Stimulant Use and Abuse for People with Eating Disorders

The link between eating disorders and Attention Deficit Disorder is unclear and tenuous. There is no research-based connection in the psychiatric literature, but many patients with eating disorders seek stimulants, the standard ADD medication, because this class of medication causes decreased appetite and weight loss. And some patients end up abusing these drugs too. The line between diagnosis, treatment and abuse is complicated.

An important caveat is that stimulants like Adderall are prevalent among young people. Some are prescribed for actual ADD, some find doctors who will dole out the drugs for academic or recreational use and some buy it illegally. The result is that many young people have tried a stimulant at some point in their lives.

Subsequently, people with eating disorders can experiment and find that these medications are aids in their plight to eat less and maintain a low weight or lose weight. They can find some way to keep a supply and take the medications whether or not a doctor manages the medication. 

On the other hand, there are a handful of patients whose ADD seems to be the root cause of their eating disorder. One symptom of ADD is feeling overstimulated by daily life. Some people find that restricting food, binging or purging eases the overwhelmed feeling and helps the ADD. When given a stimulant, these people experience a lot of relief in general and from their eating disorder.

The resulting situation is complicated. It’s important to be sure that ADD is not a primary cause of the eating disorder. Those people need stimulants, but that is the minority.

Other people need an open conversation about the risks of stimulant use and why taking it can lead to insomnia, tax the cardiovascular system or cause abuse. 

And some people simply use the stimulant as a crutch and find that they have the ability to stop the medication and continue with their lives and recovery.

Because stimulants are a fact of modern-day life, no hard and fast rule will suffice. These drugs are too easy to get and too easy to become intertwined with the reality of an eating disorder. Instead, recovery needs to lead to open discussions about these medications and to a path to stop these drugs unless they really are necessary.