The Nevada Sagebrush

Restrictive diets paired with excessive drinking can lead to alcohol poisoning and even death. The disorder is known to many doctors as “drunkorexia,” although no official nomenclature has been designated for the behavior. Photo illustration by Tony Contini /Nevada Sagebrush

As the number of eating disorders increases on college campuses, a condition known as “drunkorexia” is becoming more prevalent, said Dr. Tony Paulsen, an eating disorder specialist.

Although drunkorexia is not an official diagnosis, it refers to restricting food intake in order to consume more alcohol. About 2 percent of college-aged students suffer from eating disorders, Paulsen said. But about 30 percent of college-aged women have reported eating less to drink more alcohol in order to control caloric intake, he said.

The disorder is unique in that it exhibits two behaviors used to regulate emotion and self-perception, Paulsen said.

“For both alcohol abuse and anorexia, they feel better about themselves after their behavior,” he said. “It’s hard for some people to understand that not eating actually feels good to people with anorexia. Alcohol abuse is easier to understand.”

During the past five years, the prevalence of eating disorders among college-aged women has increased dramatically, Paulsen said.

But drunkorexia isn’t limited to anorexic people suffering from alcoholism, Paulsen said. Eating less and drinking more is still potentially dangerous for people who maintain 85 percent of their normal body weight, the marginal weight for clinical anorexic diagnosis. The combination results in increased intoxication and can lead to alcohol poisoning and death, he said.

People suffering from anorexia and alcoholism are putting themselves at great risk, Paulsen said.

“One out of 10 people with eating disorders die as a result of the disorder,” he said. “You throw alcohol abuse on top of that and it’s pretty scary. These are malnourished women who are putting themselves in danger.”

<  About 30 percent of college-aged women report restricting their food intake to drink more alcohol.

<  About 2 percent of college-aged women suffer from an eating disorder.

<  One in 10 women suffering from an eating disorder dies from the disorder.

Karen Spears, a state nutrition specialist at the University of Nevada, Reno’s College of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Natural Resources, said restrictive diets coupled with alcohol can lead to anorexia and alcoholism.

The term drunkorexia is a strange way to describe the disorder, Spears said. Anorexia means loss of appetite. Based on Latin nomenclature, drunkorexia is a meaningless term, she said.

UNR’s Counseling Center treats students with eating disorders, counseling psychologist Rebecca Chaliman said. Students are first assessed and usually referred to the Student Health Center’s dietitian for a check-up. Students often participate in individual or group therapy for eating disorders, but are referred to off-campus help for serious problems with alcohol, she said.

UNR students enrolled in six credits are eligible for counseling at the university’s Counseling Center. Students enrolled in fewer than six credits must pay a $35 fee.

Don Weinland can be reached at dweinland@nevadasagebrush.com.

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