Estrogen Receptors Help Reduce Binge Eating by Triggering Serotonin Levels

Recent findings published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation show that the hormone estrogen can help prevent binge eating by triggering brain serotonin neurons.

"Previous data has shown that women who have irregular menstrual cycles tend to be more likely to binge eat, suggesting that hormones in women play a significant role in the development or prevention of the behavior," said Dr. Yong Xu, assistant professor of pediatrics and senior author of the paper, in a news release.

The National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders shows that up to 24 million people of all ages and genders in the United States suffer from a more commonly known type of eating disorder, including anorexia, bulimia or binge eating. Anywhere from 5 to 10 percent of this population suffers primarily from a binge eating disorder, that's categorized as consuming excessive amounts of food. Statistics show that the health issue is also more common in women than men. 

"We can speculate that in women who develop binge eating who also happen to have irregular menstrual cycles, it is probably because their estrogen function is somehow damaged, which is what leads to the development of binge eating," Xu added.

For the study, researchers tested estradiol on a set of mouse-models--a human sex hormone and steroid that's comprised primarily of female sex hormone.

Findings revealed that the simple presence of estrogen receptors that influenced serotonin neurons directly reduced binge eating in the animals.

"The significance is not only understanding the mechanism of how estrogen may modulate this behavior, but from a more therapeutic point of view, this would identify a potential target for estrogen therapy or modified estrogen therapy for treatment of this problem," Xu concluded.