Binge eating disorder may be one of the most misunderstood of all the eating disorders. Some of that misconception is due to it’s name. I am writing this article to shed some light on the real nature of this disease. Picture it. I’m leading an eating disorder support group. In front of me is a 450 pound lady sitting next to an 80 pound lady. Both struggle with food on a daily basis, feel most safe when restricting food, and feel like they do not deserve to take up the space they do on this Earth.
Binge eating disorder, or BED is rarely discussed in terms of restriction, or in relation to anorexia nervosa, as you would expect. Binge eating disorder has been placed woefully in the category of overeating, when, in most cases this population eats barely a normal amount.
Binge Eating Disorder Explained
Going deeper, the issues related to BED are strikingly similar to those of Anorexia Nervosa. The cycle of binge eating disorder is typically focused on restriction as the coping strategy, not binging. The same neurochemicals flood through the brain of a restricting binge eater as a restricting anorectic. As they both reach the point of feeling so hungry, the physical pain goes away, they both get a hit of their own endorphins, and feel in control. Usually the same lack of serotonin output, and consequent re-uptake make their low self esteem in charge of how they interpret the world. By the time the end of the day comes, the need to catalyze a rush of serotonin is immense.
To gain relief from this mental drain the day has taken, the woman with BED looks to simple carbohydrates in a manner of desperation. The simpler the carbohydrate, the faster the serotonin flood, and the quicker the relief. The “binge” eating is actually much more akin to the combination of desperate hunger, and need for serotonin. The “binge” ends up being slightly less than what should have been ingested throughout the day, but at one time. There is usually no excess calorically speaking.
The combination of restricting and eating all at once lends itself naturally to weight gain, as each day, the woman with BED “tries to be good” again, she ends up restricting all day, which both lowers her metabolism, AND increases her chances of eating a larger quantity at one time. The metabolism cannot keep up with the irregular eating schedule, and ends up storing the food on the body in water or fat tissue. Sumo wrestlers actually use this method to put on weight. These people are not overeating, they’re forcing themselves to under-metabolize.
Binging is its own science and we can look into that later as we discuss the science of bulimia, however, I’d love to propose that BED should truly be called restrictive under-metabolization to more accurately describe the nature of this misunderstood disorder.