By Getting a good night’s sleep, eating mindfully, and regulating your emotions are excellent strategies for stopping binge eating. We’ll show you other keys to overcoming this compulsion.
Sometimes, it is normal to have binge eating, especially on important dates: birthdays, weddings, Christmas parties, Thanksgiving, cultural festivals, etc. In these cases, excessive eating does not have a serious impact on life. The problem arises when we do not know how to stop compulsive eating.
If overeating becomes an eating pattern for a period of time, it can negatively affect well-being. The situation becomes more complicated when it is accompanied by a loss of control, feelings of guilt, and drastic changes in body weight and digestive health. This would be an eating disorder that should be diagnosed and treated by a professional.
In parallel with psychological or psychiatric intervention, and with the approval of the expert in charge of the case, it is possible to apply some of the tricks that we present in this article to avoid overeating. Here you will also find possible reasons that explain the origin of this problem.
Why can’t I stop overeating?
Compulsive eating is a condition, known as binge eating disorder , in which an individual has recurrent episodes of excessive food intake. Its symptoms include loss of control, eating in a rush, eating until feeling very full, and eating large amounts of food without feeling hungry.
This problem has its causes in different psychological, social, cultural and biological factors . Some of them are perfectionism, physical and sexual abuse, body image distortions, substance abuse, family conflicts, lack of dietary control in childhood, mental health problems, among others.
Such binges lead to feelings of guilt , shame and embarrassment. They also cause medical complications such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol and heart disease. To prevent these effects, it is essential to stop compulsive eating.
Tips to avoid compulsive eating
Before trying any of these tricks, we recommend that you first visit a health professional. Psychotherapy is the primary treatment option for dealing with these types of eating disorders, so don’t hesitate to seek expert support.
1. Regulate your emotions and reduce stress
Anger, sadness, loneliness and other unpleasant feelings tend to trigger the compulsion to eat to relieve discomfort. In such a context, emotional regulation training helps reduce binge eating; this contributes to coping adaptively and effectively with emotional discomfort. To regulate your emotions, keep the following aspects in mind:
- Accept the emotion.
- Tolerate negative emotions.
- Be aware of what you feel.
- Identify the emotion you feel.
- Support yourself during emotional distress.
- Know the reasons behind your feeling.
- Pay attention to the physical sensations you experience.
- Act according to your purposes and goals despite what you feel.
2. Sleep well
Sleep problems , such as difficulty falling asleep, not getting enough sleep, or sleeping poorly, are associated with binge eating. So if you want to stop binge eating, start getting the hours of sleep you need. Practice good sleep hygiene .
3. Practice mindful eating
Mindful eating involves applying mindfulness to the way you eat. In other words, it is the act of paying attention to your body cues and overall experience while eating. Research has found that eating mindfulness training helps reduce binge eating and improves self-control while eating.
4. Have a nutrition plan
Include some healthy snacks throughout the day to prevent extreme hunger, which can lead to overeating. For example, the Mediterranean diet is associated with a lower likelihood of binge eating episodes. This nutritional plan includes fish, fruits, olive oil, whole grains, among others. Consult a nutritionist first if you want to try it.
5. Exercise
By practicing a sport, going to the gym or doing any physical exercise, you improve your weight and your mood. Feeling good about yourself and your body prevents you from compulsively eating to fill a void . Today, it is known that aerobic and anaerobic exercises reduce binge eating, as indicated by a study in the journal Nutrients .
6. Seek social support
To stop binge eating, you need to seek support from the significant people in your life. Social support from friends and family reduces the likelihood of binge eating. So, spend quality time together and enjoy plans that increase positive interaction between you and them.
7. Do yoga
A meta-analysis on yoga and eating disorders shows that this practice has a moderate to large effect on binge eating. Yoga combines breathing exercises, meditation and physical postures that allow you to be more flexible, have a good balance and improve your well-being and spiritual life.
8. Hydrate yourself
Drinking water to stay hydrated is a strategy to stop binge eating, as it makes you eat less. Research from the Journal of the American Dietetic Association shows that drinking water before a meal reduces food intake.
Just so you know, men should consume approximately 3.7 liters of fluid per day, while women require 2.7 liters.
9. Eat more fiber
Dietary fiber optimizes bowel function and is important for good digestive health. Its consumption partially helps you stop compulsive eating because it produces greater satiety, reduces hunger and energy consumption .
10. Apply self-compassion
Instead of criticizing and judging yourself, be kind to yourself and accept your suffering. This type of compassionate practice will help you stop binge eating. A study in Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy highlights that compassion and acceptance decrease binge eating , self-criticism, and psychological distress.
How do I know if I have binge eating disorder?
In general terms, in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) maintains that to recognize the existence of this disorder, excessive food consumption accompanied by a feeling of lack of control is necessary. In addition, it must occur at least once a week for three months.
Loss of control over eating manifests itself in two ways: as difficulty in restraining oneself from eating or as an inability to stop once one starts. This disorder causes significant and intense clinical distress and occurs in conjunction with these events:
- Eating faster than normal.
- Eating until you feel excessively full.
- Eating alone because of the shame experienced from eating so much.
- Eating an excessive amount of food without any appetite.
- Feeling disgust towards oneself, as well as depression, guilt or shame.
Remember that an official diagnosis of this eating disorder can only be made by a mental health professional. Avoid self-diagnosis and the treatments derived from it. Instead, visit an expert and let them design the best course of intervention for your problem.
Take back control of your diet
Getting back to feeling in control of what and how much you eat is an important step in stopping compulsive eating. As we have seen, it is necessary to seek psychological or psychiatric help, learn to regulate your emotions and have a good nutritional plan endorsed by a specialist.
It’s key to deal with this disorder with patience, acceptance, and self-compassion. Being critical of yourself will only make you feel worse and, consequently, you will be tempted to eat to relieve emotional discomfort. Accompany yourself through this process with kindness, as if you were supporting your best friend.