remaining comparable, *p* = 0.82. Finally, on both subscales of emotional eating, OB-BED scored higher than OB and CO, *p*s < 0.001, and OB scored higher than CO, *p*s < 0.002.

In terms of the PSRS perceived success in dieting scores, group differences were obtained, *F*(2, 120) = 80.71, *p* < 0.001, *η*<sup>2</sup> = 0.57, due to CO scoring significantly higher than both OB and OB-BED groups, *p*s <.001. OB and OB-BED did not differ in terms of PSRS, *p* = 0.07.

FCTQ food craving total scores differed significantly between groups, *F*(2, 121) = 58.02, *p* < 0.001, *η*<sup>2</sup> = 0.49, with OB-BED scoring higher than OB and CO, *p*s < 0.001, and OB scoring higher than CO, *p* < 0.001. This pattern reproduced consistently across FCTQ subscales (OB-BED > OB > CO, *p*s < 0.001), *F*(12, 232) = 9.10, *p* < 0.001, *η*<sup>2</sup> = 0.32, Wilk's Λ = 0.46, with the exception of the food-cue elicited craving, which did not differ between OB and CO, *p* = 0.38.

Finally, food addiction symptoms based on the YFAS 2.0 differed significantly across groups, *F*(2, 128) = 45.66, *p* < 0.001, *η*<sup>2</sup> = 0.42, with OB-BED scoring higher than OB and CO, *p*s < 0.001, and OB scoring higher than CO, *p* < 0.001. A Chi-squared test of independence revealed that groups also differed in terms of the clinical significance of food addiction symptoms, χ<sup>2</sup> (df = 2) = 49.97, *p* < 0.001, with 0% of CO, 40% of OB and 76% of OB-BED

indicating clinically significant impairments. However, of those classified as severe food addicted (*n* = 31), 61% were in the OB-BED group and 39% were in the OB group, which did not significantly differ from the expected values based on sample size distribution, *p* = 0.67.
