We tend to throw the term compulsive eating around a lot. You know: ‘Oh, I just can’t look at cupcakes without having one, I’m SUCH a compulsive eater’ … that kind of thing. But, ladies, compulsive eating is actually a serious disorder. It’s up there with anorexia and bulimia nervosa, and can result in profound health problems. I’ve done some research and put together a list of 7 signs of compulsive eating. Check them out, girls; if more than a couple of these looks too familiar, it might be time to reassess your eating habits.

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1. Regular Binging

Ladies, I’m not talking about the odd slab of Dairy Milk every once in a while. Binging refers only to a major intake of calories – that means slab after slab of chocolate, family size bags of crisps, whole loaves of bread at a time … you get the idea. If you often find yourself stuffing your face in a frenzied way, chances are you have a problem that needs attention.

2. Feelings of Distress Caused by Overeating

Again, girls, I’m talking real distress here. Not that feeling of guilt you get after you allow yourself two mugs of hot chocolate and not one. If your eating habits often leave you with sensations of self-loathing and depression, you should certainly talk to a professional about them.

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3. Obsessive Thinking and Talking about Food

Do you often find yourself steering the conversation towards food-related issues? Do you spend long periods of time examining your body or, worse, hiding from mirrors? This is not healthy behavior ladies, and it’s packed with the classic symptoms of a compulsive eating disorder.

4. Sudden Weight Gain

We all put on couple of pounds every now and again, and when life takes a busier turn we tend to lose them. Compulsive eaters are prone to period of starvation followed by bouts of binge eating, however, and this kind of behavior cause rapid weight gain.

5. Eating past Full

Our bodies tell us when we’re satisfied girls, but compulsive eaters tend to disregard these limits. If you often find yourself eating until you’re uncomfortably full, chances are you’re dietry habits aren’t the healthiest. Approach your meal slowly and allow time between each mouthful; this way you’ll be able to listen to the messages your body is sending you and obey them.

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6. Skipping Meals

Compulsive eaters often miss out important meals, in particular breakfast. This ties in with the starvation-binge behavior, and tends to lead to overeating. Approaching a mealtime on an absolutely empty stomach often causes us to pig out, and leaves us feeling weak, lethargic and bloated afterwards.

7. Eating Even when You’re Not Hungry

This is perhaps the most common symptom of compulsive eating, and ladies, I suspect it’s true of almost all of us. Eating to satisfy cravings rather than real hunger can quickly lead on to binge behavior. Munching on the chocolate just because you feel like it is fine, girls, don’t get me wrong. But eating solidly throughout the day is a totally different story.

So there we are, girls: 7 signs of compulsive eating. What do you think, girls? Do you have anything to add? Let me know.

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Where Thoughts and Opinions Converge

for some time now ive been overweight and nievely put it down to having three children, working full time and not having the time to exercise, but the thing is after reading your article, i believe im a compulsive eater and i feel very miserable at the fact that ive got myself stuck in this rut! i need to do something about i, but have no idea what, could anyone help please xxx

I think I am because I alway eat when I am not hungry

Hi, I'm Quinn and I know for sure that I have a binge eating disorder. Every day I come home from school and binge eat. I just can't help it. I will consume about 4 thousand calories but I don't know how to stop. I feel like I in autopilot and can't stop. What do I do?? I've had this issue for about 1 year now and I was able to stop For about a months or two. Now I'm back in my groove of doing it everyday. I swear i have tries everything to help me stop but nothing seems to work. HELP.

Well i tick most of the boxes so me thinks its time to change,i need people to get me through this difficult dissorder. HELP....................

OMG! I am a compulsive eater!

I have all these problems. It started two months ago when I moved to New York and started going to school for the first time in my life. I have no friends or social life, no job, and I get depressed and lonely, so I eat. I don't know how to fix it.

That's me..I gained 15 pounds in less than a week:/

I'm not sure if I am a compulsive eater.. I checked off some of the things on the list, like -talking about food. I love good food and cooking, so I talk about it lots with friends -skipping meals. I do it every once in a while, sometimes because I forget or because I feel bloated and fat -I sorta hate myself after I eat too much. Sometimes I'll binge and eat way more than I planned for the day, and I cry myself to sleep over it. am I?

I don't find myself as a compulsive eater. I admit that i do have a very bad eating habit but with that i do take proper care of my health. I do regular exercise to make it balancing....Also agreeing with Neatte that it depends on your mood and feelings what are eating and how much are you eatng.