Stress is a key determinant of binge eating (BE). Binge eating is due to high cortisol level in our body coupled by depressed adrenal function or modern day fatigue. Depression is also present. Binge eating and depression are made worse when our other hormones (insulin, costisol, all pituitary gland hormones, ghrelin, adinopectin, human growth hormone, serotonin, dopamine) are not in balance. I know I have a hard time in losing weight because I’m 40plus and had been bombarded with stressors in life although I have a positive outlook in life. So, I will visit pharmaca.com in Los Gatos and try the tincture and capsule of Rhodiola rosea, an adaptogenic herb that has anti-cancer properties and also good for the heart.
Since Rhodiola rosea is known to modulate stress responses, its effect in a model of BE was investigated in a study in Italy and concluded that Rhodiola rosea extract 10 mg/kg significantly reduced and 20 mg/kg abolished the BE episode when given to rats one hour before access to food.
Study
Binge eating (BE) for highly palatable food (HPF) was evoked in female rats by three 8-day cycles of food restriction/re-feeding (for 4 days 66% of the usual chow intake; for 4 days food ad libitum) and acute stress on the test day (day 25). R. rosea dry extract (3% rosavin, 3.12% salidroside) or its active principles were given by gavage one hour before access to HPF. Only rats exposed to both food restrictions and stress exhibited BE in the first 15–60 min after the stressful procedure. R. rosea extract 20 mg/kg abolished also stress-induced increase in serum corticosterone levels. The R. rosea active principle salidroside, but not rosavin, at doses present in the extract, dose-dependently reduced or abolished BE for the period in which it was elicited.
Ref: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0031938410003227