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differences may have been present before the onset of
the disorder (Kaye et al., 2001).
Serotonin alterations in binge eating disorder appear
fairly similar to those found in bulimia, although the
research is more limited in this area. Researchers
generally believe that individuals with BED also suffer
from chronically low serotonin levels, which is thought
to contribute to binge eating in an attempt to relieve
the depressed mood caused (in part) by this low
serotonin (Haedt-Matt & Keel, 2011). Genetics studies
have supported this idea, as variants in a serotonin
transporter gene were associated with increased binge
eating severity in the general population (Akkermann
et al., 2010). Further studies found an association
between impulsivity and strict dieting with serotonin
receptor genes and binge eating in young women
(Racine et al., 2009).
Dopamine Dopamine is commonly thought of as the “pleasure”
chemical, due to its links with rewarding behaviors
and drugs of abuse. Although dopamine is involved in
reward-motivated behavior (such as studying to get
good grades, or going to work early to get a raise), it
also helps regulate movement, memory, hormones
and pregnancy, and sensory processing (Beaulieu &
Gainetdinov, 2011). Like serotonin, the overlap of
processes controlled by dopamine and eating disorder-
related symptoms caused researchers to investigate
potential associations.
In anorexia, the leading hypothesis is that the disorder
is associated with an over-production of dopamine,
leading to anxiety (Bailer et al., 2012a), harm avoidance
(Bailer et al., 2012b), hyperactivity and the ability to go
without pleasurable things like food (Kontis & Theochari,
2012). Research has shown that bulimia is associated
with lower levels of both dopamine and certain of
its receptors, and that binge eating is significantly
associated with dopamine release in certain parts of
the brain (Broft et al., 2012). Binge eating disorder
has been linked to a hyper-responsiveness to rewards
such as food, which makes eating more rewarding and
pleasurable than in people without this disorder (Davis
et al., 2012) and leads to a continuation of compulsive
overeating (Bello & Hajnal, 2010).
References Akkermann, K., Nordquist, N., Oreland, L., & Harro, J. (2010).
Serotonin transporter gene promoter polymorphism affects
the severity of binge eating in general population. Progress in
Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry, 34(1),
111-114. doi: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2009.10.008
Bailer, U. F., Narendran, R., Frankle, W. G., Himes, M. L.,
Duvvuri, V., Mathis, C. A., & Kaye, W. H. (2012). Amphetamine
induced dopamine release increases anxiety in individuals
recovered from anorexia nervosa. International Journal of
Eating Disorders, 45(2), 263-271. DOI: 10.1002/eat.20937
Bailer, U. F., Frank, G. K., Price, J. C., Meltzer, C. C., Becker, C.,
Mathis, C. A., ... & Kaye, W. H. (2012b). Interaction between
serotonin transporter and dopamine D2/D3 receptor
radioligand measures is associated with harm avoidant
symptoms in anorexia and bulimia nervosa. Psychiatry Research:
Neuroimaging. doi:10.1016/j.pscychresns.2012.06.010
Bello, N. T., & Hajnal, A. (2010). Dopamine and binge eating
behaviors. Pharmacology Biochemistry and behavior, 97(1),
25-33. doi: 10.1016/j.pbb.2010.04.016
Beaulieu, J. M., & Gainetdinov, R. R. (2011). The physiology,
signaling, and pharmacology of dopamine receptors.
Pharmacological reviews, 63(1), 182-217. doi: 10.1124/
pr.110.002642 Broft, A., Shingleton, R., Kaufman, J., Liu, F., Kumar, D.,
Slifstein, M., ... & Walsh, B. T. (2012). Striatal dopamine in
bulimia nervosa: A pet imaging study. International Journal of
Eating Disorders, 45(5), 648-656. DOI: 10.1002/eat.20984
Bruce, K. R., Steiger, H., Joober, R., Kin, N. M. K., Israel,
M., & Young, S. N. (2005). Association of the promoter
polymorphism− 1438G/A of the 5‐HT2A receptor gene with
behavioral impulsiveness and serotonin function in women
with bulimia nervosa. American Journal of Medical Genetics
Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics, 137(1), 40-44.
Davis, C., Levitan, R. D., Yilmaz, Z., Kaplan, A. S., Carter, J. C., &
Kennedy, J. L. (2012). Binge eating disorder and the dopamine
D2 receptor: Genotypes and sub-phenotypes. Progress in
Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry, 38(2),
328-335. doi: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2012.05.002
Kontis, D., & Theochari, E. (2012). Dopamine in anorexia
nervosa: a systematic review. Behavioural Pharmacology, 23(5
and 6), 496-515. doi: 10.1097/FBP.0b013e328357e115
Haedt-Matt, A. A., & Keel, P. K. (2011). Revisiting the affect
regulation model of binge eating: A meta-analysis of studies
using ecological momentary assessment. Psychological
bulletin, 137(4), 660. doi: 10.1037/a0023660
You can read more about the effects of dopamine in
the section on Reward.
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