Forty percent of high school students report binge eating in new CDC survey

The data also show binge eating is more prevalent among young people of color

A recent survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveals that approximately 40% of high school students in the United States reported experiencing binge eating within the past month, underscoring the prevalence of this common form of disordered eating among adolescents.

This marks the inaugural occasion that the biennial survey has addressed binge eating, representing the first comprehensive data on disordered eating collected by the Youth Risk Behavior Survey in a decade. Among its notable findings, 17% of nearly 7,000 respondents indicated that they had engaged in binge eating in the last three days. Ariel Beccia, a researcher specializing in adolescent and children's medicine at Boston Children's Hospital, commented on the alarming nature of these findings, noting the unexpectedly high percentages reported.

The prevalence of binge eating appears to be higher among female students than their male counterparts, with rates of 19% for females compared to 16% for males. The survey indicated that binge eating was also more common among students identifying as Black (19%), Hispanic (20%), and multiracial (20%) compared to their white peers (15%) and those identifying as Middle Eastern or North African (10%).

This data highlighting that young people of color are more likely to report binge eating is significant as it challenges long-standing stereotypes that link eating disorders primarily to white girls and young women, according to Beccia. She emphasized that eating disorders are not exclusive to any particular demographic and that marginalized youth are often at a higher risk.

The survey further established connections between binge eating and factors such as frequent social media usage, poor mental health, and suicidality.

Participants were asked to define binge eating as a situation where they experienced a loss of control over their eating habits: "During the past 30 days, on how many days did you eat an unusually large amount of food in a short period of time and experience a loss of control over how much you were eating or a feeling that you could not stop eating even when full?" Inclusion of this critical question in the survey was the result of a decade-long advocacy by organizations focused on eating disorder research and awareness.

Questions pertaining to disordered eating were removed from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey in 2015 to make space for inquiries regarding emerging issues like vaping among youth. The survey's time constraints allow for a 45-minute completion period, which limits its content, as Beccia noted.

For the upcoming 2025 survey, advocacy groups for eating disorders successfully lobbied for the reintroduction of a binge eating question, building on prior research that identified it as the most common form of disordered eating among youth. Additionally, Beccia highlighted that young individuals facing food insecurity and economic hardship are at an increased risk for binge eating compared to their more affluent peers, emphasizing the importance of examining these disparities.

Looking ahead, these advocacy groups aim to include questions addressing other restrictive eating behaviors, such as fasting, dieting, and purging. Currently, such an item resides within an optional question bank that can be elected for inclusion by state and local governments in their customized surveys.

The findings concerning the prevalence of binge eating evoke critical discussions regarding America's ultra-processed food landscape, as articulated by Lindsey Smith-Taillie, a nutrition epidemiologist at UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. She stated, "Many of these foods are engineered for overconsumption — for example, they often contain flavor bursts that rapidly dissipate and/or rapidly absorbed carbohydrates, which leave us wanting more." Additionally, the accessibility and aggressive marketing of these foods contribute to their abundance in households.

Ashley Gearhardt, a researcher specializing in ultra-processed food and addiction, noted that binge eating began to be recognized as a clinical concern around the same time that highly processed foods became dominant in the market. However, she cautioned that this does not imply a direct causal relationship. Fundamentally, Beccia reiterated that disordered eating is fundamentally an issue of mental health.

"Eating disorders are significantly underfunded and under-researched, partly due to a lack of comprehensive epidemiological data," Beccia stated. She expressed hope that the insights indicating widespread disordered eating will persuade funding bodies to recognize this as a pressing public health concern that necessitates dedicated resources for study and resolution.