Binge Eating Disorder

 FAQ Binge Eating Disorder

Translate this page:

Image:diposite Photos

Binge eating disorder is the most common type of eating disorder in the World. 

People with binge eating disorder often feel out of control and eat a large amount of food at one time (called a binge). Unlike other eating disorders, people who have binge eating disorder do not throw up the food or exercise too much. Binge eating disorder is a serious health problem, but people with binge eating disorder can get better with treatment.

Collapse all

What is binge eating disorder?

Binge eating disorder is a type of eating disorder. Eating disorders are mental health problems that cause extreme and dangerous eating behaviors. These extreme eating behaviors cause other serious health problems and sometimes death. Some eating disorders also involve extreme exercise.

According to the American Psychiatric Association, women with binge eating disorder feel out of control and eat too much (binge), at least once a week for at least three months. During binges women with binge eating disorder usually eat faster than normal, eat until they are uncomfortable, eat when they are not physically hungry, and feel embarrassed, disgusted, or depressed because of the binges. Women with this type of eating disorder may be overweight or obese.

What is the difference between binge eating disorder and other eating disorders?

Women with eating disorders, such as binge eating disorder, bulimia, and anorexia, have a mental health condition that affects how they eat, and sometimes how they exercise. These eating disorders threaten their health.

Unlike people with anorexia or bulimia, people with binge eating disorder do not throw up their food, exercise a lot, or starve themselves. People with binge eating disorder are often overweight or obese. But not all people with binge eating disorder are overweight, and being overweight does not always mean you have binge eating disorder.

It is possible to have more than one eating disorder in your lifetime. Regardless of what type of eating disorder you may have, you can get better with treatment.

Who is at risk for binge eating disorder?

Binge eating disorder affects more than 3% of women in the United States. More than half of people with binge eating disorder are women.

Binge eating disorder affects women of all races and ethnicities. It is the most common eating disorder among Hispanic, Asian-American, and African-American women.

Some women may be more at risk for binge eating disorder.

• Women and girls who diet often are 12 times more likely to binge eat than women and girls who do not diet.
• Binge eating disorder affects more young and middle-aged women than older women. On average, women develop binge eating disorder in their early to mid-20s.6 But eating disorders are happening more often in older women. In one study, 13% of American women over 50 had signs of an eating disorder.

What are the symptoms of binge eating disorder?

It can be difficult to tell whether someone has binge eating disorder. Many women with binge eating disorder hide their behavior because they are embarrassed.  

You may have binge eating disorder if, for at least once a week over the past three months, you have binged. Binge eating disorder means you have at least three of these symptoms while binging:

• Eating faster than normal
• Eating until uncomfortably full
• Eating large amounts of food when not hungry
• Eating alone because of embarrassment
• Feeling disgusted, depressed, or guilty afterward

People with binge eating disorder may also have other mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety, or substance abuse.

What causes binge eating disorder?

Researchers are not sure exactly what causes binge eating disorder and other eating disorders. Researchers think that eating disorders might happen because of a combination of a person's biology and life events. This combination includes having specific genes, a person's biology, body image and self-esteem, social experiences, family health history, and sometimes other mental health illnesses.

Studies suggest that people with binge eating disorder may use overeating as a way to deal with anger, sadness, boredom, anxiety, or stress.

Researchers are studying how changing levels of brain chemicals may affect eating habits. Neuroimaging, or pictures of the brain, may lead to a better understanding of binge eating disorder.

Learn more about current research on binge eating disorder.

How does binge eating disorder affect a woman's health?

Many, but not all, women with binge eating disorder are overweight or obese. Obesity raises your risk for many serious health problems:

• Type 2 diabetes
• Heart disease
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol
• Gallbladder disease
• Certain types of cancer, including breast, endometrial (a type of uterine cancer), colorectal, kidney, esophageal, pancreatic, thyroid, and gallbladder cancer
• Problems with your menstrual cycle, including preventing ovulation, which can make it harder to get pregnant

People with binge eating disorder often have other serious mental health illnesses such as depression, anxiety, or substance abuse. These problems can seriously affect a woman's everyday life and can be treated.

How is binge eating disorder diagnosed?

Your doctor or nurse will ask you questions about your symptoms and medical history. It may be difficult to talk to a doctor or nurse about secret eating behaviors. But doctors and nurses want to help you be healthy. Being honest about your eating behaviors with a doctor or nurse is a good way to ask for help.

Your doctor may also do blood, urine, or other tests for other health problems, such as heart problems or gallbladder disease, that can be caused by binge eating disorder.

How is binge eating disorder treated?

Your doctor may refer you to a team of doctors, nutritionists, and therapists who will work to help you get better.

Treatment plans may include one or more of the following:

• Psychotherapy.Sometimes called "talk therapy," psychotherapy is counseling to help you change any harmful thoughts or behaviors. This therapy may focus on the importance of talking about your feelings and how they affect what you do. For example, you might talk about how stress triggers a binge. You may work one-on-one with a therapist or in a group with others who have binge eating disorder.
• Nutritional counseling. A registered dietitian can help you eat in a healthier way.
• Medicine, such as appetite suppressants or antidepressants prescribed by a doctor. Antidepressants may help some girls and women with binge eating disorder who also have anxiety or depression.

Most girls and women do get better with treatment and are able to eat in healthy ways again. Some may get better after the first treatment. Others get well but may relapse and need treatment again.

How does binge eating disorder affect pregnancy?

Binge eating disorder can cause problems getting pregnant and during pregnancy. Pregnancy can also trigger binge eating disorder.

Obesity raises the level of the hormone estrogen in your body. Higher levels of estrogen can stop you from ovulating, or releasing an egg from the ovary. This can make it more difficult to get pregnant. However, if you do not want to have children right now and have sex, you should use birth control.

Overweight or obesity may also cause problems during pregnancy. Overweight and obesity raises your risk for:

• Gestational hypertension (high blood pressure during pregnancy) and preeclampsia (high blood pressure and kidney problems during pregnancy). If not controlled, both problems can threaten the life of the mother and the baby.
• Gestational diabetes (diabetes that starts during pregnancy). If not controlled, gestational diabetes can cause you to have a large baby. This raises your risk for a C-section.

Pregnancy can raise the risk for binge eating disorder in women who are at higher risk for eating disorders. In one study, almost half of the women with binge eating disorder got the condition during pregnancy. The research suggests that binge eating during pregnancy may be caused by:

• Worry over pregnancy weight gain. Women may binge because they feel a loss of control over their bodies because of the pregnancy weight.
• Greater stress during pregnancy
• Depression
• History of smoking and alcohol abuse
• Lack of social support

After pregnancy, postpartum depression and weight from pregnancy can trigger binge eating disorder in women with a history of binge eating. Women with binge eating disorder before pregnancy often gain more weight during pregnancy than women without an eating disorder. Researchers think that weight gain during pregnancy may cause some women who had binge eating disorder before pregnancy to binge eat during pregnancy.

If I had an eating disorder in the past, can I still get pregnant?

Yes. Women who have recovered from binge eating disorder, are at a healthy weight, and have normal menstrual cycles have a better chance of getting pregnant and having a safe and healthy pregnancy.

Tell your doctor if you had an eating disorder in the past and are trying to become pregnant.

If I take medicine to treat binge eating disorder, can I breastfeed my baby?

Maybe. Some medicines used to treat binge eating disorder can pass through breastmilk. Certain antidepressants can be used safely during breastfeeding.

Talk to your doctor to find out what medicine works best for you. Learn more about medicines and breastfeeding in our Breastfeeding section. You can also enter a medicine into the database to find out if the medicine passes through breastmilk and about any possible side effects for your nursing baby

A Little change also can change your Life

Star Rating

Start Small Changes For Your health:

Small changes can add up for a healthy lifestyle. Choose one change to focus on at a time and have the whole family make the change together! Children learn by watching their role models - and that's you! For example, you may decide to make sure there is a vegetable at evening meals for a week. Once you have your first change down, it's time to celebrate! Do a happy dance or high-five a friend. Then, add another change to your next week. Before you know it, you have found the healthy eating style that works for you and your family.

What is Nutrieat?

Nutrieat is an easy way to see the five food groups that build a healthy diet and can help you find a healthy eating style that works for you and your family. Nutrieat can be a good place to start seeing where healthy changes could be made. But remember focus on one change at a time!

Image: nutrieat.org

Nutrieat: Your Five Food Groups

Main Five Food Groups

The five food groups that make up Nutrieat are Vegetables, Fruits, Grains, Proteins, and Dairy.

Vegetables

Any whole vegetable or 100% vegetable juice counts on Nutrieat! Choose veggies that are fresh, frozen, or canned. Vegetables provide important nutrients that are important for your health.

Quick Tip: If you limit your salt intake – look for low sodium canned vegetables instead, or drain and rinse the vegetables to remove some of the sodium before cooking.

All vegetables are great choices – make some of your choices even better by choosing dark green, red, and orange veggies! Think kale, spinach, red bell peppers, and carrots to get more dark green, red, and orange in your week.

Fruits

Is fruit the perfect sweet addition to any meal or snack? We think so! What counts as a fruit on Nutrieat? Fruits that are fresh, canned, frozen, dried, or 100% fruit juice are all good choices. Choose fresh and whole fruits when you can – like a whole banana, apple, or handful of grapes. Stick with canned fruits that have 100% fruit juice or light syrup instead of heavy syrups. We recommend limiting 100% fruit juice to 1 cup (225 ml) per day.

Grains

Any food made from cereal grains like wheat, oats, and barley falls into this food group. Common grain foods include bread, pasta, crackers, rice, cereal, and tortillas! Grains are a great source of carbohydrates, which our body uses for energy. Aim to choose whole grain sources at least half of the time. These foods not only pack great flavour, but great nutrition! They contain important nutrients and fibre for good health. What are your top grain picks? We love corn tortillas, whole wheat bread, oatmeal, brown rice, and quinoa!

Proteins

Protein foods include both meat and vegetable-based choices! Meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, nuts & seeds, and beans & peas all contain protein and other nutrition for good health. Lean or lower-fat options are more heart healthy, such as lean or extra-lean ground beef, skinless chicken, unsalted nuts, or beans.

Dairy and Substitutes

Milk and many foods made from milk are part of the dairy group. Dairy products, such as milk, yogurt, and cheese, contain many nutrients, such as protein and calcium, for good health. Calcium is important for strong bones and teeth! Soy-milk is also part of the Dairy group if it is fortified with calcium (has calcium added). Aim to choose more low fat and fat-free choices! Dairy is in the blue circle to the side of Nutrieat. Two to three servings per day (1 serving = 225 ml glass of milk) can help most of us meet our daily calcium needs.

Better Beverages: They Learn from Watching You!

“I learned about how much sugar was in some of my family’s favourite drinks and was shocked! We have started cutting back and drinking more water instead. We still drink those old favourites sometimes, but now only as a treat instead of every day.”

There are so many choices when it comes to drinks and beverages! It really can be tough to know which ones are the best options for our families. Many drinks have added sugar, fat, or salt. Balance your beverage choices with activity and healthy foods for a lifestyle that works for you! Get the kids involved, too. They can help make healthy choices at home!

Good And Bad Beverages

Best Choices: Yes! Offer and choose these drinks most often to stay hydrated

• Water (plain or seltzer)
• Unsweetened tea or coffee (limit coffee to 4 cups per day or less)
• 1% or fat-free milk (3 cups per day)

Choose Less Often: Slow Down! These beverages are not as good for you

• Diet Soft Drinks or Sodas
• Flavoured waters
• 100% juice (limit to 1 cup per day)

Choose Rarely: Limit these to rare occasions! These drinks have more added sugars, fats, or alcohol.

• Soft Drinks or Sodas
• Energy or Sports Drinks
• Fruit Flavoured Drinks
• Sweetened Coffee Drinks
• Milkshakes or Smoothies
• Alcoholic Beverage.

Recommendations for Physical Activity in Adults and Kids by American Heart Association

Star Rating

Recommendations for Physical Activity in Adults and Kids

© Image: tyler-lagalo-ZU94isADXDs

Are you fitting in at least 150 minutes (2.5 hours) of heart-pumping physical activity per week? If not, you’re not alone. Only about one in five adults and teens get enough exercise to maintain good health. Being more active can help all people think, feel and sleep better and perform daily tasks more easily. And if you’re sedentary, sitting less is a great place to start.

These recommendations are based on the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition, published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. They recommend how much physical activity we need to be healthy. The guidelines are based on current scientific evidence supporting the connections between physical activity, overall health and well-being, disease prevention and quality of life.

Recommendations for Adults

• Get at least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 75 minutes per week of vigorous aerobic activity, or a combination of both, preferably spread throughout the week.
• Add moderate- to high-intensity muscle-strengthening activity (such as resistance or weights) on at least 2 days per week.
• Spend less time sitting. Even light-intensity activity can offset some of the risks of being sedentary.
• Gain even more benefits by being active at least 300 minutes (5 hours) per week.
• Increase amount and intensity gradually over time.

Recommendations for Kids

• Children 3-5 years old should be physically active and have plenty of opportunities to move throughout the day.
• Kids 6-17 years old should get at least 60 minutes per day of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity, mostly aerobic.
• Include vigorous-intensity activity on at least 3 days per week.
• Include muscle- and bone-strengthening (weight-bearing) activities on at least 3 days per week.
• Increase amount and intensity gradually over time.

What is intensity?

Physical activity is anything that moves your body and burns calories. This includes things like walking, climbing stairs and stretching.

Aerobic (or “cardio”) activity gets your heart rate up and benefits your heart by improving cardiorespiratory fitness. When done at moderate intensity, your heart will beat faster and you’ll breathe harder than normal, but you’ll still be able to talk. Think of it as a medium or moderate amount of effort.

Examples of moderate-intensity aerobic activities:

• brisk walking (at least 2.5 miles per hour)
• water aerobics
• dancing (ballroom or social)
• gardening
• tennis (doubles)
• biking slower than 10 miles per hour

Vigorous intensity activities will push your body a little further. They will require a higher amount of effort. You’ll probably get warm and begin to sweat. You won’t be able to talk much without getting out of breath.

Examples of vigorous-intensity aerobic activities:

• hiking uphill or with a heavy backpack
• running
• swimming laps
• aerobic dancing
• heavy yard-work like continuous digging or hoeing
• tennis (singles)
• cycling 10 km/miles per hour or faster
• jumping rope

Knowing your target heart rate can also help you track the intensity of your activities.

For maximum benefits, include both moderate- and vigorous-intensity activity in your routine along with strengthening and stretching exercises.

What if I’m just starting to get active?

Don’t worry if you can’t reach 150 minutes per week just yet. Everyone has to start somewhere. Even if you've been sedentary for years, today is the day you can begin to make healthy changes in your life. Set a reachable goal for today. You can work up toward the recommended amount by increasing your time as you get stronger. Don't let all-or-nothing thinking keep you from doing what you can every day.

The simplest way to get moving and improve your health is to start walking. It's free, easy and can be done just about anywhere, even in place.

Any amount of movement is better than none. And you can break it up into short bouts of activity throughout the day. Taking a brisk walk for five or ten minutes a few times a day will add up.

If you have a chronic condition or disability, talk with your healthcare provider about what types and amounts of physical activity are right for you before making too many changes. But don’t wait! Get started today by simply sitting less and moving more, whatever that looks like for you.

Here are some of the big wins:

• Lower risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, dementia and Alzheimer’s, several types of cancer, and some complications of pregnancy
• Better sleep, including improvements in insomnia and obstructive sleep apnea
• Improved cognition, including memory, attention and processing speed
• Less weight gain, obesity and related chronic health conditions
• Better bone health and balance, with less risk of injury from falls
• Fewer symptoms of depression and anxiety
• Better quality of life and sense of overall well-being

"Disclaimer: Nutrieat works with a well experienced team.But nutrieat insists before use any type of subject matter mentioned on our website you should ask your concerned professionals about. 

You can ask experienced dieticians of nutrieat through the Ask Us forum below, our team will try to answer your questions as soon as possible. Thanks for visiting nutrieat"