Binge Eating Disorder – What Is It?

Binge Eating Disorder

People with binge eating disorder feel out of control as they eat large amounts of food. Unlike those who have bulimia, people who binge don’t purge, fast, or exercise excessively to lose weight afterward. Binge eating disorder also has been called compulsive overeating, emotional eating, or food addiction.

“It’s not just overeating,” Dr. Mazzeo said. “Binge eating is what we call ‘loss of control eating.’ You feel like you can’t stop, even if you want to.”

The most common of the three types of eating disorders, binge eating affects about 3.5 percent of women and 2 percent of men, and it usually starts during their early 20s.

People with binge eating disorder tend to:

* Binge at least twice a week for at least six months
* Binge in secret
* Binge during a negative mood
* Feel uncomfortably full afterward
* Often feel distressed, guilty, and depressed after binging
* Be overweight or obese
* Because binge eating can lead to weight gain, people with this disease are at risk for type 2 diabetes and nutrition problems. They may also experience insomnia and poor quality of life.

Binge-eating Disorder

Binge-eating disorder, like bulimia, is associated with the rapid consumption of food and with a sense of loss of control over eating but does not include the compensatory behaviors (such as vomiting, excessive exercise or abuse of laxatives, diuretics, or diet pills) used by bulimics to prevent weight gain.

Symptoms include:

* Fear of loss of control over eating
* Bingeing
* Feelings of shame and self-loathing
* Poor self-esteem