Binge eating disorder
Binge eating disorder (BED) is an eating disorder characterized by frequent and recurrent binge eating episodes with associated negative psychological and social problems, but without the compensatory behaviors common to bulimia nervosa, OSFED, or the binge-purge subtype of anorexia nervosa.
| Binge eating disorder | |
|---|---|
| Periwinkle ribbon for awareness of pulmonary hypertension, eating disorders, and esophageal cancer | |
| Specialty | Psychiatry, Clinical Psychology |
| Symptoms | Eating much faster than normal, eating until feeling uncomfortably full, eating a large amount when not hungry |
| Complications | Obesity, tooth decay, diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, acid reflux, heartburn, amenorrhea, disruptions in sleep |
| Causes | Unclear |
| Risk factors | Low self-esteem, family history of eating disorders, childhood abuse or trauma, anxiety, depression, drug and alcohol use |
| Diagnostic method | Psychiatry, psychology |
| Differential diagnosis | Bulimia nervosa |
| Treatment | Psychiatry, psychology |
| Medication | Lisdexamfetamine, Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor |
BED is a recently described condition, which was required to distinguish binge eating similar to that seen in bulimia nervosa but without characteristic purging. Individuals who are diagnosed with bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder exhibit similar patterns of compulsive overeating, neurobiological features of dysfunctional cognitive control and food addiction, and biological and environmental risk factors. Some professionals consider BED to be a milder form of bulimia with the two conditions on the same spectrum.
Binge eating is one of the most prevalent eating disorders among adults, though there tends to be less media coverage and research about the disorder in comparison to anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa.