Prevalence of alcohol use disorder among individuals who binge eat: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Binge eating disorder (BED) is correlated with substance use. This study aimed to estimate the life-time prevalence of alcohol use disorder (AUD) among individuals with non-compensatory binge eating and determine whether their life-time prevalence of AUD is higher than in non-bingeing controls.

DESIGN

A systematic search of databases (PubMed, Embase and Web of Science) for studies of adults diagnosed with BED or a related behavior that also reported the life-time prevalence of AUD was conducted. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) protocol was followed. The protocol was registered on the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO).

SETTING

Studies originating in Canada, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States.

PARTICIPANTS

Eighteen studies meeting the inclusion criteria were found, representing 69 233 individuals.

MEASUREMENTS

Life-time prevalence of AUD among individuals with binge eating disorder and their life-time relative risk of AUD compared with individuals without this disorder.

RESULTS

The pooled life-time prevalence of AUD in individuals with binge eating disorder was 19.9% [95% confidence interval (CI) = 13.7-27.9]. The risk of life-time AUD incidence among individuals with binge eating disorder was more than 1.5 times higher than controls (relative risk = 1.59, 95% CI = 1.41-1.79). Life-time AUD prevalence was higher in community samples than in clinical samples (27.45 versus 14.45%, P = 0.041) and in studies with a lower proportion of women (β = -2.2773, P = 0.044).

CONCLUSIONS

Life-time alcohol use disorder appears to be more prevalent with binge eating disorder than among those without.