Binge Eating Disorder: Long Term Outlook
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Binge Eating Disorder: Long Term Outlook
The Problem
The bad news is that as long as binge eating remains a problem, the effects can be quite pronounced. The external effects can include obesity, stomach stretching and, if combined with dieting, weight cycling. All of these put the body under strain. The effects of obesity are well known, and include increased risk of coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. Stomach stretching can lead to damage of the stomach wall, and even tearing of the stomach. Finally, weight cycling is associated with an increased risk of cardio-vascular disease.
However, the real damage to a sufferer is often psychological. Many report that they slide into a cycle of deep depression and loneliness. The depression drives them to binge, and this increases their depression. A fixation with food, combined with lapses in concentration mean that the personality of the sufferer becomes harder to discern. Friends often comment that the sufferer’s personality seems ‘muted’, as if they aren’t all there. These friends may find it hard to maintain a relationship with the sufferer, increasing the sufferer’s feeling of loneliness. All in all, a powerful negative feedback cycle is created, locking the sufferer into the disorder.
The Good News
The good news is that a lot of sufferers can, and do, make full recoveries. Many find that cognitive-behavioral therapy is able to help them enormously, enabling them to lead totally normal lives again. Of those who have recovered, almost all report that their normal personality and drive returns to them within months or weeks.
Just as binge eating can initiate (or continue) a negative feedback cycle, so can the right treatment initiate a positive feedback cycle. As the feelings of anxiety and depression subside, so too does the desire to eat unhealthily. As their latent personality surfaces, former sufferers gain renewed confidence with friends, acquaintances and social situations, dispelling loneliness.
Furthermore, binge eating is not life threatening in the way that other eating disorders, such as anorexia and bulimia, are. Negative long-term effects on health are not significant in those who recover, and many go on to lead exceptional lives.
Recurrence
A former sufferer of binge eating disorder may relapse into bingeing again. This is common in those who are still under the impression that certain foods are ‘wrong’ for them, or those who have not been taught to properly deal with anxiety.
When properly performed, cognitive-behavioral treatment has a low rate of relapse. A combination of proper education regarding thinking patterns and behavior modification appears to protect most participants from going back to bingeing
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