Every binge starts

by not eating enough

earlier in the day.

A binge is when a person eats a lot of food at one time. When the person eats this food, she usually feels out of control. Also, she may try and sneak the food.

Many overweight kids and teens binge eat. Many of them do it secretly too. Many kids and teens binge because they feel really stressed. Or, they may feel really sad or frustrated.

A huge part of the binge begins before a person starts to eat lots of food. Usually a person binge eats when they are dieting or trying to lose weight. This happens, in part, because they are eating too little (or starving) themselves in the beginning of the day. Eating too little at breakfast and lunch is the first part of the puzzle to binge eating.

You can stop binge eating! Many kids and teens seek help from a counselor to help learn about the feelings that may spark the binge. Planning your food choices a little bit better can help too! Here are a few pointers to stop a binge:

1. Do NOT skip meals. Eat breakfast and lunch everyday. Skipping these meals will tell your body to eat a lot more at dinner time and at night.

2. Eat balanced meals. A balanced meal includes whole grains, protein, and a high calcium food. It also includes a fruit or vegetable. Click on each food to learn more about them.

3. If you count calories, allow yourself enough. Many overweight kids and teens eat 1200 calories or less each day. For most kids and teens, this is not enough! Eating so little can make a person binge later in the day. Click here to see some other calorie pointers.