Does Purging Really Work?

The Truth is Purging Doesn’t Really Work……

The main reason people purge is to reduce weight gain after a binge.

By Richard Kerr- Bulimia Help.org

The main reason people purge is to reduce weight gain after a binge.

Let’s just burst that bubble right now.

Many people are amazed to realise that even after purging a lot of calories can still be left in the body. One study found that around 1200 calories remained in the body despite the size of the binge.

Recent scientific studies have also suggested that food absorption can begin much earlier on in the digestive system of a bulimic than in a non-bulimic. Generally even if you vomit immediate after a binge and try and empty all contents of your stomach research has shown that your body goes on to absorb around 40% to 75% of the calories.

So, for all the pain and suffering, shame and disgust that you go through, a large portion of calories will always remain. No matter how hard you try your body will retain calories. This makes sense because most people with bulimia tend to be of average to slightly above average weight. If purging really worked then the majority of people with bulimia would be seriously underweight.

REMEMBER:

• BY BINGEING AND PURGING YOU ARE CONSUMING MORE CALORIES THAN YOU WOULD IF YOU ATE NORMALLY.
• By PURGING you are ensuring your body is staying in a distressed hunger state and distressed hunger  state ALWAYS leads to more bingeing.
• If you stop purging NOW, over time the desire to binge will be GREATLY REDUCED.

What about laxatives?

For weight loss, very few things work as ineffectively as laxatives. In fact I’m surprised it’s not common knowledge how unsuccessful they are.
By the time food passes through our small intestine most nutrients are already
absorbed. It was shown that laxatives ONLY decrease caloric consumption by about 12%.
Any weight loss is actually due to water loss which can be very dangerous. This water loss will rapidly return once you become rehydrated. Due to constant dehydration, your body starts to horde water which can make you feel bloated and uncomfortable.

In fact confusing thirst for hunger is one of the most common reasons for overeating. By being constantly dehydrated, you are much more likely to believe you are hungry when you are not and therefore eat more.

What about diuretics?

DIURETICS 100% JUST DO NOT WORK
They have NO EFFECT whatsoever on caloric consumption. The only thing they do is make you lose
water, which is quickly returned when you drink again.

What about driven exercise?

Exercise is good for you, right?
So that should mean that more exercise must be better for you?
Wrong!

Excessive and obsessive exercise does not burn off all the calories from a binge. Excessive exercise actually lowers your metabolism, helping your body retain more calories from any food consumed.

It also does not burn off fat, but in fact actually breaks down muscle fiber. Muscle is the best natural fat burner we have and helps regulate your metabolism.

Excessive Exercise is only going to make you hungrier which often results in more bingeing and purging.

Periods of fasting will only set you back in recovery. It was restrictive eating that got us here in the first place. How can it possibly help us recover?
If you are part of the problem, then you are not part of the solution. Periods of fasting only heighten a distressed hunger state and increase binge urges.

Task for today…

The next time you get the urge to purge remember that Purging does NOT work. The sooner you are able to take those initial brave steps and stop purging the sooner your urges to binge will reduce!

Remember to scroll right down to the bottom of this page to read some amazing success stories written by our members.

 Source: www.bulimiahelp.org