Binge eating disorder
Binge eating disorder (BED) is less well-known than Bulimia or Anorexia, but it can be just as debilitating. There is a misconception that the only “real” eating disorders are those that relate to extreme weight loss, but that’s simply not the case. Anyone - no matter their age, sex, or weight - can experience disordered eating. Many clinicians hold to the transdiagnostic theory of eating disorders, which observes that across many disorders including Anorexia, Bulimia, and BED, patterns that maintain the disorder are much the same. Therefore, BED needs to be taken as seriously as any other eating disorder.
The features of BED are as follows:
Repeated episodes of eating large amounts of food within a relatively short time frame (much more than the average person would usually consume in that same time).
A sense of a loss of control during binges, followed by intense feelings of guilt, shame, or sadness afterwards.
May include patterns of eating when not hungry, eating in secret, eating very quickly, planning binges, buying foods specifically to binge, and/or eating past the point of comfortable fullness.
There is no behaviour that follows binge eating to compensate - e.g., there is no post-binge vomiting as is seen in Bulimia.
You’ll notice there is no weight criteria for BED - a person in any weight range may be struggling with BED.
Binge episodes can become habitual, but often they evolve as attempts to self-soothe, triggered by emotions including stress and boredom. Whilst emotional eating is normal, and something we all do from time to time, binges in BED differ in terms of their frequency, the level of distress they bring, and the feeling of total out-of-controlness that comes with them. BED may itself be considered a kind of “symptom” of an underlying difficulty with regulating emotions, or may link to other psychological factors including trauma.
The people I worth with who are living with BED are often feeling desperate about their situation. Compounding things is their belief that they are to blame because they have no willpower, and need to get control of their monstrous hunger. They are often successful and competent humans, who view their eating as the one area they just can’t behave rationally. The diet industry pushes the idea of complete personal responsibility in struggles with weight or food. After all: that’s how the industry can continue to make its fortune. But increasingly we’re understanding that weight management is not really so simple as a move more/eat less equation - there’s so many other environmental, genetic, and social factors at play. On top of this, for those dealing with BED, there is a serious and health-endangering psychological disorder that needs to be treated.
If you suspect you or someone you know may be struggling with BED, you need to seek psychological support via your GP ASAP. The Butterfly Foundation is also an awesome source of further information and support - click here to access their info on BED and contact information for their National Helpline.