What is the difference between bulimia and binge eating?

Binge eating disorder shares some of the characteristics of bulimia, such as uncontrollable bingeing. The main difference with bulimia is that you don't purge after eating by making yourself sick, over-exercising or other inappropriate methods. This is why many people with a binge eating disorder are overweight.

What should I do if I think my child could be binging?

Try to broach the subject with them. They may not be ready to acknowledge that they have an issue about food, but you may be able to encourage them to start thinking about it by showing them you're genuinely concerned and happy to talk to them. Just by showing them you care can make it easier for them to talk to you about it. You could also think about bringing up the subject with your GP. They may be able to help or refer you to an expert in the area.

How can you tell for sure if you are a binge eater?

Most of us overeat from time to time, and many of us feel we often eat more than we should. Eating large amounts of food does not mean you have a binge eating disorder.

Doctors are still debating the best ways to diagnose binge eating. Most people with serious binge eating problems frequently eat what others would consider an abnormally large amount of food and frequently feel that they can’t control what or how much they're eating.

They may also:

• Eat much more rapidly than usual.
• Carry on eating until uncomfortably full.
• Eat large amounts of food, even when they are not physically hungry.
• Eat alone because they're embarrassed at the amount of food they're consuming.

After over-eating, it is quite normal for them to feel disgust, depression or guilt.

Why do people binge eat?

The causes of binge eating disorder are still unknown. Up to 50% of people with binge eating disorder have a history of depression. Whether depression is the cause or the effect of binge eating disorder is unclear and they may be unrelated. However, it's thought that anger, sadness, boredom, anxiety or other negative emotions can trigger a binge episode. Researchers are also looking into how brain chemicals and metabolism (the way the body burns calories) may affect binge eating disorder.

Is binge eating a type of addiction?

Yes. Binge eating is an addiction to food, where your brain is reprogrammed to crave food. Rapid swings in your blood sugar level keeps the addiction going. You can help to avoid this by making the phase of seeing and tasting the food last as long as possible.

This will give the brain signals (which make you feel full and trigger the absorption of sugar in the blood) time to work. Have small meals regularly, limit high-fat, high-sugar treats to the end of a meal and eat low glycaemic (GI) foods, which release carbohydrates slowly into your bloodstream and help stop your blood sugar levels from fluctuating.

What are the long-term effects of binge eating?

Binge eating has no long-term effects in itself but if you overeat continually you can become obese, which can have serious effects on your health. These health effects include diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, gallbladder disease, heart disease and certain types of cancer.