Binge Eating

Definition

Binge eating is eating a large amount of food in a small amount of time. It is distinguished from overeating because it is accompanied by a feeling of a loss of self-control while eating. The process of the binge is engrossing, pleasant, and can have a frantic quality. At some point the bingeing ends, and the binger is usually upset, embarrassed, and full of negative thoughts and feelings about his or behavior and self.

Analysis

Binge eating is significantly more common among women, although a small number of men engage in it as well (often as part of a social group such as an athletic team where weight is an issue). Binge eating is often done in private, although it can happen as part of a small social group.

Binge eating is a main component in two recognized psychological disorders: bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder. The behavioral pattern of binge eating, however, is essentially a large exaggeration of a normal phenomenon. It is typical for Americans to eat large amounts of calories at special events, holidays, parties, and so on. This is often followed by dieting, increased exercise and activity levels, and a conscious decision to diet or otherwise reduce weight and food intake. Occasional food binges are common enough among men and women, but repeated binge eating, often done alone and with a loss of control, followed by increased depression, lowered self-esteem, and [Page 118]other dark thoughts are considered to be a sign of a significant problem.

People who are concerned about their body image, their weight, and their physical appearance and attractiveness are most likely to engage in binge eating. This is probably because these kinds of psychological concerns lead to dieting. Successful dieting is very difficult, and there are numerous physiological and neurological mechanisms that can act powerfully to maintain body weight. Dieters are often very hungry, smells and tastes improve in their urgency, and foodrelated thoughts can dominate the dieter's day. If a dieter engages in what is known as “black and white thinking,” with a strong line drawn between “good” and “bad” foods, between “healthy” and “unhealthy” eating, then any small falling off of a diet, even a bite or two of a forbidden food becomes a significant and total failure. This small failing has the effect of disinhibiting eating—when a person has crossed the line into forbidden territory, the next bad behavior is not much more of an offense. With this kind of thinking, bingeing can spiral out of control. When it ends, the binger is left with self-blame, guilt, and unhappiness. This in turns leads to renewed commitment to dieting, exercise, and lowering caloric intake. This in turn sets up the next bingeing episode.

The clinical evidence for this cycle is excellent and is much the same for people who have trouble controlling their drinking, gambling, smoking and other drug taking, or sexual appetites. The most important difference between binge eating and binge drinking or gambling, sexual binges, or drug addictions is that eating is a normal and essential part of life, and one cannot forswear eating. This makes the careful management of eating, allowing some eating—but not too much—more important, and self-control becomes especially difficult. Stress, life challenges, or simply depletion from working on other problems all make self-control more difficult, and this can increase the probability of setting of a binge.

...