FOOD & BODY IMAGE ADDICTION TREATMENT

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🔒 All centres in our network are private facilities. This service does not provide access to public or free treatment.
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Understanding the Problem

Understanding Food and Body Image Disorders

Disorders related to food and body image — food addiction, bulimia, binge eating disorder, orthorexia, and vigorexia — are complex conditions combining behavioural addiction elements with deep emotional and perceptual distortions. Food addiction activates the same reward circuits as drugs; eating disorders share mechanisms of compulsion, guilt, and compensatory behaviours.

Without treatment, these conditions seriously deteriorate physical and mental health. EAC offers in Barcelona a specialist, multidisciplinary programme for all food and body image disorders, combining psychiatry, psychology, and clinical nutrition.

Types of Food & Body Image Addiction

Types of Food & Body Image Addiction

These disorders range from food substance addiction (sugar, caffeine) to complex conditions like bulimia and orthorexia. All require specialist, non-judgmental care.

Food Addiction

Food addiction activates dopamine reward circuits similarly to drugs, with loss of control over eating.

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Sugar Addiction

Sugar creates tolerance, withdrawal, and compulsive cravings similar to other addictive substances.

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Caffeine Addiction

Caffeine dependence is more prevalent than recognised, with real and disruptive withdrawal symptoms.

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Bulimia

Bulimia nervosa combines compulsive bingeing with purging behaviours in a cycle of shame that is very difficult to break alone.

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Binge Eating Disorder

Binge eating disorder is the most prevalent of all eating disorders and responds very well to specialist treatment.

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Orthorexia

Pathological obsession with ‘clean’ eating can be as harmful as other eating disorders, affecting social life and health.

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Vigorexia

Vigorexia or muscle dysmorphia is a body obsession that leads to extreme and harmful exercise and eating habits.

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«In a culture that glorifies thinness, muscle, or ‘perfect’ eating, food and body image disorders are often minimised. At EAC, we treat them with the full medical seriousness and compassion they deserve — without judgement.»

Why Treatment Cannot Wait

The Consequences of Untreated Food and Body Image Disorders

Without professional intervention, this addiction progressively deteriorates all aspects of the affected person’s life. Understanding these consequences is fundamental to recognising the urgency of seeking specialist help.

Serious physical damage and risk to life

Anorexia and bulimia have the highest mortality rate of any psychiatric disorder. Malnutrition, cardiac arrhythmias (from electrolyte imbalance), oesophageal damage, and osteoporosis are common and potentially fatal complications.

Severe mental health deterioration

Shame, guilt, and body obsession generate extreme levels of anxiety and depression. Risk of self-harm and suicide is significantly elevated in those with untreated eating disorders.

Social isolation and relationship damage

Mealtimes become events of intense anxiety. Secrecy, the need to control food environments, and body shame lead to progressive isolation and loss of meaningful social connections.

Chronicity and irreversible damage without early treatment

Eating disorders that go untreated tend to become chronic. Accumulated physical damage (dental, oesophageal, metabolic, bone) can be difficult to reverse. Early treatment dramatically improves prognosis.

Our Treatment Programme

A Programme Built Around You

Our evidence-based treatment programme combines medically supervised care, individual therapy, group work, and comprehensive aftercare support. We design each programme around the specific needs of the individual.

  • 1

    Comprehensive Initial Assessment

    Our assessment explores your eating patterns, food-related thoughts and behaviours, nutritional status, metabolic health, and any co-existing mental health conditions. We examine the psychological, emotional, and environmental factors contributing to your food addiction, creating a complete picture that informs your personalised treatment plan.

  • 2

    Nutritional Stabilisation & Medical Support

    While food addiction does not involve traditional detoxification, we provide medical monitoring and nutritional rehabilitation to stabilise blood sugar, address deficiencies, and establish regular, balanced eating patterns. Specialist teams at our partner centres manages any health complications while our nutritionists guide you toward nourishing meals that support both physical recovery and psychological healing.

  • 3

    Evidence-Based Psychotherapy

    We utilise Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) to identify and change thought patterns that drive addictive eating, alongside Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) to develop emotional regulation skills and distress tolerance. Trauma-informed approaches address underlying experiences that may fuel the addiction, whilst mindful eating practices help rebuild awareness and healthy food relationships.

  • 4

    Holistic Wellbeing Support

    The holistic programmes at our partner centres includes movement therapy adapted to your abilities, stress reduction techniques, sleep optimisation, and body image work that fosters self-compassion. We address the whole person—mind, body, and spirit—recognising that sustainable recovery requires healing at all levels, not merely symptom management.

  • 5

    Relapse Prevention Planning

    We help you identify specific triggers including stress, emotional states, social situations, and environmental cues that activate food cravings and addictive patterns. Your personalised plan includes practical coping strategies, emotional regulation techniques, and structured meal planning that supports long-term freedom from compulsive eating behaviours.

  • 6

    Aftercare & Alumni Support

    Recovery from food addiction requires ongoing support as you navigate daily life and food-related decisions. Our comprehensive aftercare includes regular check-ins, continued nutritional guidance, access to support groups, and connection with our alumni community who understand the journey and can offer encouragement and accountability.

«In a culture that glorifies thinness, muscle, or ‘perfect’ eating, food and body image disorders are often minimised. At EAC, we treat them with the full medical seriousness and compassion they deserve — without judgement.»

Do You Recognise This?

Warning Signs

If you recognise any of the following signs in yourself or a loved one, it is important to seek professional help as soon as possible.

Excessive preoccupation with food, weight, or body that dominates daily thinking

Compensatory behaviours: purging, excessive exercise, fasting after binges

Eating in secret, hiding food, or lying about intake

Intense fear of ‘impure’ foods or of ‘losing control’ over diet (orthorexia)

Obsession with the mirror, muscle, or body fat disproportionate to reality

Visible physical changes: extreme weight loss or gain, hair loss, dental problems

Recognising these signs is the first step.

Seeking help is the next. You do not need to have reached a crisis to deserve support. Early treatment leads to better outcomes.

Our lines are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions About Food and Body Image Disorders

We understand you have many questions about this addiction and the recovery process. Below we answer the most common questions raised by patients and their families.

Our admissions team is available 24 hours a day. All enquiries are completely confidential.

Food addiction treatment typically begins with a residential programme lasting 28 to 90 days, depending on the severity of the addiction and any co-existing conditions. Many clients benefit from extended care or intensive outpatient support following residential treatment. Recovery is a gradual process that continues well beyond the initial programme—we focus on establishing sustainable patterns and providing ongoing support rather than seeking a quick fix. The foundations built during treatment serve as the basis for lifelong change, with most individuals continuing some form of support, whether nutritional counselling, therapy, or peer groups, for at least the first year.

Absolutely. We adhere to the strictest confidentiality standards and all aspects of your treatment are protected by medical privacy regulations. Your participation in our programme, your clinical information, and your progress remain completely confidential. We understand the sensitivity surrounding food addiction and eating behaviours, and we create a safe, non-judgmental environment where you can heal without fear of disclosure. No information is shared with anyone outside the treatment team without your explicit written consent, except in rare circumstances required by law.

Unlike substance withdrawal, food addiction does not produce dangerous physical withdrawal symptoms, though many people experience uncomfortable changes as they establish healthier eating patterns. You may initially experience intensified cravings, irritability, headaches, fatigue, mood changes, or anxiety as your brain and body adjust to reduced sugar and processed foods. Some individuals report temporary physical discomfort as blood sugar stabilises and inflammation decreases. These symptoms are generally mild and manageable, typically improving within days to weeks. Our medical and nutritional teams closely monitor your physical and emotional wellbeing throughout this transition, providing support and interventions to ensure your comfort and safety.

While there are no medications specifically approved for food addiction, we may use pharmacological support to address underlying or co-existing conditions that contribute to addictive eating patterns. This might include medications for depression, anxiety, ADHD, or other mental health conditions that fuel emotional eating. In some cases, medications that reduce cravings or support metabolic health may be considered as part of a comprehensive treatment plan. Any medication use is carefully evaluated on an individual basis, with full discussion of benefits, risks, and alternatives. Our primary focus remains psychological treatment, nutritional rehabilitation, and behavioural change, with medications serving as supportive tools when clinically appropriate.

Yes, and in fact this integrated approach is often essential for successful recovery. Food addiction frequently co-occurs with depression, anxiety, trauma-related disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and other eating disorders such as binge eating disorder or bulimia. Our dual diagnosis treatment addresses all conditions simultaneously, recognising that these issues are often deeply interconnected. We provide coordinated care that treats the whole person rather than isolated symptoms. Research consistently shows that addressing co-existing mental health conditions significantly improves outcomes for food addiction, as emotional and psychological healing supports sustained behavioural change around food.

Yes, lasting recovery from food addiction is absolutely achievable with appropriate treatment and ongoing support. Whilst the journey requires commitment and the development of new skills and patterns, thousands of individuals have successfully transformed their relationships with food and reclaimed their health and wellbeing. Recovery does not necessarily mean perfect eating or never experiencing cravings—it means developing the awareness, tools, and resilience to make choices aligned with your health and values. Many of our alumni report that recovery brings not only freedom from compulsive eating but also improved self-esteem, emotional stability, physical health, and overall quality of life that extends far beyond food itself.

We understand that seeking help represents a crucial decision and moment of readiness that should be supported promptly. We typically offer initial consultations within 24 to 48 hours, with admission to the residential programmes at our partner centres possible within days of completing the assessment process. For individuals in medical crisis or experiencing severe complications, we can often arrange immediate admission. Our admissions team works efficiently to remove barriers and facilitate your entry into treatment whilst ensuring we gather the information necessary to provide safe, effective care tailored to your specific needs.

Family involvement is an important component of comprehensive food addiction treatment, adapted to your individual circumstances and preferences. We offer family education sessions to help loved ones understand food addiction as a medical condition and learn how to provide effective support. Family therapy sessions can address relationship dynamics, communication patterns, and behaviours that may inadvertently maintain the addiction. For many clients, involving family members enhances treatment outcomes and creates a supportive home environment for recovery. However, we respect that family situations vary, and participation is tailored to what feels safe and beneficial for your healing journey.

Successful long-term recovery requires continued support as you transition back to daily life. Aftercare programmes through our network includes regular follow-up sessions with your therapist and nutritionist, ongoing meal planning support, and access to group therapy or support meetings. We help you establish connections with community resources, registered dietitians, and peer support groups in your area. Many clients transition to our intensive outpatient programme or participate in our alumni network, which provides continued connection, accountability, and encouragement. We remain available for consultations and support adjustments to your recovery plan as challenges and circumstances evolve, ensuring you never face the journey alone.

Available 24/7 · +34 000 000 000 · All enquiries are completely confidential

Available 24/7 · +34 000 000 000 · All enquiries are completely confidential