Diagnosis Dictionary

Compulsive Overeating

Compulsive overeaters, or binge eaters, engage in short feasts wherein they consume a large amount of calories. Unlike bulimics, they do not purge after these episodes, and thus tend to gain weight. They often struggle with feelings of shame and depression.

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Compulsive overeaters, also known as binge eaters, overeat but do not purge, which usually leads them to become overweight. Binge eating is characterized by eating, in a discrete period of time, an amount of food that is definitely larger than most people would eat in a similar period of time under similar circumstances, as well as by a sense of lack of control over eating during the episode.

Compulsive Overeating. Last reviewed 04/15/2008

Sources:

  • National Institute of Health
  • National Eating Disorder Association
  • American Psychiatric Association