Runaway Eating:
The 8-Point Plan to Conquer Adult Food and Weight Obsessions

Are you following a strict diet? Fighting off depression or anxiety with food? Exercising excessively?

These are all indicators of an escalating trend among midlife women called "Runaway Eating" – defined as eating behaviors that have spun out of control combined with the use of eating behaviors to "run away" from emotional problems. In the past five years there has been a startling increase in the number of midlife women seeking treatment for bona fide eating disorders. But there are undoubtedly millions more who suffer from low-level forms of eating disorders that go unrecognized and untreated because they aren’t as severe or dramatic as clinically-defined anorexia, bulimia or binge eating disorder. Yet the consequences of these lesser forms of eating disorders can be extremely damaging, both physically and psychologically.

RUNAWAY EATING: The 8-Point Plan to Conquer Adult Food and Weight Obsessions is the first book to address this dangerous new trend and provide a realistic, patient-tested treatment plan. Clinical psychologist Cynthia M. Bulik and Registered Dietitian Nadine Taylor shed light on the physical and psychological factors that drive Runaway Eating and show readers how to regain a healthy relationship with food. The Runaway Eating Plan—based on the success of these strategies in clinical practice—is the single most effective approach to dealing with problematic eating behaviors, particularly those that affect women in midlife.

In Part One: Understanding Runaway Eating, Bulik and Taylor examine the underlying causes of Runaway Eating and address the complex array of factors responsible for its increase in recent years, especially in midlife women. More and more women—especially those between the ages of 35 and 60—are developing the symptoms of Runaway Eating as they struggle to cope with the stresses of work overload, menopause, empty nest syndrome, ailing parents, and the cultural emphasis on youth and beauty. The authors also explain who’s most likely to develop Runaway Eating, and what keeps the behavior in play, even in the face of a strong desire to stop.. Whether readers occasionally binge, restrict their food intake, exercise excessively, or purge, Runaway Eating offers help and hope.

Part Two: The 8-Point Plan to Conquer Runaway Eating takes readers through each step of the treatment program, which consists of simple, effective strategies that anyone can put into practice. From understanding the importance of eating on time, to identifying the triggers that set off Runaway Eating, to finding alternate ways to deal with the factors that perpetuate it—including anxiety, depression, menopausal symptoms, and perfectionism—the 8-point plan helps Runaway Eaters break the cycle once and for all.

Runaway Eating is a source of knowledge, practical advice, comfort, and strength for the millions of women who, up until now, have had to fight the battle alone. With real-life examples of people who have dealt successfully with Runaway Eating (including one of the authors), along with self-tests, checklists, and worksheets, Runaway Eating offers a clear explanation of the problem and a practical plan for living a life free of food, diet, and weight obsessions.

PRAISE FOR RUNAWAY EATING