Binge Eating Disorder (BED)

Binge Eating Disorder (BED) is an eating disorder in which an individual eats very large amounts of food (typically in a rapid manner) while experiencing a loss of control and feelings of shame or guilt afterwards. BED is the most common eating disorder affecting anywhere from 1-5% of the population. Although some people who have BED are obese some individuals present within a normal weight range making it more difficult to diagnose.

The DSM-5 identifies BED as a diagnosable disorder with criteria of eating abnormally large amounts of food within a short period of time exhibited by a loss of control.

Three of the following five symptoms must be present as well: rapid eating, eating until too full/experiencing discomfort, eating large amounts of food when no actual hunger is present, eating secretively so others are unaware of the extent of the eating, and feelings of disgust/guilt/shame afterwards. BED is treatable with therapy along with medication being the most common types of treatment.