18 Best Eating Disorder & Binge Eating Books of All Time (2022)

YOU ARE READING: 18 Best Eating Disorder & Binge Eating Books of All Time (2022) AT PhebinhvanhocEN

If you want to be exposed to new ways of thinking, reading is important.

Books offer people of all ages a convenient way to acquire new information from a wide range of perspectives.

You are reading: Best books on binge eating

A question I’m often asked by email, at conferences, and through Instagram is, “What are the best books on eating disorders?”

This question doesn’t have a simple answer: certain books serve different purposes, so we first need to know what you’re trying to get out of your reading time.

Looking for a book to help you overcome your eating disorder on your own?

Are you a therapist looking for a book to teach you how to better treat your clients with eating disorders?

Looking for a book about the lived experience of an eating disorder?

Below, I have chosen and compiled 18 of the most helpful eating disorder books of all time from each of these categories.

self-help books for people with eating disorders

Overcoming Binge Eating (Christopher Fairburn)

Overcoming Binge Eating is, in my opinion, the best self-help book for people struggling with binge eating. the book on binge eating contains a psychoeducation component and a structured self-help component, which has been shown to be very effective. it’s easy to read and follow, and the self-help steps are based on solid evidence.

improving bit by bit (ulrike schmidt, janet treasure and june alexander)

another incredibly helpful self-help book for people struggling with bulimia nervosa. Written by arguably two of the most influential eating disorder researchers, this step-by-step self-help book is not only based on evidence-based principles, but its warmth, compassion, and understanding towards people with eating disorders is something to applaud. .

if you’re not on a diet, then what? (rick kausmann)

written by a melbourne based medical professional, “if you’re not on a diet, then what?” takes a unique approach to helping people address eating disorders by teaching readers about the pitfalls of diet culture and how to appropriately engage in a sustainable pattern of eating guided by internal cues of hunger and satiety.

the dbt solution to emotional eating: a proven program to break the cycle of binge eating and binge eating (debra safer, sarah adler & phillip mason)

If you’re looking for tools to transform your relationship with food, then this book might be perfect for you. Based on Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), this motivational guide offers a powerful path to change. the authors have translated their proven, cutting-edge treatment into a compassionate self-help resource for anyone struggling with binge eating and other types of eating stress.

skills-based care for a loved one with an eating disorder (treasure, blacksmith, and crane).

Skills-Based Learning is an excellent resource that will help equip caregivers with the skills and knowledge to support their loved one with an eating disorder. an excellent read to understand how to address those critical barriers that stand in the way of recovery. this book brings a good mix of empirical research and lived experience to help those struggling with an eating disorder.

books on eating disorders for doctors

Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Eating Disorders (Christopher Fairburn)

This manual takes a transdiagnostic perspective for the treatment of eating disorders. It is well written, easy to follow, and contains practical examples of how best to help you and your clients implement the strategies that underpin CBT. Highly recommended for clinicians who want to hone their CBT skills for this population group.

brief cognitive behavioral therapy for non-underweight patients (glenn waller, hannah turner, madeleine tatham, victoria mountford and tracey wade)

Written by a team of highly experienced eating disorder experts, this book provides an evidence-based protocol that can be delivered by young or experienced professionals, helping people with an eating disorder recover and live a fulfilling life. . this book will appeal to clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, psychotherapists, dietitians, and nurses.

A Cognitive-Interpersonal Therapy Workbook for Treating Anorexia Nervosa: The Maudsley Model (Ulrike Schmidt, Helen Startup, and Janet Tesoro).

This book is based on the authors’ pioneering research at London’s Maudsley Hospital, which provides adults with anorexia nervosa and the mental health professionals who work with them with a practical resource for working together.

dialectical behavior therapy for binge eating and bulimia nervosa (debra safer, christy telch, and eunice chen).

This book provides professionals with a new set of tools to help clients struggling with binge eating disorder or bulimia nervosa. If you are looking for case examples, how-to handouts, and a detailed explanation on how to implement dbt principles, then this book is worth reading.

eating disorders in boys and men (jason nagata, tiffany brown, stewart murray and jason lavender)

Recognizing that eating disorders are often overlooked in men, this book aims to bring together all the latest theories, research, and treatments on eating disorders in young boys and men. If you want to learn more about how eating disorders express themselves in men, what the best treatment approaches are, and why men have traditionally been overlooked, then this book is for you. is written by experts who aim to raise more awareness of this important topic.

anorexia nervosa treatment manual: a family-based approach (lock & le grange)

This book describes the treatment of family therapy (fbt), the main psychological treatment for anorexia nervosa. Lock and Le Grange are arguably the most influential scientists on FBT, as they conducted numerous studies showing this style of treatment to be effective for Anorexia Nervosa. Any mental health professional working with clients presenting with anorexia nervosa should have a solid understanding of fbt theory and techniques, and this book will help with this.

theory and practice of schema therapy for eating disorders for individual and group settings (simpson & smith)

For clinicians who want to help clients address deeper personality traits, schema therapy is an appropriate option to consider investing time in. There aren’t many authoritative books that teach practitioners how to implement schema therapy techniques, but this is one I highly recommend. This book is based on the latest evidence, provides clinical case examples, and reviews the theoretical underpinnings of schema therapy in an organized manner. Innovative and accessible, this new look at eating disorder treatment will be an invaluable resource for clinicians in the field.

biographies

Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia And Bulimia (Marya Hornbacher)

One of the first bibliographies I read, wasted is the story of one woman’s long battle with anorexia nervosa and her decision to fight for recovery. This book paints an excellent picture of what it’s like to live with an eating disorder and the constant battles you face on a daily basis.

how to completely disappear (kelsey osgood)

Through her own decade-long battle with anorexia, which included three long hospitalizations, the author describes the unsettling and competitive world of hospitalization centers populated by other teenagers, some as young as ten.

fat opportunity (leslea newman)

fat chance is an excellent book that describes the life of a young girl who dreams of becoming the thinnest girl in school. this fantasy quickly turns into a dark battle to obsessively control her calories, food, pounds, and her bulimia nervosa.

please eat…: a mother’s struggle to rid her teenage son of anorexia (bev mattocks)

This book takes the perspective of a mother desperately trying to help her son who is battling anorexia nervosa. This inspiring story documents how the mother helplessly watched her son transform into someone she didn’t recognize. it also describes how the young man finally recovered and rebuilt his life.

thin (grace bown)

“Slim” is a fascinating book that describes the devastating effects of experimenting with new weight loss diets. the lurid details about the lengths a girl will go to in order to keep her body weight dangerously low will make you think twice about anorexia nervosa.

Bonus: Free eBook “5 Proven Steps to Break the Binge Cycle”

Struggling with binge eating? Download my free eBook, 5 Proven Steps To Breaking The Binge Eating Cycle here.

I follow five simple self-help steps that will help you break out of the binge cycle. These techniques have been scientifically proven to be effective in breaking the cycle of binge eating! in fact, research shows that nearly half of those who implement these strategies correctly experience a 70% reduction in binge eating in just 4 weeks.

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