Eating Disorder Research

What is binge eating? Binge eating is strictly the act of eating excessively at one go over a period of time. If you are binge eating, you will eat 5 bowls of rice instead of 1 (what a normal person will consume). You are not able to stop eating although you are vaguely aware of that you should. Very often, binge eaters love to indulge in food that is forbidden. These may include sweets, chocolate, cake or even fries or burgers. Binge eaters often feel shame and anxious about their behaviour and will seek to hide them from others. They often feel engage in binge eating behaviour to compensate for something that has happened to them. What is Purging? Purging is the act of vomitting, consuming laxatives and taking diuretics. The idea behind purging quickly after a meal is to ensure that the nutrients from the food do not get absorbed.

Bulimia nervosa results from a distorted idea of body shape and weight. It has two parts involved - binge eating followed by extreme weight control behaviour. Thus, it is often known as the binge-purge syndrome. In binge eating, the sufferer eats uncontrollably. He is unable to stop his craving. Yet at the same time, he is plagued by thoughts of having to control his weight. Fearful of gaining weight, he then take extreme acts to ensure that the forbidden calories do not get absorbed into his body. He does this by purging (vomiting or taking laxatives) and / or engaged in excessive exercise. Typically, the bulimic sufferer feels very guilty. Bulimia can be mild or severe. In mild cases, his erractic eating habits happen infrequently. There can be long periods of normal eating in between. In severe cases, a sufferer may binge and purge many times each day. He is in a state of confusion. He may want to avoid eating but once he gets start started, he cannot stop. After a binge eating meal, he then vomits and take laxatives to address his guilt and shame of not being in control.