Nocturnal eating syndrome or NES is a sleep disorder which is not frequently found, but when it does occur, it is more often in women than men. It is a sleep-related food disorder and is also known as a parasomnia as it disrupts a persons sleeping.

Nocturnal Eating Syndrome At A Glance

Usually people who have nocturnal eating syndrome are light sleepers. They have compulsive raids on the refrigerator at night and often feel that once they awake they will not be able to fall back asleep unless they eat something. This feeling causes them to raid the refrigerator and eat. Nocturnal eating syndrome is a sleep disorder and an eating disorder combined with insomnia.

Sleep related eating disorder is also more commonly found in women then men and involves sleepwalking. When having an episode of this sleep disorder people will eat while they have a partial arousal from deep sleep. They will often eat very unhealthy or strange things that they would not eat on a normal basis. They may eat frozen pizza, raw cookie dough, peanut butter on fish and maybe even dog food. They are usually very sloppy and careless when eating or preparing their food and will wake with cuts or burns the next morning. It’s very hard to wake a person during an episode and they will usually have no recollection of this episode in the morning. When people have a sleep-related eating disorder there is no link to hunger when they awake, even if the person eats right before they go to sleep an episode may still occur.

NES Causes

The cause of food related sleep disorder is not found but there have been several triggers identified. Lithium, a medication prescribed to stabilize your mood and the benzodiazepine receptor zolpidem are two of the triggers. People who suffer from mood and personality disorders or psychological problems may be at higher risk for food related sleep disorder. People who suffer from other sleep disorders such as insomnia, sleep apnea, periodic limb movement disorder or narcolepsy are at higher risk also.This food related sleep disorder is considered more of a sleep disorder than an eating disorder. People who have sleep- related eating disorder may have a history of sleepwalking.

NES Treatment

Treatment may include prescribed medication and is often very effective. Medications that may be prescribed include antidepressants, dopamine agents, anticonvulsants and opiates. Once your sleepwalking is stopped the trips to the refrigerator also go away. Also melatonin can be found in many natural sleep aids have helped people with NES - Nocturnal Eating Syndrome. Melatrol natural sleep aid, contains melatonin.

People who have nocturnal eating syndrome are often over weight because of their high calorie intake. Being over weight may lead to other sleep disorders including obstructive sleep apnea. Getting treatment from a medical or mental health professional is very important for good health in the treatment of nocturnal eating syndrome, or try a natural sleep aid.

Night eating syndrome or sleep eating can fall into the category of either a sleep disorder or an eating disorder. Researchers have found that most individuals that suffer from it have concerns about their eating habits while they are awake. While it may sound quite absurd that a person is able to eat while they are sleeping it has been identified as a real disorder that people have.

There are several different symptoms of sleep eating though that have been recognized. Too many people simply classify it as sleepwalking because the person gets out of bed and then goes to find someone eating. The fact that they are still in a sleeping mode though is very unusual. It can also be dangerous if they are using appliances in the kitchen to cook with such as the stove.

There is also the possibility of choking while sleep eating that needs to be addressed. You would think that the process of choking would result in the body waking up but that isn’t necessarily the case. At the very least sleep eating is going to result in some extra pounds being added, and that never helps a person with their overall health. The amount of food consumed during these episodes can be two or three times the amount of food they would normally eat at one setting.

Imagine waking up in the morning, walking to the kitchen to start your coffee, and seeing a mess of pots and pans in there. It is obvious that someone has been eating but who? When you live alone you may conclude that someone broke into your home while you slept and helped themselves to your groceries.

It is the least common of all sleep disorders as well as eating disorders. However, there does seem to be some type of genetic link in many instances. Researchers are still looking into how this particular type of behavior can be passed down to family members.

The concept of sleep eating is one that hasn’t been recognized for too long. There are a few substantial pieces of information known to tie it in with sleep disorders as well as with eating problems. However, there is still a tremendous amount of research that has to be done in order for it to be fully understood.