ABSTRACT
The term binge eating first entered the clinical vocabulary in 1957 when it was cited as a condition with the behavioral characteristic of unrestrained eating. In 2013, binge eating disorder (BED) was given a stand-alone category in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders under the designation of psychiatric disturbance. Differences between the obese with and without BED may be fertile ground for further study. From the binge eater’s perspective, identifying an episode of binge eating has less to do with food quantity than with issues about loss of control. When treating obesity, it is important to identify persons who are suffering from BED because research shows that symptoms across many areas of behavior are consistently heightened in cases of BED. BED is quite similar to compulsive overeating in that the latter also involves eating excessive amounts of food frequently, and an inability to stop or self-manage, regardless of consequences.
