Binge Eating Common Disorder

A U.S. study of eating disorders says binge eating, not yet officially recognized as a psychiatric illness, is more common than anorexia nervosa or bulimia.

Researchers at Harvard University surveyed 2,900 people, The New York Times reported. They found that 0.6 percent suffered from anorexia, 1 percent from bulimia and 2.8 percent from binge eating.

The team found that women are twice as likely to report suffering from an eating disorder as men. The disorders are more common in younger people than older ones.

The study was reported in the Feb. 1 issue of Biological Psychiatry.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, sponsored by the American Psychiatric Assoc., now classifies anorexia and bulimia as mental disorders. Binge eating is listed as a transitional disorder with more study needed.

The Harvard study was partly funded by two pharmaceutical companies and some critics say they want to have binge eating classified as a mental disorder to get insurance coverage for treatment. But Dr. Cynthia Bulik of the University of North Carolina said that the pressure is coming from patients.

The disorder has no diagnostic label that will get them insurance payments, she said. They have a nasty syndrome with serious health implications, knowing that there is evidence-based treatment available and not being able to get it because it’s not officially recognized as a diagnosis.