Binge Eating Disorder and Appetite

Abstract

Binge eating disorder (BED) is the most common of the 3 major eating disorders with an estimated lifetime prevalence of 0.85% and an estimated 12-month prevalence of 0.44%.(1) It's characterized by eating a large amount of food in a short period of time with perceived loss of control. Due to its increasing prevalence, it entails negative health outcomes and it's associated with an increasingly higher burden on healthcare systems. Although the etiology of BED has been put on psychological factors, emerging studies have been suggesting the multifactorial nature of BED and other eating disorders (EDs). In fact, appetite and food intake results from the complex interplay of homeostatic and hedonic systems, influenced by environmental, genetic, hormonal and psychological factors. Disordered eating behavior develops when there is an imbalance between these systems. In the present review, we focus on appetite regulation, particularly in the physiological and psychological bases which impairment may lead to development of binge eating behavior and therefore BED. Enlightening appetite dysregulation mechanisms and factors involved in development and maintenance of BED, is of great relevance in the discover of future target treatment approaches for this complex ED.