While this may come as no surprise to most of you, it is essential to understand that overeating can destabilise your health by rupturing your stomach and causing alterations in general body composition.
So, this blog is a comprehensive guide about understanding the hidden risks of overeating for your health and its treatment options for overall well-being.
What is Overeating?
Overeating is defined as eating beyond the point of fullness. We overeat even when we aren’t hungry. If this becomes a habit, then it can lead to weight gain and eating problems. However, it does not indicate a binge eating disorder.
The habit of overeating is quite common and biological. When you’re stressed, your body makes more of the hormone, cortisol. Increased cortisol is a fight-or-flight response that among other things indicates that it is time to eat. It can make you seek sugary, fatty, and salty foods.
Overeating can be caused by the way you eat, the foods you eat, and the time you consume food.
Harmful Effects of Overeating
Since excess of anything is good for nothing, consuming more food than your body needs can adversely impact your health. Here are some harmful effects of eating too much:
- Weight Gain
When you binge eat, you usually gain weight. Overweight people account for almost two-thirds of patients with the condition of obesity. You may gain weight when you eat a lot of food quickly and don’t burn calories through physical activities. Being overweight or obese raises your risk of developing various chronic diseases.
- Heart Disease
If you are overweight, then your heart will work harder to pump blood to your body and lungs. Being overweight increases the risk of high blood pressure, excessive cholesterol, and high blood sugar, particularly in the abdomen. All of these variables raise your risk of having a heart attack or stroke.
- Sleep Problems
According to research, people with binge eating disorder are more prone to have difficulty sleeping and develop sleep apnea than others. This sleeping problem produces numerous breathing pauses that causes disruption in sleep patterns and excessive fatigue during day time
- Joint Issues
Binge eating disorder-induced weight gain may damage your joints and might cause osteoarthritis. Your joints’ cartilage begins to degrade at this moment, which could affect any joint, including the fingers, hips, and knees.
- Depression
People with binge eating disorders are more likely to suffer from despair and anxiety. Many people who binge eat to improve their emotions. This may make you feel guilty and lead to additional binging.
- Type 2 Diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is more likely to affect overweight people than others. This occurs when your body cannot make or use insulin at a sufficient rate to maintain a healthy blood sugar level. Binge eating disorders can lead to type 2 diabetes.
- Fertility and Pregnancy Issues
Binge eating disorder can potentially affect your fertility. Periods may be unpredictable rather than following a conventional rhythm. Overweight women are more prone to experience high blood pressure and high blood sugar during pregnancy, both of which are hazardous to the mother and the unborn child.
Overeating Treatment
You can take care of the overeating problem by living a healthy lifestyle. Regular check-up of the BMIs, following a low-carb diet, consuming moderate diets, not smoking, drinking, and having an exercise plan of your own, all contribute to the reduction of excess eating. Excessive eating is managed through lifestyle changes, behavioral changes and only when it is essential, the intervention of medicines. Here are some choices that may help:
- Make Dietary Changes: A balanced and healthy diet with fiber, fruit, and vegetables will help control the cravings and avoid binge eating, which is a common tendency in obese people.
- Exercise Frequently: Exercise routines which involve regular physical activity assist in suppressing the appetite and thus decrease the risk of excess eating.
- Practice Mindfulness: Being aware of your eating patterns, such as eating slowly and paying attention to your body’s cues can help you avoid overeating.
- Seek Help: Attending a support group and seeking better counseling services can make your mental health better, hence you will be able to put in place good eating routines and tear down overeating.
- Consider Medications: In the unusual case, medication may be used to curb appetite and reduce cravings.
- Treat Underlying Conditions: Excessive eating may be a symptom of another issue including anxiety, depression or a binge eating disorder.
Conclusion
Overeating not only affects a person physically, but also psychologically. It brings about guilt, humiliation and low self-esteem, which negatively affects emotional health. If you are battling against excessive eating, then you must realise that you are not alone. Going for treatment is, in fact, a brave, integral part of the healing process. You can overcome this disease and live a happier life by making positive lifestyle changes and obtaining appropriate help.
