No, it’s not a medical term, but with the widespread acceptance of alcohol and drug use and societal pressures to maintain a thin physique, drunkorexia may be the next big “trendy” disorder. A New York Times article titled “Starving Themselves, Cocktail in Hand” reports on this new problem.

Drunkorexia is not an official medical term. But it hints at a troubling phenomenon in addiction and eating disorders. Among those who are described as drunkorexics are college-age binge drinkers, typically women, who starve all day to offset the calories in the alcohol they consume. The term is also associated with serious eating disorders, particularly bulimia, which often involve behavior like bingeing on food — and alcohol — and then purging.

The article states that the typical anorexic avoids alcohol because of the high calorie content; however they may ingest alcohol to numb the anxiety around having to eat or having eaten a full meal. Further there are some anorexics that use alcohol as a food substitute;

”There are women who are afraid to put a grape in their mouth but have no problem drinking a beer,’ said Douglas Bunnell, the director of outpatient clinical services for the Renfrew Center, based in Philadelphia.

Comments

This post currently has 3 comments.
You can read the comments or leave your own thoughts.

    Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 2 Mar 2008
    Published on PsychCentral.com. All rights reserved.