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Tag Archives: Binge
Cathie Wood Boosts Tesla, Coinbase Holdings on Dip-Buying Binge
(Bloomberg) — Cathie Wood scooped up more shares of Tesla Inc. and Coinbase Global Inc., underscoring her faith in electric vehicles and cryptocurrency as key trends for the future.
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A gamut of Ark Investment Management LLC’s funds, including Wood’s flagship Ark Innovation ETF, bought nearly 75,000 shares of the EV maker and about 297,000 of the cryptocurrency exchange operator on Wednesday, continuing a dip-buying streak that started in October, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Ark has continued its purchases in Coinbase despite unprecedented volatility induced by the collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX crypto empire. Coinbase shares plumbed a record low on Tuesday, before recovering slightly on Wednesday.
Wood’s biggest fund, ARK Disruptive Innovation Strategy, is down 60% this year, compared with a loss of 28% for the Nasdaq 100 and a 16% decline for the S&P 500. She last month reiterated her $1 million target for Bitcoin, the largest crypto token, which currently trades around $17,600.
Meanwhile, Tesla shares are at their lowest in more than two years amid concerns over a potential recession, a hawkish Federal Reserve, and founder Elon Musk’s moves to reduce his stake in the EV maker.
READ: Tesla Closes Below $500 Billion Valuation First Time in 2 Years
Wood’s firm is one of the largest shareholders of Coinbase, holding a 4.3% stake as of Sept. 30, according to Bloomberg data. Ark holds just 0.13% of Tesla but the stock remains one of the top holdings of its main fund.
Shares in Tesla fell 2.5% in premarket trading on Thursday, and those of Coinbase also slid 2.5%.
–With assistance from Subrat Patnaik.
(Updates with stock moves.)
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©2022 Bloomberg L.P.
2 Women Stopped Binge Eating After Electric Shocks to the Brain: Study
- A brain implant reduced two patients’ binge eating for at least six months.
- The two women said their behavior towards food changed almost without thinking about it.
- More research is needed, but these early results are promising, a study author said.
Electric shocks to the brain took away the cravings of two patients with binge eating disorder for at least six months, a small study said.
The two patients were fitted with a brain implant to zap the part of the brain linked to cravings.
They told The New York Times that after the surgery they made better choices about food without even thinking about it.
The technique needs to be tested on more patients to check whether it works for sure. But it could offer hope for millions of people who struggle with binge eating.
No longer a ‘craving person’
The study, published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Medicine in August, was mainly meant to test whether the device was safe to use.
But the effect on the subjects of the study was “really impressive and exciting,” said study senior author Casey Halpern, an associate professor of neurosurgery at Penn Medicine, in a press release accompanying the study.
The two patients — Robyn Baldwin, 58, and Lena Tolly, 48 — said that they had fewer binging episodes. And the implant seems to have changed their habits for the better, per The Times.
Baldwin, for instance, said she’d gotten used to swinging by a Ben & Jerry’s on her way to the pharmacy. But after the device was activated, she said: “I could go into the pharmacy and not even think about ice cream.”
The implant seems even to have tweaked the women’s food preferences.
Baldwin said she used to crave sweet foods but now preferred savory ones. Tolly would sometimes find herself eating peanut butter straight from the jar. Now she doesn’t crave it, the Times reported.
“It’s not like I don’t think about food at all,” Baldwin said. “But I’m no longer a craving person.”
Obesity needs innovative treatments
Both women, who have obesity, said that they had tried many ways to fight their weight gain before.
Both had tried extreme dieting and had surgery on their gut, a procedure called bariatric surgery, per The Times. But the weight kept coming back.
This is not uncommon for people with obesity. Research suggests that obesity is a disease that makes it very difficult for patients to keep the pounds off.
A growing body of research is trying to find treatments that don’t rely on willpower.
The idea of targeting brain waves to fight cravings has been appealing, so much so that Elon Musk recently said his Neuralink brain implant could one day fight morbid obesity.
Previous research suggested that a tiny region of the brain, the hypothalamus, sends out brainwaves before someone feels a craving.
The implant used in the study learned to recognize those brainwaves and zap that region with electricity to scramble them, which seemed to cut the cravings short.
The study followed the patients for six months. No serious side effects were reported but the patient each lost more than 11 pounds, per the press release.
One of the patients no longer fits the criteria of having a binge-eating disorder, per the release.
More research is needed
You won’t be able to find this implant at your doctor’s office. With just two patients, the scientists can’t prove for sure that it was the implant causing the weight loss.
It’s possible, for instance, that there is a placebo effect from the surgery or that the effect wears off over time.
To make sure this isn’t the case, the researchers will look to do a much larger study. These typically recruit hundreds of patients and have built-in procedures to test for the placebo effect.
For now, the study is due to keep following Tolly and Baldwin for six months and to recruit another four patients.
Stocks tense, dollar bullish for central bank binge
Passersby wearing protective face masks walk past a stock quotation board in Tokyo, Japan February 24, 2022. REUTERS/Issei Kato
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SYDNEY, Sept 19 (Reuters) – Shares slipped in Asia on Monday and the dollar firmed as investors braced for a packed week of central bank meetings that are certain to see borrowing costs rise across the globe, with some risk of a super-sized hike in the United States.
Markets are already fully priced for a rise in interest rates of 75 basis points from the Federal Reserve, with futures showing a 20% chance of a full percentage point.
They also show a real chance rates could hit 4.5% as the Fed is forced to tip the economy into recession to subdue inflation. read more
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“How high will the funds rate ultimately need to go?” said Jan Hatzius, chief economist Goldman Sachs.
“Our answer is high enough to generate a tightening in financial conditions that imposes a drag on activity sufficient to maintain a solidly below-potential growth trajectory.”
He expects the Fed to hike by 75 basis points on Wednesday, followed by two half-point moves in November and December.
Also important will be Fed members’ “dot plot” forecasts for rates, which are likely to be hawkish, putting the funds rate at 4%-4.25% by the end of this year, and even higher next year.
That risk saw two-year Treasury yields surge 30 basis points last week alone to reach the highest since 2007 at 3.92%, so making stocks look more expensive in comparison and dragging the S&P 500 down almost 5% for the week.
On Monday, holidays in Japan and the UK made for a slow start and S&P 500 futures dipped 0.2%, while Nasdaq futures fell 0.5%.
EUROSTOXX 50 futures added 0.2%, while FTSE futures were closed.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) eased 0.5%, after losing almost 3% last week.
Japan’s Nikkei (.N225) was shut, but futures implied an index of 27,360 compared to Friday’s close of 27,567.
China’s central bank went its own way and cut a repo rate by 10 basis points to support its ailing economy, leaving blue chips (.CSI300) up 0.1%.
A RUSH TO TIGHTEN
Bank of America’s latest fund manager survey suggests allocations to global stocks are at an all-time low.
“But with both U.S. yields and the unemployment rate headed to 4-5%, poor sentiment isn’t enough to keep the S&P from making new lows for the year,” warned BofA analysts in a note.
“Our suite of 38 proprietary growth indicators depict a grim outlook for global growth, yet we are staring at one of the most aggressive tightening episodes in history, with 85% of the global central banks in tightening mode.”
Most of the banks meeting this week – from Switzerland to South Africa – are expected to hike, with markets split on whether the Bank of England will go by 50 or 75 basis points. read more
“The latest retail sales data in the UK supports our view that the economy is already in recession,” said Jonathan Petersen, a senior market economist at Capital Economics.
“So, despite sterling hitting a fresh multi-decade low against the dollar this week, the relative strength of the U.S. economy suggests to us the pound will remain under pressure.”
Sterling was stuck at $1.1396 having hit a 37-year trough of $1.1351 last week,
One exception is the Bank of Japan, which has so far shown no sign of abandoning its uber-easy yield curve policy despite the drastic slide in the yen. read more
The dollar edged up to 143.25 yen on Monday , having backed away from the recent 24-year peak of 144.99 in the face of increasingly strident intervention warnings from Japanese policymakers.
The euro was holding at $0.9991 , having edged just a little away from its recent low of $0.9865 thanks to increasingly hawkish comments from the European Central Bank.
Against a basket of currencies, the dollar was up 0.3% at 109.88, not far from a two-decade high of 110.79 touched earlier this month.
The ascent of the dollar and yields has been a drag for gold, which was hovering at $1,668 an ounce after hitting lows not seen since April 2020 last week.
Oil prices were trying to bounce on Monday, having shed around 20% so far this quarter amid concerns about demand as global growth slows.
Brent firmed 50 cents to $91.85 a barrel, while U.S. crude rose 33 cents to $85.44 per barrel.
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Reporting by Wayne Cole; Editing by Sam Holmes and Christian Schmollinger
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
The Differences Between Just Overeating and a Binge Eating Disorder
With so much of our culture hyper-focused on what a person eats (and what a person weighs), it can be hard to define what “overeating” actually is—and when that overeating becomes a bigger problem. Do you simply have a big appetite, or are you actually struggling with an eating disorder? Here’s how to decipher the differences between regular overeating and the more serious binge eating disorder.
What is binge eating disorder?
According to the National Eating Disorders Association, binge eating disorder is severe and can be life-threatening but is also treatable. It’s characterized by recurrent episodes of eating large quantities of food. This is typically done very quickly and to the point of feeling uncomfortable. Other characteristics of BED include a feeling of loss of control during the binge and shame or guilt after it. Notably, bulimia involves unhealthy compensatory measures like purging after a binge, while BED does not.
BED is recognized in the DSM-5, but its addition to the diagnostic manual as its own disorder is relatively recent. Prior to 2013, it was considered a subtype of OSFED, or “other specified feeding and eating disorder.” Now, it’s the most common eating disorder in America.
Diagnostic criteria include the following:
- Eating within a discrete time period an amount of food that is definitely larger than what most people would eat in that time period under similar circumstances
- A sense of lack of control over eating during the episode
- Eating more rapidly than normal, eating until feeling uncomfortably full, eating large amounts when not hungry, eating alone because of embarrassment over how much is being consumed, and feeling disgusted, depressed, or guilty afterward (note that three of these must be present for a diagnosis)
- Marked distress regarding bingeing
- The binge occurs, on average, at least once a week for three months
- The binge eating is not associated with inappropriate compensatory behaviors like purging and does not occur exclusively during the course of bulimia nervosa or anorexia nervosa
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How is binge eating disorder different from overeating?
According to Healthline, BED is a medical condition, and overeating is not. BED is also associated with other psychological symptoms like depression and anxiety.
Another primary difference between the two is the feeling of distress or shame that comes with BED and its related behaviors. If you occasionally overeat, but you don’t feel distressed or guilty about it afterward, it’s unlikely you have BED. Next time you overeat, take note of what is going on. If you are doing it alone to hide your behavior, feeling out of control when it’s happening, and feeling ashamed afterward, you could have BED and should consider talking to a mental health professional.
(Here is how to find a good therapist even if you don’t have insurance, and here are warning signs your child may have BED.)
What can be done about BED?
If you end up with a diagnosis, here’s what you need to know: First, getting the diagnosis is a good thing, as BED can cause health complications like asthma, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure in addition to mental health problems like depression and anxiety.
Second, there are treatments available. Typically, people with BED will be treated with some kind of psychotherapy or counseling and there will be a medical or nutritional component, too. To figure out what kind of treatment you need, your mental health professional will consider emotional factors and the severity of your BED. Therapy can help address the underlying causes of the disorder, and medicine can help regulate your eating habits.
Deadline trade binge brings All-Star closer, starting pitcher, another reliever to Twins
Almost exactly a year ago, the Twins emerged from the trade deadline with a sense of somber resignation.
It was clear — for months before that point, honestly — that the squad wouldn’t be a playoff team in 2021 and probably not in 2022 without a dramatic overhaul of the pitching staff. So the team dealt away beloved players, including starter Jose Berrios and designated hitter Nelson Cruz and refocused on the future.
The atmosphere was markedly more optimistic Tuesday, as the AL Central-leading Twins brought in three pitchers — starter Tyler Mahle, reliever Michael Fulmer from the Tigers and closer Jorge Lopez from the Orioles — that can immediately contribute on the field without giving up anyone on the active roster.
“It feels a lot better, no other way to put it than that,” said Derek Falvey, president of baseball operations. “… We felt like with the group that we have in that room, the culture we have, we wanted to try and add to it and not to take it apart.”
The Twins resistance to parting with any of their active players was part of the reason why all of the club’s deals happened hours before the 5 p.m. deadline on Tuesday. Falvey said the team was working on the Lopez deal late Monday night but made it official the next morning.
Mahle followed in the afternoon before Fulmer had the unique experience of walking from Target Field’s visiting clubhouse to the home one — with gathered media filming his every step — fewer than two hours before his former team faced his new team.
“It seems like we’re making the right moves to bulk up, and that’s always great. As a player, you want to feel like the front office is putting the best product on the field to help you win a championship.”
For Lopez, the Twins parted with four minor league pitchers, three of whom were international free agent signings: Yennier Cano, who pitched in 10 Twins games this season; 2021 third-round draft pick Cade Povich; and rookie league arms Juan Nuñez and Juan Rojas.
Lopez warmed up in the eighth inning of the Twins’ 5-3 loss to Detroit on Tuesday night.
For Mahle, minor league infielders Christian Encarnacion-Strand (a fifth-round 2021 draft pick) and Spencer Steer (a third-round 2019 selection) as well as minor league pitcher Steve Hajjar (a second-round 2021 choice). For Fulmer, minor league pitcher Sawyer Gipson-Long, who was a sixth-round pick in the 2019 draft.
The Twins also made a Class AAA swap. Catcher Sandy Leon will report to the Saints while pitcher Ian Hamilton will now be part of the Guardians’ system.
In 29-year-old Lopez, the Twins gain a 2022 AL All-Star with a 1.68 ERA and 19 saves in the midst of his first full-time closer role of his seven-year career. In 27-year-old Mahle, a 19-game starter this season with a 5-7 record and 4.40 ERA. In 29-year-old Fulmer, a bullpen arm with a 3.20 ERA who holds opponents to a .203 batting average.
And all are coming in with some sense of familiarity. Fulmer is an Oklahoman and was a first-round pick in 2011, just like Twins starter Dylan Bundy. Mahle and Sonny Gray were in the Reds’ rotation together from 2019-21. Lopez will join fellow Puerto Rico natives Carlos Correa, Jose Miranda and Jovani Moran.
“It seems like we’re making the right moves to bulk up, and that’s always great. As a player, you want to feel like the front office is putting the best product on the field to help you win a championship,” Correa said. “And so far during this deadline, we feel like they’re doing that. They’re giving us a chance, a better chance, to go out there and compete with the best of them.”
Correa said he had many discussions with Twins manager Rocco Baldelli in the past week or so with his ideas on what the front office should do at the deadline. Correa’s priority was protecting “untouchable” Miranda, who just won the AL Rookie of the Month award after hitting .353 in July.
One topic Correa hasn’t yet discussed with the Twins, though, is his long-term future in Minnesota. Correa has options for the next two seasons, and there was some speculation the Twins might want to trade him at the deadline and not risk losing him for free in the offseason. Falvey said that was never a consideration. Correa just conveyed how his wife and young son are both happy here, which is a big factor in his ultimate decision.
But that’s a decision both parties will table for now and return to once the Twins have hopefully won the World Series.
A goal that doesn’t seem so far off after Tuesday’s fortifications.
“It gives you energy. Like, you show up, and you feel like we have a few more weapons in here than we did the day before,” Baldelli said. “… It should be a fun next couple months. I know we’re looking forward to it, and [Tuesday did] wonders.”
No More Binge Eating: Signal Pathway in the Brain That Controls Food Intake Discovered
Summary: AgRP neurons in the hypothalamus control the release of endogenous lysophospholipids, helping to control the excitability of cerebral cortex neurons and stimulating the desire for food intake.
Source: University of Cologne
A group of researchers has developed an entirely novel approach to treating eating disorders.
The scientists showed that a group of nerve cells in the hypothalamus (so-called AgRP, agouti-related peptide neurons) control the release of endogenous lysophospholipids, which in turn control the excitability of nerve cells in the cerebral cortex, which stimulates food intake.
In this process, the crucial step of the signalling pathway is controlled by the enzyme autotaxin, which is responsible for the production of lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) in the brain as a modulator of network activity.
The administration of autotaxin inhibitors can thereby significantly reduce both excessive food intake after fasting and obesity in animal models.
The article ‘AgRP neurons control food intake behaviour at cortical synapses via peripherally-derived lysophospholipids’ has now appeared in Nature Metabolism.
Eating disorders and especially obesity are one of the most common causes of a variety of diseases in industrialized societies worldwide, especially cardiovascular diseases with permanent disabilities or fatal outcomes such as heart attacks, diabetes, or strokes.
The Robert Koch Institute reported in 2021 that 67 percent of men and 53 percent of women in Germany are overweight. 23 percent of adults are severely overweight (obese). Attempts to influence eating behavior with medication have so far proved ineffective.
A novel therapy that modulates the excitability of networks that control eating behavior would be a decisive step toward controlling this widespread obesity.
The research team found an increased rate of obesity and the attendant type II diabetes in people with impaired synaptic LPA signaling.
A group led by Professor Johannes Vogt (Faculty of Medicine, University of Cologne), Professor Robert Nitsch (Faculty of Medicine, University of Münster) and Professor Thomas Horvath (Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, USA) has now shown that control of the excitability of neurons in the cerebral cortex by LPA plays an essential role in the control of eating behavior: AgRP neurons regulate the amount of lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) in the blood.
Through active transport, LPC reaches the brain, where it is converted by the enzyme autotaxin (ATX) into LPA, which is active at the synapse. Synaptic LPA signals stimulate specific networks in the brain, thus leading to increased food intake.
In the mouse model, after a period of fasting an increase in LPC in the blood led to an increase in stimulating LPA in the brain. These mice showed typical food-seeking behavior. Both could be normalized by administrating autotaxin inhibitors. Obese mice, on the other hand, lost weight when these inhibitors were administered continuously.
Johannes Vogt
Johannes Vogt explained: ‘We saw a significant reduction in excessive food intake and obesity through gene mutation and pharmacological inhibition of ATX. Our fundamental findings on the LPA-controlled excitability of the brain, which we have worked on for years, therefore also play a central role for eating behaviour.’
Robert Nitsch sees the findings as an important step towards new drug development: ‘The data show that people with a disturbed synaptic LPA signalling pathway are more likely to be overweight and suffer from type II diabetes. This is a strong indication of a possible therapeutic success of ATX inhibitors, which we are currently developing together with the Hans Knöll Institute in Jena for use in humans.’
These findings on the excitation control of neuronal networks in eating behaviour through lysophospholipids and the new therapeutic possibilities they suggest could in future contribute not only to treating eating disorders, but also neurological and psychiatric illnesses.
About this neuroscience research news
Author: Eva Schissler
Source: University of Cologne
Contact: Eva Schissler – University of Cologne
Image: The image is credited to Johannes Vogt
See also
Original Research: Closed access.
“AgRP neurons control feeding behaviour at cortical synapses via peripherally derived lysophospholipids” by Johannes Vogt. Nature Metabolism
Abstract
AgRP neurons control feeding behaviour at cortical synapses via peripherally derived lysophospholipids
Phospholipid levels are influenced by peripheral metabolism. Within the central nervous system, synaptic phospholipids regulate glutamatergic transmission and cortical excitability. Whether changes in peripheral metabolism affect brain lipid levels and cortical excitability remains unknown.
Here, we show that levels of lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) species in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid are elevated after overnight fasting and lead to higher cortical excitability. LPA-related cortical excitability increases fasting-induced hyperphagia, and is decreased following inhibition of LPA synthesis.
Mice expressing a human mutation (Prg-1R346T) leading to higher synaptic lipid-mediated cortical excitability display increased fasting-induced hyperphagia. Accordingly, human subjects with this mutation have higher body mass index and prevalence of type 2 diabetes.
We further show that the effects of LPA following fasting are under the control of hypothalamic agouti-related peptide (AgRP) neurons. Depletion of AgRP-expressing cells in adult mice decreases fasting-induced elevation of circulating LPAs, as well as cortical excitability, while blunting hyperphagia.
These findings reveal a direct influence of circulating LPAs under the control of hypothalamic AgRP neurons on cortical excitability, unmasking an alternative non-neuronal route by which the hypothalamus can exert a robust impact on the cortex and thereby affect food intake.
Moderate drinkers at risk for alcohol problems if they binge, study finds
“This leaves many drinkers mistakenly assuming that a moderate average level of consumption is safe, regardless of drinking pattern,” said Rudolf Moos, professor emeritus of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine, in a statement.
Moos is the coauthor of a recent study that found many moderate drinkers above age 30 actually end up binging on the weekend — defined as five or more drinks in a row or within a short period of time.
People who binged were about five times more likely to experience multiple alcohol problems, such as “getting hurt, emotional or psychological problems from alcohol, having to use more alcohol to get the same effect, and experiencing effects of alcohol at work, school or caring for children,” said study coauthor Charles Holahan, professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, in an email.
“What this means is that an individual whose total consumption is seven drinks on Saturday night presents a greater risk profile than someone whose total consumption is a daily drink with dinner, even though their average drinking level is the same,” Holahan said.
Adult binge drinking
Most past research on binge drinking has focused on the younger generation, typically teens and college students. Consuming multiple drinks at one sitting is widespread in this population segment. But statistics show a good many adults over 30 are binge drinkers, and the problem is on the rise, especially among women and adults over 65.
Yet levels of binge drinking among adults may escape “public health scrutiny, because it occurs among individuals who drink at a moderate average level,” Holahan said. “At present, binge drinking among moderate drinkers is largely undetected in primary care settings.”
Women are especially sensitive to the effects of alcohol, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Alcohol-related problems appear sooner and at lower drinking levels than in men, the NIAA said.
Women are more susceptible to alcohol-related brain damage and heart disease than men, and studies show women who have one drink a day increase their risk of breast cancer by 5% to 9% compared with women who abstain.
For both men and women over 65 years of age, the increase “is of particular concern because many older adults use medications that can interact with alcohol, have health conditions that can be exacerbated by alcohol, and may be more susceptible to alcohol-related falls and other accidental injuries,” the NIAA stated.
An ‘overlooked’ pattern
The new study, published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, used survey data collected as part of the Midlife Development in the United States study, which has been following a national sample of Americans between the ages of 25 and 74 since 1995.
The study analyzed nearly 1,300 drinkers over nine years and found most cases of binge drinking — and of multiple alcohol problems — occurred among individuals who were average moderate drinkers.
“An average moderate drinker of, for example, one drink a day might achieve that average by a daily drink with dinner or seven drinks on Saturday night,” Holahan said.
While that behavior would not necessarily lead to alcoholism, Holahan said, the study found drinking an average of more than one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men — or five or more drinks on the same occasion — was linked to alcohol problems nine years later.
“These findings point to a need for alcohol interventions targeting moderate average level drinkers in addition to conventional strategies focusing on the higher risk, but smaller, population of habitually high-level drinkers,” Holahan said.
Is your drinking a problem?
How do you know if your use of alcohol has become a problem? One telltale sign is when drinking is beginning to interfere with your ability to go through your daily life, experts say.
“Alcohol use disorder is defined as compulsively using alcohol despite having negative consequences from your use, such as an impact on your relationships, your ability to function in your job or in whatever roles you have in your community,” Dr. Sarah Wakeman, medical director of the Substance Use Disorders Initiative at Mass General Brigham told CNN in a prior interview.
Be wary if you continue drinking despite negative impacts on your physical or mental health. And it doesn’t have to be calling in sick or working with a hangover, Dr. Leena Mittal, chief of the women’s mental health division in the department of psychiatry at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, told CNN previously.
“Don’t forget relationships. Are you having more disagreements? Are people in your life expressing concern or noting that you’re different? Hiding your drinking, or lying about it, these too are concerning behaviors,” Mittal said.
Here’s a red flag: You’re pouring big drinks without realizing it. Current American Heart Association guidelines call for no more than two standard drinks a day for men and one for women and anyone 65 and older.
What is a standard drink? It’s 12 ounces of regular beer, 4 ounces of regular wine or 1.5 ounces of liquor, according to US standards.
“Yet people may be pouring a huge goblet of wine and not realize that it’s actually two or three servings of wine and not just one,” Wakeman said.
“We know that millions of Americans drink above those levels, even in pre-pandemic times,” Wakeman said. “In 2019, some 66 million Americans had episodes where they were drinking higher than those recommended limits.”
If you (or a loved one) appears to be struggling with alcohol, don’t hesitate to reach out for help, experts stress. There are many different support groups that can assist, such as 12-step programs and individual therapy.
Binge Drinking Raises Risk of Developing Alcohol Problems, Even for Moderate Drinkers
Summary: Moderate drinkers who have a pattern of binge drinking are five times more likely to develop alcohol use disorders than moderate drinkers who do not binge drink.
Source: Elsevier
Moderate drinkers who binge alcohol are at a significantly higher risk of developing alcohol problems than those who drink the same amount overall but don’t binge, according to a new study from researchers at The University of Texas at Austin appearing in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
After analyzing a national sample of US adults, UT Austin psychology professor Charles Holahan, PhD, and his collaborators found that moderate average drinkers with a pattern of binge drinking were almost five times more likely to experience multiple alcohol problems and were twice as likely to experience more alcohol problems nine years later.
Moderate drinking is defined as having on average no more than one drink a day for women and two for men. Binge drinking is defined as consuming five or more drinks on the same occasion.
“What this means,” said Dr. Holahan, “is that an individual whose total consumption is seven drinks on Saturday night presents a greater risk profile than someone whose total consumption is a daily drink with dinner, even though their average drinking level is the same.”
This research supports a growing recognition that binge drinking among adults is a public health concern and calls for increased public health efforts to address such drinking.
Research on binge drinking tends to focus on adolescents and college students, but most binge drinking occurs among adults over 30, and the prevalence of binge drinking in adults is increasing.
However, research on adult alcohol consumption and its effects usually focuses only on a person’s average level of drinking, which masks binge drinking patterns. As a result, the impact of binge drinking among low and moderate adult drinkers has not been well studied or understood.
“In both scientific and media discussions of moderate drinking, the pattern of drinking is generally overlooked,” said Rudolf Moos, PhD, one of the study’s co-authors and professor emeritus of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine.
“This leaves many drinkers mistakenly assuming that a moderate average level of consumption is safe, regardless of drinking pattern.”
To get a better understanding of the impact of drinking patterns, the researchers analyzed survey responses from 1,229 drinkers ages 30 and older. The data, taken from two waves of the Midlife Development in the United States study, allowed the researchers to see how respondents’ drinking patterns affected them over nine years.
What the investigators found surprised them: Most cases of binge drinking — and of multiple alcohol problems — occurred among individuals who were average moderate drinkers.
“Much binge drinking among adults escapes public health scrutiny,” said Dr. Holahan, “because it occurs among individuals who drink at a moderate average level. These findings point to a need for alcohol interventions targeting moderate average level drinkers in addition to conventional strategies focusing on the higher risk, but smaller, population of habitually high-level drinkers.”
About this alcohol and addiction research news
Author: Eileen Leahy
Source: Elsevier
Contact: Eileen Leahy – Elsevier
Image: The image is in the public domain
See also
Original Research: Open access.
“Binge Drinking and Alcohol Problems Among Moderate Average-Level Drinkers” by Kaulie Watson et al. American Journal of Preventative Medicine
Abstract
Binge Drinking and Alcohol Problems Among Moderate Average-Level Drinkers
Introduction
A significant amount of binge drinking among adults escapes public health scrutiny because it occurs among individuals who drink at a moderate average level. This observational study examined the role of a binge pattern of drinking in predicting alcohol problems among moderate drinkers in a U.S. national sample of adults.
Methods
Participants were 1,229 current drinkers aged ≥30 years from 2 waves of the study of Midlife Development in the United States, with a 9-year time lag (2004–2015) (analyzed in 2021‒2022). Negative binomial regression analyses were used to examine the number of alcohol problems, and binary logistic regression analyses were used to examine multiple (≥2) alcohol problems.
Results
Independent of the average level of drinking, binge drinking was linked with an almost 3 times increase in the number of concurrent alcohol problems and a 40% increase in the number of alcohol problems prospectively 9 years later. Moderate average level drinkers accounted for most cases of binge drinking and multiple alcohol problems. Among moderate drinkers, binge drinking was linked with a close to 5 times increase in concurrent multiple alcohol problems and a >2 times increase in multiple alcohol problems prospectively 9 years later.
Conclusions
These results substantially broaden an increasing recognition that binge drinking is a public health concern among adults. Moderate average-level drinkers should be included in efforts to reduce alcohol problems in adults. These findings are applicable to primary and secondary prevention of alcohol problems with the potential to advance population health.
How to Tell If Your Child Has Binge Eating Disorder (and What to Do About It)
The pandemic has not been kind to anyone’s mental health and, unfortunately, children’s mental health crises have been on the rise, including eating disorders. While anorexia, or a fear of gaining weight that usually presents as a restriction of food, is the eating disorder most talked about, binge eating disorder can also negatively impact your child’s life, causing life-long health problems. Here’s what to look for—and what to do—if you suspect your child may have binge eating disorder.
What are the signs of binge eating disorder?
The National Eating Disorder Association, which has a helpline and provides resources for those who need support for all types of eating disorders, defines binge eating disorder (BED), as “recurrent episodes of eating large quantities of food (often very quickly and to the point of discomfort); a feeling of a loss of control during the binge; experiencing shame, distress or guilt afterwards; and not regularly using unhealthy compensatory measures (e.g., purging) to counter the binge eating.” They say it’s the most common eating disorder in the U.S. and it is recognized in the DSM, which is used to categorize mental illness (and get your insurance to pay for treatment).
Some things to look for in your child include:
- Fear about weight gain
- Weight fluctuation
- Gastrointestinal complaints (cramps, acid reflux, etc)
- Body checking (looking at the mirror or in windows at themselves frequently)
- Fear of or seeming uncomfortable eating around others
- Missing food around the house or large amounts of wrappers/containers
- Hoarding or hiding large quantities of preferred food
- Attempts to conceal excessive food consumption
- Dieting or new food habits or fads (i.e., veganism, cutting out carbs, etc)
- Signals that the child is unable to stop the excessive food consumption
- Food rituals (eating only at certain times or certain foods)
- Disruption of normal eating habits (eating throughout the day instead of at mealtimes, eating alone)
- Withdrawal from friends or activities
Please keep in mind that your child, especially a teenager, might gain a significant amount of weight around puberty and it is not necessarily a sign that they are binging, sometimes children grow taller before they grow wider or vice versa. Be careful not to impose your own possible disordered eating behaviors on your child and check in with your own body image bias.
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What to do if you think your child has BED
Dr. Bill Hudenko, Global Head of Mental Health at K Health, says if you are concerned about your child having disordered eating behavior, “It is important to reach out to a pediatrician, nutritionist, or a mental health provider to determine if your child might meet criteria for binge eating disorder. In addition to the negative impacts that this disorder may have on your child’s body, early intervention will likely result in better treatment before the behaviors become too entrenched.”
The long-term effects of eating disorders include mental health implications, such as anxiety and depression, and life-long physical consequences such as metabolic health issues and cardiovascular health problems. Early treatment is vital.
After diagnosis
If your child is diagnosed with BED, Hudenko says, “It is difficult to treat eating disorders because we all need food to survive. This of course means that you can’t eliminate eating all together, but rather you must work to alter the child’s eating habits to result in a healthier pattern.”
While you may have to try a few different treatments to find the one that works best for your child and family, Hudenko says, the “ideal treatment for binge eating disorder would involve consultation with a well-trained mental health provider who can help the family to evaluate their food culture. Interventions would likely include restricting access to some foods that are typically used to binge, development of alternate coping mechanisms if food is used to manage stress, and learning to slow the pace of eating while reading body signals of satiety.”
Many parents nowadays came from the age of low-fat and fad diets. We hope to spare our children the pain and heartache of our years of hating our bodies and wishing to be something else. By checking in on our kids and making sure to stay on top of potential eating disorders, we are giving them the gift of body acceptance and love that they can carry with them into adulthood.