Bulimia and binge eating disorder, commonly referred to as BED, involve the individual consuming vast numbers of calories in a binge episode. The main difference between the two eating disorder is that while bulimia sufferers also purge as an attempt to compensate for the large amount of calories consumed in a binge (through compulsive exercise, self-induced vomiting, laxative misuse, diuretics, emetics and diet pills), those suffering from BED do not get rid of the food they consume and thus tend to have a high BMI.
There are two main groups of factors commonly used to explain why one may engage in binge eating behaviour including physiological and psychological factors.
Physiological Reasons For Eating Disorder Binge Eating
Particularly if a person has been following a restricted diet or suffers from purging anorexia, there is a likelihood that the individual has almost set her body up for a binge as a direct consequence of not getting sufficient nutrition. Research studies suggest that the greater one's intake of food is reduced in a desperate bid to lose weight then the greater the risk of a binge occurring.
Following a binge, many eating disorder sufferers will subsequently attempt to counteract the food eaten by missing the next few meals. However, this unfortunately only serves to keep the destructive binge eating cycle going round.
Those who regularly binge drink in addition to suffering from bulimia or binge eating disorder will also very likely consume more calories while under the influence of excessive amount of alcohol due to lowered inhibitions. Even those without eating disorders may find drinking alcohol increases one's appetite hence the common stop at the takeaway after a night on the town.
Psychological Reasons For Eating Disorder Binge Eating
In addition to a variety of physiological factors which may lead to episodes of binge eating, there are also many different psychological factors believed to play a role in triggering binges. Food may be used as a source of comfort and a means of anaesthetising one from pain or feelings of hurt initially, but as the binge carries on the comfort or relief quickly disappears and negative thoughts and feelings take over.
Common examples of psychological factors include the following: feeling bored, feeling lonely or rejected, feeling upset, stressed or under pressure as well as feeling depressed and anxious. Particularly in those who have perfectionist traits, often seen in eating disorder sufferers, a bad grade at college or getting criticised from one's impossibly hard to please employer may trigger feelings of low self-worth, decrease self-esteem and consequently lead to a binge in order to numb oneself from the associated feelings.
Clearly, there are a wide variety of different underlying issues and triggers that may result in one using binge eating behaviours. It is important to also understand that what may have originally triggered one's eating disorder may not be what is actually maintaining the illness.
Source:
Schmidt, U. & Treasure, J. (2004) Getting Better Bit(e) by Bit(e) Hove: Brunner Routledge
Kate Le Page - Kate Henning-Le Page writes about eating disorders, body image and recovery issues. She specializes in anorexia recovery.
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