We all tend to over eat food from time to time. Most of us find it difficult to avoid the temptation to have one extra bite of food item that is appealing in taste, consistency, texture, or even appearance. However, some people show a tendency of eating too much food even when they are not really hungry. BED is a serious illness in which people lose control over eating, and start eating too much food at a time. Eventually people develop a feeling of guilt, and start binge eating alone to hide their behavior. Many people overeat, but not all can be considered to be suffering from BED. It is important to understand the difference between overeating, and binge eating, because BED is a serious condition that can show some severe physical and mental consequences. The exact causes of BED are clearly known yet. However, some biological or social factors that may trigger binge eating episodes are discussed further.
Emotional Stress
Some stressful situations in life such as, loss of a loved one, difficult relationship, moving to a new place, financial problems, etc. can trigger binge eating in some people. Some scientific studies report that stress can trigger a drive to eat food, especially sugary and fatty food items. For some people, food becomes an inexpensive way to achieve relief from stress, and so they start comfort eating. The available evidence suggests that stress increases the activity of hormone known as “cortisol” which increases the consumption of glucose (sugar) by the brain. This may lead to intake of large amounts of sugary food during stressful situations. It is reported that depression, which may be caused due to stress, is responsible for causing binge eating episodes in some people.
Biological Abnormalities
Some hormones such as leptin and insulin, cholecystokinin, glucagon-like peptide-1, peptide YY (3-36), and ghrelin are involved in controlling our hunger. Under normal circumstances these hormones signal the brain about hunger or fullness. However, in some people the ghrelin signaling system does not function well, sending wrong signal to the brain about the satiety cues. Research also suggests that abnormal levels of brain chemicals like serotonin may contribute to binge eating.
Social Pressure
In many societies thin people receive more attention. This creates social pressure of achieving perfect body image on some people. Too much efforts, and control over eating conversely makes some people to start binge eating. These people tend to hide their abnormal eating habits, and eventually develop a feeling of embarrassment, shame, and guilt.
Family History
People who have siblings or parents having BED are at higher risk of developing the disorder themselves. Scientists suspect involvement of genes that cause BED to pass from one generation to the other.
Excessive Dieting
Some people adapt excessive controlled eating habits in order to get a thin body. Eventually this may trigger binge eating episodes. Dieting excessively during teens may also trigger binging behavior later in life.
Read More : 5 Proven Steps to Beat Eating Disorders
Teen Age
Although BED can affect people of any age, being in teens increases your risk of suffering from this disorder. Clinical studies report that onset of binge eating behavior generally occurs in late adolescence. Studies also suggest that during the teen age boys tend to show more binging behaviors as compared to girls. However, girls tend to be more embarrassed about binge eating.