The Association between Physical Activity and Binge Eating

Abstract

Binge eating (BE) affects over a third of the population of people seeking weight loss treatment (Yanovski, 2002). Because BE has a negative impact on weight loss (Yanovski, 2002), it is imperative to examine components of treatment leading to decreases in binge severity. The present study explores the relationship between physical activity (PA) and binge eating. One hundred twenty-seven participants seeking treatment for weight loss completed surveys measuring BE severity and depression level. In addition, participants recorded the number of minutes they engaged in weekly PA over a 9 month period. Results indicated that higher minutes of weekly PA was related to lower scores on a measure of BE severity between baseline and the end of a three month weight loss period. Findings are discussed in terms of the etiology of binge eating disorder and benefits of the addition of a PA component to standard treatments for BE.