Causes
A correlation between dietary restraint and the occurrence of binge eating has been convincingly shown in several investigations.
While binge eaters are often believed to be lacking in self-control, the root of such behavior might instead be linked to rigid dieting practices. Binge eating may begin when individuals recover from an adoption of rigid eating habits. When under a strict diet that mimics the effects of starvation, the body may be preparing for a new type of behavior pattern, one that consumes a large amount of food in a relatively short period of time.
The relationship between strict dieting and later binging may explain the high numbers of people who become trapped in a cycle of dieting and weight gain, often reaching higher and higher weights after each round of dieting and binging.
Dieting involves setting rules about what to eat and when. If those rules are occasionally broken, for example, by eating a food you are not allowed or eating more than you should, some people think that their diet is ruined. As a consequence, they eat all they want and plan to start their diet again the next day. Negative emotions are also common causes of binge eating.
Read more about this topic: Binge Eating Disorder