Beyond the tip of the iceberg: Adolescent weight development of women and men with features of binge eating disorder

The impact of stress and self-awareness on food intake in children and adolescents with and without loss of control eating - an experimental test of the escape from self-awareness model

Loss of control eating (LOC-E) is the most common form of disordered eating in childhood and adolescence. Negative emotions and stress play a crucial role in its development and maintenance. The purpose of this study is to experimentally test the escape from self-awareness model, which proposes that LOC-E occurs because individuals attempt to reduce their emotional distress by shifting their focus from an aversive self-perception to the immediate environment, such as food. We investigated the effect of stress (false negative or positive performance feedback) and self-awareness (opened or closed full-body mirrors) inductions on desire to eat (DTE) and food intake in adolescents with and without LOC-E. While there were no effects of stress on DTE irrespective of group membership, participants with and without LOC-E ate less (rather than more, as hypothesized) in the high stress condition. Neither of these effects interacted with the self-awareness condition. Because the stress induction had the unintended effect of increasing participants' self-awareness, we found evidence that participants decreased their food intake when experiencing stress and high self-awareness concurrently. The results of this study contribute to a further understanding of the role of stress and self-awareness on DTE and food intake in children and adolescents with and without LOC-E.

Exploring the relationship between binge eating and differentiation of self: the mediating role of emotional distress and work stress

Binge Eating Disorder (BED) is a prevalent eating disorder outlined in the DSM-5. Emotional distress (including stress, anxiety, and depression) stands out as a critical risk factor for developing eating disorders, and specifically BED. Recent studies have identified differentiation of self- a family pattern involving the ability to balance emotions and cognitions, as well as intimacy and autonomy-as a factor that exacerbates emotional distress. This relationship highlights the importance of addressing both emotional distress and family dynamics in understanding BED. While associations have been found between work-related factors and family dynamics with emotional distress, there has been limited investigation into the specific risk factors that are uniquely linked to BED. It was hypothesized that differentiation of self would relate to BED symptoms through the mediation of emotional distress and work stress. A systematic sampling method was applied to select a total of 275 participants for this study, with 60% women and 40% men (aged 20-45, M = 32.71, SD = 7.50). The findings suggest that low differentiation of self may increase vulnerability to BED symptoms by increasing susceptibility to emotional distress, including stress in the workplace. In addition, the analyses indicated that women reported higher levels of BED symptoms, while men reported higher levels of differentiation of self. The study sheds light on the contribution of unregulated family and emotional patterns to BED, providing valuable insights for organizations seeking to promote healthier work environments.

A developmental framework of binge-eating disorder based on pediatric loss of control eating

Although binge-eating disorder may manifest in childhood, a significantly larger proportion of youth report episodes involving a loss of control while eating, the hallmark feature of binge eating that predicts excess weight gain and obesity. Adults with binge-eating disorder often report that symptoms emerged during childhood or adolescence, suggesting that a developmental perspective of binge eating may be warranted. Thus, loss of control eating may be a marker of prodromal binge-eating disorder among certain susceptible youth. The present article offers a broad developmental framework of binge-eating disorder and proposes areas of future research to determine which youths with loss of control eating are at risk for persistent and exacerbated behavior that may develop into binge-eating disorder and adult obesity. To this end, this article provides an overview of loss of control eating in childhood and adolescence, including its characterization, etiology, and clinical significance, with a particular focus on associations with metabolic risk, weight gain, and obesity. A conceptual model is proposed to further elucidate the mechanisms that may play a role in determining which youths with loss of control are at greatest risk for binge-eating disorder and obesity. Ways in which treatments for adult binge-eating disorder may inform approaches to reduce loss of control eating and prevent excess weight gain in youth are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Perceptions of a large amount of food based on binge-eating disorder diagnosis

OBJECTIVE

This study examined what adults with binge-eating disorder (BED) and obesity perceived as the threshold for a large amount of food and how their evaluations compared to ratings by participants with obesity but without BED.

METHOD

This was a cross-sectional study of 150 participants with obesity. BED was assessed using the Questionnaire on Eating and Weight Patterns and confirmed via interview. Participants completed the Eating Patterns Questionnaire and Eating Inventory.

RESULTS

Participants with BED had significantly higher thresholds for a large amount of food relative to those without BED. Compared to participants without BED, those with BED had significantly higher thresholds on 13 of the 22 food items. In the overall sample, being male and having higher hunger scores were associated with greater thresholds.

DISCUSSION

Individuals with obesity and BED had larger portion standards than participants without BED. Individuals with BED may benefit from interventions targeted toward decreasing perceptions of portion sizes.

Binge eating in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome: prevalence, causes, and management strategies

Emerging evidence suggests that disordered eating, particularly binge-eating symptomatology, is overrepresented within Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) populations. This comorbidity presents a clinical dilemma as current treatment approaches for PCOS emphasize the importance of weight management, diet, exercise, and the potential for harm of such treatment approaches in PCOS patients with comorbid disordered eating. However, limited research has assessed the occurrence of binge eating and disordered eating in PCOS patients. Consequently, little is known about the prevalence of binge eating in PCOS, and the possible etiological processes to explain this comorbidity remain poorly understood. Given the paucity of research on this topic, the aims of this narrative review are fourfold: 1) to outline the main symptoms of PCOS and binge eating; 2) to provide an overview of the prevalence of binge eating in PCOS; 3) to outline possible etiological factors for the comorbidity between PCOS and binge eating; and 4) to provide an overview of management strategies of binge eating in PCOS.