This syndrome is fairly common in obese persons.

Experts have evidence that Night Eating Syndrome (NES), in which over 50% of daily food intake is consumed after 8 p.m., may be related to stress rather than hunger or other emotional factors.

While NES is fairly uncommon in the general population (it is estmated to affect between 1 and 2% of adults), studies show that it may occur in up to approximately one-fourth of obese persons. NES was first described in 1955 and is characterized by:

• lack of or decreased appetite during the day
  
• insomnia
  
• morning anorexia--or not eating anything all morning
  
• consume fewer than average calories throughout the day.
  
• increased appetite at night
  
• evening hyperphagia (increased eating) and nocturnal eating (arising to eat after having gone to bed)
  
• worsening mood and depression as the evening progresses
  
• the tendency to eat carbohydrate-rich foods such as sugars and starchy foods.

In contrast to binge eating disorder, which is characterized by short intense bursts of eating, NES sufferers generally eat continuously throught the evening and night. The causes of NES have not been understood, and it has been thought to result from a combination of environmental and biological factors.

Researchers in Norway studied the neuroendocrine patterns and stress hormone levels in a small group of women with NES and compared these to normal controls. The doctors injected the study participants and controls with a dose of the hormone CRH*, which stimulates the body's stress response, and measured the levels of hormones ACTH* and cortisol* in response to this trigger. In the night eaters, the stress response - as measured by the secreation of ACTH and cortisol following CRH injection - was distinctly attenuated. CRH-induced ACTH levels were down 47% and cortisol levels were decreased by 71% in the night eaters.

These findings, published in the February 2002 issue of the American Journal of Physiology - Endocrinology and Metabolism, suggest that a disordered stress response, characterized by a reduced pituitary-adrenal stress reaction, may be a cause of NES. An abnormal pituitary gland function has also been detected in several other disorders such as insomnia, chronic fatigue syndrome, eating disorders, and other mood disruptions.

Reference:

Birketvedt GS, Sundsfjord J, Florholmen JR. Hypothalmic-pituitary-adrenal axis in the night eating syndrome. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 2002 Feb;282(2):e366-9.


Glossary

• ACTH - a hormone secreted by the pituitary gland at the base of the brain, which acts directly on the adrenal glands to increase their secretion of cortisol and other hormones. In stress situations, ACTH levels rise, causing elevated cortisol levels. ACTH levels are controlled by the so-called hormone releasing factor CRH (corticotropin releasing hormone) from the hypothalamus of the brain.
  
• cortisol - a steroid hormone secreted by the outer portion, or cortex, of the adrenal glands. Any type of physical or mental stress can increase the production and release of cortisol, and this hormone is often called the "stress hormone" due to its increased secretion during stress responses in the body. Cortisol has a strong anti-inflammatory effect, and it increases mobilization of amino acids from muscle (increasing protein breakdown), increases mobilization of fatty acids (increasing lipid concentrations in the blood), and increases blood glucose concentration.
  
• CRH - so-called "releasing factor" made and released from the hypothalamus of the brain, which is carried to the pituitary gland, where it causes secretion of ACTH (the hormone that triggers cortisol secretion from the adrenal glands).

http://stress.about.com/library/weekly/aa021902a.htm

Welcome
I must be one of the nes people for u have described me perfectly unfortunaly.I have trained myself over the past 6 mo not to eat at 4 inthe am like I used to have breakfast then.I try to eat something when I get up now even if its sm.When I take my am medications.I am on the southbeach diet and have been for about a mo now.I have retained much water and so I did loose about 10 lbs so far in 6-7 wks.I wa s trying to loose before I started the diet.My girlfriend finally got me going.She is such a dear friend and has encouraged me right along knowing that I weigh 35 lbs or so more than I can carry mentally.I had a really bad aug2003 resulting in a great wt gain extremely outof control .and it continued for 10 months.Now I feel my life is alittle bit more in control to start a diet and stick to it and nes is still a prob becuase I am a night feeder.I like to eat post dinner I have substituted with popcorn just about everynite.low carb ice cream.Thats if the sweet tooth acts up.Please write back and tell me about yourself and perhaps we can do this together.I don't write daily so understand that,however,I will get better at that if I had a person like myself writting often .audrey

very interesting article doreen- thanks.

you described me exactly. I feel so low about myself after I eat at night. Right now I'm almost in tears because I just ate. Now I know I'll feel sick in the morning from eating this late. Do you have any tips on how to stop this?? PLEASE tell me if you do

I too have NES. Since eating Lowcarb I havent been doing it........Hopefully this will last.....This is an uncontrollable syndrome..every nite I would tell myself Im not going to do it and next thing you know I'm half asleep in the kitchen eating ANYTHING!. Then I would lay on the couch with pillows to prop me up so I could sleep! My husband never mentions it but I know he hears me in the kitchen.......This has contributed my weight gain........Lina

Stress ! this can be fixed in bed with your husband, wife, boyfriend or girlfriend so dont worry about stress .Night eating, hmmm.... I believe it is a state of mind some kind of an obsession this can be fixed too if you just keep telling to your self " I eat to live, I dont live to eat " and if you got nervous try to eat only vegetables . This works for me hope it works for you too

I have NES like you would not believe!!! Getting myself to eat durring the day is almost impossible and loading up at night helps me sleep big time.

I can't stay as lean as I'd like, but I just don't like eating durring the day.

Hi everyone, I cant beleive there is finally a name NES for what I have been doing at nightfor at least 20 years. Iam 41 years old and I have been getting up to eat (when good 1to2times) when bad 2-4times at night. I have been try different treatments, hyposis, therapy (4months every week, boy did that cost a lot of money), then finally Prozac which I am still taking. Prozac did not stopp the night eating even when my doctor keep increasng the medication, but it did make me feel much better in general so I still take 20m. My husband came up with an idea a rubberband around my wrist when I wake I try to remember to snap the band it did work a little. I would love to get as much information about NES because no one ever understood or had a name for this behavior. I am not ashame of what I do I just wish I could stop why waste calories, food, for a time like 12:00 1:00 2:00 I would much rather control all day and even enjoy a dessert at early night. I have much for to say if any one is interested I dont want to bore anyone so ealy in the morning. Thanks

I would suggest anyone who is suffering from this night eating symdrome to read Mastering Leptin by Richard Byrons. I think this malady is born out of a miscommunication between hormones, namely leptin and the brain. Hormones are very powerful. If they tell you to eat, it's nearly impossible to say no.

Serre

Thank You I will indeed buy this book any other information please post.