What is Binge Eating Disorder?

Binge eating disorder (BED) is a serious mental illness. In BED, people experience recurrent episodes of binge eating, which are defined by eating a large amount of food within a short period of time. These episodes are accompanied by feelings of intense distress. Unlike people with bulimia nervosa or anorexia nervosa, people with BED don’t try to get rid of the food they have eaten by using extreme weight control behaviours like self-induced vomiting or overexercising.

While everyone overeats at times, if these episodes occur on a regular basis and disrupt your life, you may have BED. There are many factors that can cause someone to develop BED, including a family history of eating disorders, childhood obesity, poor body image and stress. It can affect people of any age or gender and occurs across socioeconomic groups and cultures.

Yale Medicine offers a range of effective treatment options for BED, which can significantly reduce the frequency and severity of binge eating episodes. These treatments include psychological and behavioral approaches and nutritional rehabilitation. Our team of experts in eating disorders can also help identify and manage co-occurring psychiatric conditions, such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, substance use disorder or impulse control disorders.

Our approach to BED combines cutting-edge research and state-of-the-art clinical care. You will work with a psychiatrist who specialises in eating disorders and will be part of a multidisciplinary team that includes dietitians, nurses, psychologists and social workers. Depending on your needs, you may be eligible to participate in one of our ongoing clinical trials that study the effectiveness of new treatments for BED.

Yale Medicine’s comprehensive approach to treating eating disorders, including BED, is designed to help you improve your quality of life and reduce the risk of future health problems. Our specialized programs and therapies can help you develop healthy relationships with food, learn to cope with stressors and achieve long-term recovery.