More About BED

Causes of Binge-Eating Disorder

No-one is quite sure what causes BED, but there are several factors that have been shown to raise the risk of developing the eating disorder:

• Low self-esteem
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Dissatisfaction with your body
• Negative feelings (for example: stress, loneliness, boredom, or anger)
• Traumatic personal history (for example, a history of abuse)
• Having previously been on a restrictive diet where you cut-out food groups, skipped meals, or ate small portions with few calories.
• Family history of eating disorder

Treatment of Binge-Eating Disorder

Treatment for binge eating disorder has two aims: to tackle the underlying psychological issues, and to help with your weight management. The first priority is to help with the psychological issues, as it's impossible to tackle your weight without dealing with those issues first.

Treatment often includes medication, such as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRIs). Therapy comes in several forms:

• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, which aims to alter maladaptive thoughts about food into healthy ones
• Self-help, which may involve using a book or working with a self-help group
• Group therapy, which involves working in a therapeutic group under the supervision of a therapist.

When therapy is underway, and the psychological issues are being dealt with, you may work with a nutritional professional to decide on a balanced diet that will be healthy and help you lose weight.

It's important to attend both parts of the treatment. Therapy alone won't help you reach a health weight, and losing weight won't tackle your psychological issues.

Serotonin and BED

As part of your treatment, you may be prescribed selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). These may be useful for a while, helping to life and regulate your mood, which will improve your eating habits in the short-term.

This is partly because people with binge-eating disorder often binge on carb-rich sugary foods that boost the serotonin in the body and give your mood a life. For individuals with BED, who have low self-esteem and feel full of guilt and self-loathing, this temporary boost is addictive, which drives them to binge more.

By replicating the serotonin boost without food, SSRIs help the person feel good about themselves, and teach them they don't need to binge to do it.

However, the long-term effectiveness of SSRIs as the treatment of BED is unknown.

Make Peace with Food

If you have BED, your first step is to accept that food is not the enemy. There are no "good" or "bad" foods. You must free yourself from that cycle of shame. This means that, if it's dinnertime and you want a pie with thick pastry and chockfull of meat and potatoes, don't go having a green salad instead. All that does is put you and food on opposite sides.

Remember: food isn't like other addictions. You need it to live.

If you crave something, don't deny yourself it. That just makes it more likely you'll binge later on. Have that pie. Enjoy it. Feel the pleasure of eating. Then move on.

READ Eating Disorders (Anorexia, Bulimia and Binge Eating) Among Males Becoming Common

Think you have BED?

If you think you have binge-eating disorder, it's time to do something about it. Book an appointment with your GP or primary care physician. They will be able to refer you to a therapist or an appropriate programme. Any health problems you may already be facing won't improve as this condition gets worse. So bite the bullet and get the help you need for this serious disorder.

You owe it to your body.