The short-term physical effect associated with dopamine and endogenous opiate release in the brain reward center is low-level euphoria, a decrease in both anxiety and emotional pain. It causes an increase in the activation of dopamine and opioid receptors, which consequently play a role in reward. Studies have shown that the brain chemistry of a person changes with repeated exposure to highly palatable foods. Early exposure children to sugar can also lead to dependence later in life.Certain environmental factors such as peer pressure, sexual abuse, stress, exposure, and easy availability to high-sugar foods, and poor parental control can also cause this disorder.If there is a history of mental disorders in the family, the risk of having binge eating and other eating disorders increases.The gender and ethnicity of a person also increase the odds of causing a binge eating disorder.Certain biological factors, such as the genes with which people are born, can also become the cause of addictions.There are several factors that can contribute to the cause of binge eating. Causes of Binge Eating DisorderĪccording to research, when the brains of addicts were compared with those of people addicted to cocaine and other drugs, the scans showed remarkable similarities.
Foods containing high fat, carbohydrates, sugar, and calories have addictive potential and can cause a number of dangerous diseases such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and other disorders. Some types of edibles are considered hyper-palatable, meaning that their flavor makes them easy for compulsive eating, which then can cause a dependence on them. Not every compulsive eater is a binge eater, but every binge eater is a compulsive eater. On the other hand, compulsive eating is showing compulsive eating behaviors on a few occasions without feeling any distress. Binge eating involves excessive eating over a long time and then feeling guilt and shame after the eating episodes. This results in psychological dependence and addiction.įA encompasses binge eating as well as compulsive eating. These kinds of edibles activate the brain’s reward system by increasing dopamine and serotonin neurotransmitters’ levels – a way similar to that of how drugs and alcohol affect the neurotransmitters. Food addiction is a type of behavioral addiction where the addict shows compulsive eating towards high fat and high-sugar foods.