Binge eating disorder is more common than anorexia or bulimia

Disorders such as anorexia or bulimia are already common knowledge, we know that it is pathological eating behaviors, with an unhealthy approach to the act of eating.

Anorexia, minimize calorie intake

In the case of anorexia brutal control is exercised to minimize calorie intake, obeying an unjustified terror to obesity.

The individual perceives a distorted self image, which looks and feels always fat and unattractive, so it is obliged to monitor the quantity and quality of what eaten. Often they resort to postprandial vomiting or increasing physical exercise, use of laxatives and diuretics, to be in a downward spiral of loss of unhealthy weight, which involves vitamin A deficiency and important metabolic and hormonal changes which if not urgently treated can lead to starvation.

Bulimia, uncontrolled eating and repentance

In bulimia, what reigns is the lack of control when eating. In a very short period I could eat compulsively an absurd amount of food, especially carbohydrates like pastries, pasta or potatoes, as this food group is associated with a calming effect, soothing or complacency through an immediate rise glycemic. But inevitably the binging always accompanied by physical discomfort and a sense of guilt and regret.

So to alleviate and compensate the emotional stress, we resort to the use of purgatives also, laxatives or other mechanisms to help get rid of excess calories consumed.

Binge eating disorder, the most common

But clinical experience universally shows that among all types of eating disorders, the most common and occupies more attention from both physicians and psychologists and psychiatrists, is neither of the two previously mentioned, but disorder binging.

Symptoms of binge eating disorder

It is also characterized by impulsive episodes of eating too much too fast, but usually done secretly, because of the feeling of shame that one experiences. Also after gorging they suffer from physical discomfort, anxiety and depression, but it is accompanied by compensatory behaviors used in other modes.

Therefore, these people are gaining weight, tend to obesity, which always lowers self-esteem and leads to chronic worry of how their behavior leads to worsening of depression. They are people who often decide to start a diet, in public often eat little or very narrowly and are often subject to many ups and downs, both in weight and emotional management.

Psychological symptoms of binge eating disorder

Binge eating disorder in Western societies affects up to 3.5% of women, men and 2% to 1.6% of adolescents. It is generally associated with symptoms of depression, boredom, existential emptiness, anxiety, guilt or extreme embarrassment.

Like many other psychiatric conditions, people who suffer from this disorder feel also very stigmatized, so identifying it as a "new" disorder in recent DSM-5, has helped disclosure as a real disease, different from the person you just love to eat and awareness by all provide them with the right treatment.

Binge Eating Disorder Treatment

The treatment of binge eating disorder, must be performed by a professional psychologist or psychiatrist , an expert on eating disorders. Such treatment will include a good therapeutic relationship through a close and frequent psychotherapy to explore the causes or triggers of abnormal behavior and assess the existence or absence of comorbidity such as depression or other disorders impulsivity.

The type of psychotherapy to treat binge eating disorder is a mixture of various forms, either cognitive-behavioral or interpersonal or active acceptance, according to the individual patient profile.

Always, according to the symptoms, it appreciates the need to add a psychotropic drug, the serotonergic or dual action antidepressants and anxiolytics can also be very useful in the face of an effective long - term treatment.