Binge Eating Disorders Case Study

Binge eating disorder is the most common type of eating disorder: an estimated 2.8 million people suffer from this disease, affecting more women than men. In 2013, binge eating disorder was formally recognized as a mental health diagnosis in DSM 5 (Schaffer, 2015). As stated in the diagnostic criteria, a binge episode is defined as eating a much larger amount of food than most people in a similar amount of time and, a sense of lack of control during a binge episode (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The uncontrolled eating is defined as consuming, on average, 2,000 to 3,000 calories in one period of time (Getz, 2017). Getz explains the feeling as, “detachment from the eating experience” (p. 1). As a result of the lack of control, the

Getz (2017) explains, “Food is hoarded; bingeing is often done late at night when no one is around” (p. 1). This would explain the diagnostic criterion, B4, as the individual feels embarrassed by the amount of food that is being consumed. The next diagnostic criteria are distressing awareness that binge eating disorder is present, on average occurs once a week for three months, and lastly, is not associated with purging or compensatory behaviors. The ICD-10-CM code for binge eating disorder is F50.8 (American Psychiatric

This perception is false, as binge eating disorder occurs in diverse populations, including African American and Latino/Hispanic communities (Sala, Reyes-Rodríguez, Bulik, & Bardone-Cone, 2014). In regard to binge eating disorder, all cultures are diverse in the beliefs about their society. For instance, there is a substantial amount of societal pressure on white women, than there is on African Americans. African American women are more likely to be satisfied with their appearance, in comparison to white women (Sala, et al).
As professionals, social workers must remember that binge eating disorder occurs in all diverse populations, not just white Americans. Without the education, many professionals may presume binge eating disorder occurs exclusively in American culture. In contrast, binge eating disorder may be experienced in various populations around the world (Sala, et al,