Binge Eating Disorder

Did you know that the most common eating disorder isn’t Anorexia Nervosa or Bulimia Nervosa? Actually, the most common eating disorder isn’t even one that is recognized to be of its own category, but is part of the recognized eating disorder Bulimia Nervosa – the disorder is called Binge Eating Disorder (BED). Binge Eating Disorder is defined as an eating disorder where an individual/person consumes unusually large quantities of food without the use of compensatory measures to counter the binge eating and they feel that their eating is out of control. People with Binge Eating Disorder show characteristic behaviors such as: eating much more quickly than usual during binge episodes, eat until uncomfortably full, eat alone because they are embarrassed about the amount of food that they eat, feel disgusted/guilty for overeating, and try to hide their behavior from friends and family members.

The prevalence of Binge Eating Disorder is estimated to be approximately 1-5% of the general population and is found to be more common than even Anorexia and Bulimia themselves. This disorder affects women slightly more often than men – with estimates that say the ratio is 60% female to 40% male, and is usually seen more in older adults with an age range of 46 to 55 years old. Individuals who struggle with Binge Eating can be of normal or average weight, although most of the time the disease is more common with people who struggle with their weight and are severely obese. People who are obese and have binge eating disorder often became overweight at a younger age than those without the disorder. They might also lose and gain weight more often, a process known as weight cycling or “yo-yo dieting” due to their struggles with the emotional distress that this disease can be known to cause.

There is no known cause for BED and as many as half of all the people with this issue are depressed or have been depressed in the past. Some of the complications that can be caused by this disease can be heart problems, gallbladder disease, type II diabetes, high blood pressure, digestive problems, headaches, and of course weight gain. Most people who binge eat, whether they are obese or not, feel ashamed and try to hide their problem from their friends and family. They get so good at hiding their issue that even close family and friends may not recognized the fact that their loved one has this problem.

Eating disorders, no matter what type – Anorexia, Bulimia, or Binge Eating – is not something to ignore and will go away. It is a serious problem that needs professional help for the individual that is struggling with this issue. There are many resources and treatment clinics available that can help. I’ve included the health link to the National Eating Disorder website under my health links in the right hand column (There is also a good YouTube BED Documentary Video under the links site too). If you think someone you love my have this problem get them help. Eating disorders are some of the most common problems out there, but they are treatable as long as you get the proper help and treatment.

References:

National Eating Disorders Association, Binge Eating Disorder. Publican 2005: http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/nedaDir/files/documents/handouts/BingeED.pdf

Weight-Control Information Network, US Dept of Health and Human Resources. Publican No. 04-3589, June 2008: http://win.niddk.nih.gov/publications/binge.htm

Flavor w/o Calories & Fat

Well, I don't know about anyone else, but where I live Spring sure feels like it's right around the corner thanks to all the overcast skies and rain we've been having. This has made it so that I have been stuck inside trying to entertain myself which is when I will start playing around with foods in my kitchen. Have you ever gone into the kitchen and tried to figure out how to make something taste better without adding in a lot of calories and/or fat?? I know in order to maintain your health and weight goals you really do need to learn how to be an explorer in your own kitchen and try new things. This may seem like a scarey thing to do because it is change, and change is extremely hard at times; however, it can be fun to, a new way to express yourself or just make a mess like a kid does when playing in a sandbox.

Since we are talking about exploring and finding new ingredients to use when making a flavorful dish, I want to ask people, what they have found to add to their dishes that make them healthy but leaves the calories and fat out?? Here is a small list of my own suggestions to get you started:
Herbs/Spices
Salsa
Ketchup
Mustard
Flavored, plain or balsamic vinegar
Lemon/Lime juice
Cocktail sauce
Well, this is part of my list that I have used in the past, what is yours?? Leave me a comment and add on - I would love to get new ideas and ingredient options to cook with....

P.S. The answer to my poll will come next week with my next blog topic. Until then take the poll and then come back to see if you are right.

Food Diary

You may be wondering what a picture of a sprial notebook is doing within a blog posting....Well, this notebook is rather important to my daily activities, and is another tool in my weight management belt. I use this notebook as my food diary where I record all the nutriention imputs/ outputs of my day.
What is a food diary?? If you never heard of the term or are wondering what a food diary is, it is some kind of record keeping system that you have in order to put down what food types, the calories, liquid levels, and exercise activities that you have throughout your daily day. Once you have put in all the necessary information, you then use those records to figure out your nutrition and other stats in order to see where you need improvements or how to make adjustments to better your health choices.
Even though my food diary is the "old fashion" system of a pencil and notebook, many online sources are available for individuals to use. These systems will keep track of all the math and give you many different records so that you can always be award of how your daily health is doing. I find though that I like the old fashion method. It keeps me to true to recording as accurate as information as possible. Plus, I can carry in my purse so that when I am out with friends it is something that will keep me reminded of making better choices during social situations where you can let go of your goals and eat like everyone else.
What type of food diary do you like to keep?? Is it online or old fashion?? Do you think this is an important tool to have to manage your weight goals?? If so, how do you use it??