Binge eating disorder

The symptoms and reasons for binge eating disorder were described first in the 90-ies. These patients eat and devour food until they feel uncomfortably full. Unlike bulimia they do not try to make themselves throw up (Spitzer, 1992, 1993). If people have binge eating disorder they eat more food than other people do in the same situations, feel like they cannot control how much they eat. They also feel guilty, disgusted and depressed about their eating behaviours (APA, 2000), and 30% of the obese patients are diagnosed with binge eating (Túry and et al, 2010).

In case of bulimia nervosa patients eat quickly and vast amount of foods there are no “self-cleaning” mechanisms unlike in purging periods which do not develop binge eating (Keel and et al, 2005). Purging is an eating disorder characterised by recurrent self-induced vomiting, misuse of laxatives and diuretics (Túry and et al, 2010).

he following disorders are not considered eating disorders although researchers list them together with all the other ones.