Bulletin

Issue: May 2004

Research in Action

Can yoga help curb binge eating?

La Trobe University researcher Mr Shane McIver hopes to ascertain whether yoga can prevent or reduce binge eating.

Conducting research for his PhD thesis, supervised by Dr Paul O'Halloran of the School of Public Health, Mr McIver sought to recruit 80 overweight or obese women who binge eat.

'I was quite overwhelmed by the number of women interested in participating after the project was publicised in the media. In the three weeks after the item ran in several newspapers, more than 300 women made contact,' Mr McIver said.

'While there has been considerable investigation of other aspects of eating disorders - particularly anorexia and bulimia - relatively little research has been done on binge eating which is a very serious problem. Previous research points to the fact that about 30 per cent of women participating in various weight control programs are binge eaters.'

Mr McIver defines binge eating as an out-of-control eating pattern, including the urge to eat when not hungry. It might not have anything to do with hunger or a real need for food.

'Binge eaters go into a 'transformational trance' in which they use food as a buffer zone between themselves and how they really feel. As long as they are bingeing, they tend to block out thoughts about what's going on and how they feel. Even though they are full, eating more maintains the thought 'blackout'.

'I should make it clear that not all binge eaters are overweight or obese. Genetics and other factors can play a role in preventing some binge eaters from gaining excess weight.'

Mr McIver is conducting a randomised control trial using pre and post test measures. He has divided his participants into two equal groups. One will undergo a 12-week yoga program while the other women, acting as the control group, will continue their usual eating and exercise pursuits.

The intervention group will undertake yoga sessions for one hour each week for 12 weeks after which the effects will be compared to the control group.

Mr McIver says the project will explore the results of the yoga program in two ways: one examining the results of the meditation aspect of yoga (eating mindfully) and the second the results of the physical aspect (hatha yoga).

He wishes to explore whether meditation changes the experience of bingeing. The aim is to discover if, through the development of increasing awareness, members of the intervention group will become more conscious of what they are doing when they eat, as well as when they are tempted to binge eat, and if this leads to a reduction in bingeing behaviour.

'We want to learn about what happens when the constant urge to eat is not placated, and if it diminishes. Early evidence from a similar pilot study indicates positive findings, with significant decreases in binge episodes and depression scores.

'The second aspect of the project is to determine the effect of classical hatha yoga, which is the physical exercise component of yoga. For many women, there is a love-hate relationship towards exercise. It's difficult to find a way to exercise that is non-competitive or void of body image issues. The model presented here is exercise where you can enjoy your body more and worry about it less. In turn, this might lead to increased participation in other activities.'•

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