Safe Medication To Treat Binge Eating Disorder (BED) Studied

Binge-Eating Disorder (BED) is an eating disorder where a person is compelled to eat large quantities of food over a short period of time even when the person is not hungry. This is done on a regular basis through regular binges.

Doctors at the Lindner Center of HOPE is studying the effectivity of the medication lisdexamfetamine dimesylate in decreasing the days patients with BED would binge eat, compared to a placebo. The medicine is currently being used for treating attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

This is a significant discovery since to date, there is no approved medication for BED. It has been noted that Binge-Eating Disorder is associated symptoms of mental illness and obesity. Randomized clinical trials on the use of lisdexamfetamine dimesylate in treating BED have been conducted in 2011 to 2012 covering 500 patients with the eating disorder with positive results.

Ongoing clinical trials being conducted may lead to a safe and improved pharmacologic treatment for moderate to severe BED.

Journal of Eating Disorders Launched

The Journal of Eating Disorders, a peer reviewed, open access published journal was launched by BioMed Central. It covers leading research in the science and clinical practice of eating disorders.

Eating disorders affect the daily eating habits of a person. A person with an eating disorder may feel high anxiety, severe though disturbances, and a sense of guilt. An eating disorder may result in the consumption of extremely small amounts of food or severely overeating.

Eating disorders tend to manifest during the the teen years of a person. Recent statistics from the National Comorbidity Survey – Adolescent Supplement (NCS-A), show a lifetime prevalence of eating disorders for 2.7% of teens aged 13 to 18. A separate 2.7% of teens also show a lifetime prevalence of severe eating disorders. Of these, twice more females (3.5%) suffer from an eating disorder than male teens (1.5%).

Common eating disorders include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder.