Binge Eating Disorder Flashcards
What did the DSM-IV consider Binge Eating Disorder to be?
A ‘diagnosis in need of further study’.
Which edition of the DSM first included Binge Eating Disorder? How was it included in previous editions?
The DSM-5. In previous editions the act of binge eating was included in the diagnosis of Bulimia Nervosa and as a subclinical disorder.
In the DSM-5, there are two symptoms under the ‘A. criteria’. What is ‘A. criteria’, and what are the two symptoms?
A. Recurrent episodes of binge eating. An episode of binge eating is characterised by both of the following:
- Eating, in a discrete period of time, an amount of food that is definitely larger than what most people would eat in a similar period of time, under similar circumstances.
- A sense of lack of control over eating during the episode.
How long is a ‘discrete period of time’ normally considered to be?
Around a two-hour period.
Why is the ‘discrete period of time’ just a guideline?
Because it depends on the person and the situation. The clinician needs to have flexible judgement.
What is the difference between ‘subjectively’ and ‘objectively’ large amounts of food?
‘Subjectively’ means that the individual thinks they have eaten a large amount of food.
‘Objectively’ means that others consider it to be a large amount of food.
Give a brief/short description of the first symptom in ‘A. criteria’ for Binge Eating Disorder.
Recurrent episodes of binge eating characterised by a ‘large amount of food’, in a ‘certain period of time’.
Give a brief/short description of the second symptom in ‘A. criteria’ for Binge Eating Disorder.
Feeling out of control during the episode (e.g., feeling that one cannot stop eating or control how much they are eating).
Instead of feeling ‘out of control’ during a binge episode, many clients report - what?
Feeling ‘dissociated’ during or following a binge episode.
What constitutes a ‘subjective’ binge episode?
Someone may feel they have binge eaten when eating only a small amount of food, but if they feel ‘out of control’ then it still constitutes as a subjective binge episode.
What is ‘B. criteria’ for Binge Eating Disorder? And how many out of the five symptoms need to be present?
B. The binge-eating episodes are associated with three (or more) of the following:
- Eating much more rapidly than normal.
- Eating until feeling uncomfortably full.
- Eating large amounts of food when not feeling physically hungry.
- Eating alone because of feeling embarrassed by how much one is eating.
- Feeling disgusted with oneself, depressed, or very guilty afterward.
What is ‘C. criteria’ for Binge Eating Disorder?
C. Marked distress regarding binge eating is present.
- individuals with Binge Eating Disorder are typically ashamed of their eating problems and attempt to conceal their symptoms. Binge eating usually occurs in secrecy or as inconspicuously as possible.
What is important about ‘criteria C.’ for Binge Eating Disorder?
Distress over binge eating episodes must be present, otherwise it cannot be considered a disorder.
What is ‘D. criteria’ for Binge Eating Disorder?
D. The binge eating occurs, on average, at least once a week for 3 months.
What happened to the frequency criteria of all eating disorders in the DSM-5? Why?
The frequency of disordered eating episodes was lowered in the DSM-5. This was because people who had eating disorders ‘not otherwise specified’ (or Other Specified Feeding and Eating Disorders - OSFED), can now be classified under full criteria syndromes and can be treated accordingly, depending on the severity of their disorder.
What is ‘E. criteria’ for Binge Eating Disorder?
E. The binge eating is not associated with the recurrent use of inappropriate compensatory behaviour as in Bulimia Nervosa and does not occur exclusively during the course of Bulimia Nervosa or Anorexia Nervosa.
What is the main differences between Binge Eating Disorder and Bulimia Nervosa?
Those with Binge Eating Disorder do not partake in compensatory behaviours to try and eliminate excess calories and are therefore often overweight. Those with Bulimia Nervosa are often able to maintain a normal weight.
How can a Anorexia Nervosa diagnosis trump both Binge Eating Disorder and Bulimia Nervosa?
If the person’s weight is severely low, then regardless of binging behaviours, they classify as having Anorexia Nervosa.
What is the one specifier for Binge Eating Disorder and what are the four levels?
Specifier - Current Severity. The severity is based on the frequency of binge eating episodes, however the severity may increase as it reflects other levels of functional impairment. 1. Mild: 1-3 episodes/week. 2. Moderate: 4-7 episodes/week. 3. Severe: 8-13 episodes/week. 4. Extreme: 14 or more episodes/week.
Name three other health issues Binge Eating Disorder is associated with:
- Early onset obesity.
- Severity of obesity.
- Increased rates of ‘general’ psychopathology.
What is the relationship between Binge Eating and Obesity?
- 41% of overweight/obese individuals in the community meet the criteria for one of the binge eating illnesses.
- 52% of overweight/obese individuals in weight loss programs meet the criteria for one of the binge eating illnesses.
- 88% of individuals with Binge Eating Disorder have been classified as obese at some point in their life.
How common is Binge Eating Disorder when comparing data from 1998 and 2015?
Is this data reliable?
Once a week binge: - 1998: 2.7%. - 2015: 13% Twice a week binge: - 1998: 1.1%. - 2015: 3.5%
It is hard to tell if this data is a real increase, however it is unlikely that the destigmatisation of binge eating would have that much affect, so there is most likely some real increase happening.
How common is Binge Eating Disorder compared with Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa and OSFED?
Binge Eating Disorder is by far the most common eating disorder.
How abnormal is Binge Eating Disorder when looking at the HRQoL from 1998 - 2015?
In 1998, those with Binge Eating Disorder reported less health-related quality of life. However, today the impact of binge eating has lessened and 50% of people do not experience distress relating to binge episodes. However, there is still distress related to quality of life impairment, and ‘days out of role’.
