What happens to the body if you overeat frequently?

What happens if you overeat regularly? What are the dangers of overeating?

Overeating is the excessive consumption of food, that is, more calories than necessary and usually larger portions. It makes you feel uncomfortably satiated.

If overeating is accompanied by a lack of control and low self-esteem, it can be a sign of an unhealthy relationship with food. It can develop into a full-blown eating disorder, such as bulimia nervosa or compulsive overeating.

What happens when you overeat?

Overeating causes the stomach to expand to accommodate large amounts of food. An expanded stomach puts pressure on other organs, causing discomfort. And it can take the form of feeling tired, provoking lethargy or drowsiness.

Consuming too much food makes the organs work harder. They release additional hormones and enzymes to break it down.

To digest food, the stomach produces hydrochloric acid. If you overeat, it can back up into the esophagus, leading to heartburn. Consuming too many high-fat foods, such as pizza and cheeseburgers, can make you more susceptible to heartburn. Metabolism, on the other hand, often speeds up in such cases as the body tries to burn off extra calories. This causes fever, sweating, and even dizziness.

What happens if you overeat regularly?

When you eat, your body uses some of the calories you consume for energy. The rest can be stored as fat. Consuming more calories than you expend can lead to overweight or obesity. This increases your risk of metabolic syndrome (obesity with aggravating symptoms) and other chronic health problems.

Overeating, especially if junk food is involved, can affect the digestive system. Digestive enzymes are only available in limited amounts, so the more food you eat, the longer it takes to digest. If you overeat frequently, over time the digestive process slows down, which means the food you eat will stay in your stomach even longer and is more likely to turn into fat.

Overeating can affect sleep as well. Circadian rhythms, which control sleep cycles, cause levels of sleep and hunger hormones to rise and fall throughout the day. Overeating will cause this rhythm to be disrupted, resulting in disrupted sleep.

If regular overeating extends over weeks and months, it can lead to serious health problems, such as an increased risk of diabetes.

What should you do if you overeat?

• Relax.
• Take a walk. A light walk will help stimulate digestion and help even out your blood sugar levels.
• Drink water, but not carbonated water.
• Don’t go to bed.

How do you know if you are overeating?

Pay attention to these “symptoms.”

• You continue to eat even after you feel full.
• You feel so full that you actually need to take a break before the next bite of food.
• You barely pay attention to the food in front of you.
• The thought of having a large appetite makes you anxious.
• You feel heavy after you have finished a meal.