Evaluation of a functional treatment for binge eating associated with bulimia nervosa.

Binge-eating disorders (BED) are a common problem affecting up to 5 percent of the American population in any given 6-month period. Currently, the most widely accepted treatment is some variation of Cognitive Behavior Therapy, although the abstinence rates following this type of treatment are only around 50%. A recent study by Bosch et al. explored the effects of extinction with four women who engaged in binge-eating behavior associated with BED and bulimia nervosa (BN). The treatment was successful, with three of the four participants obtaining abstinence. To date, this has been the only study examining this procedure. The purpose of the current study was to further evaluate extinction of binge eating with four young women who met diagnostic criteria for BN. The results showed that the treatment decreased binge eating to zero for all four women, although one dropped out of the study shortly after beginning the intervention.