Overview

An eating disorder is a compulsion to eat, or avoid eating, that negatively affects both one's physical and mental health. Eating disorders are all encompassing. They affect every part of the person's life. According to the authors of Surviving an Eating Disorder, "feelings about work, school, relationships, day-to-day activities and one's experience of emotional well being are determined by what has or has not been eaten or by a number on a scale." Anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are the most common eating disorders generally recognized by medical classification schemes, with a significant diagnostic overlap between the two. Together, they affect an estimated 5-7% of females in the United States during their lifetimes. There is a third type of eating disorder currently being investigated and defined - Binge Eating Disorder. This is a chronic condition that occurs when an individual consumes huge amounts of food during a brief period of time and feels totally out of control and unable to stop their eating. It can lead to serious health conditions such as morbid obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease.

Thursday, December 10, 2009

4 Steps to Overcoming Binge Eating

Just about everyone is guilty of overeating from time to time, but if you overeat on a regular basis, you might have an eating disorder called binge eating. This disorder goes undetected in many people because they do it when they're alone.

If you suffer from this eating disorder and find yourself eating huge amounts of food while feeling out of control to stop, then you need to get help overcoming binge eating. It won't be easy, and you might need to consult a professional therapist to get help learning to control this behavior.

These 4 steps can help you in overcoming binge eating.

Learn to Meditate. This might sound like an unlikely first step towards getting over the need to binge eat, but meditation can make a huge difference in your stress level and general outlook on life. Studies have shown that meditating lowers stress, one of the precursors to eating disorders. If you find ways to lower stress, chances are the binge eating will lessen too. The practice of meditation can help elevate mood, too. Start out meditating just 5 minutes a day and work up to 15 minutes daily.

Exercise Daily. Walking just 30 minutes every day can reduce stress and elevate mood. In some cases regular walking works as well as antidepressants. Exercise has also been found to reduce appetite. Try walking 30 minutes every day and see how much better you feel after just a few days. If you aren't used to getting exercise, be sure and get your doctor's permission before starting any exercise program.

Eat Healthy Foods. When we binge eat, it's usually on junk food and fatty foods. No one ever stuffs themselves with fresh fruits and vegetables. The foods we are tempted to overeat include such foods as cookies, cake, pizza, and chips. Get rid of these types of foods from your home and keep healthy foods around. If healthy food is the only thing in your house to eat, chances are that's what you'll eat and you won't find yourself tempted to binge.

It's also a good idea to make sure you eat something before going to the grocery store. When you shop for food when hungry, that's when you pile cookies and processed foods in the cart.

Spend Time with Family and Friends. Most people do their binge eating when they're alone. Loneliness could be part of the problem and might be contributing to the disorder. Make an effort to be around people you care about every day, and look for ways to spend more time with others. Human beings have a basic need to be around other people, and when we don't get enough human interaction it makes us feel empty and alone.

Try these 4 steps to help you in overcoming binge eating and see if it helps you feel better and have less bingeing episodes.



Autor: Ruth Hendrickson

To learn about treatments for binge eating, go to Treatment for Binge Eating


Added: December 10, 2009
Source: http://ezinearticles.com/

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