[GretchenM]

I don't get the addiction to the food though. It isn't like a drug.

I've heard of / read about people who were badly abused in childhood who could not control anything about their lives and bodies, then grew up, got away from the abuser, and turned to food intake as something satisfying that they could have some control over, making eating a way of compensating for the lack of, and giving themselves, the loving care they didn't receive when they needed it. For some, it can become an obsessive/compulsive disorder, and lethal.

[Calpernia]

>>>obsessive/compulsive disorder

Now that I can understand versus addiction. Why not work on changing the focus of the obsession? I wonder if that would work.

[najida]

For some, it can become an obsessive/compulsive disorder, and lethal.

You are soooo on the money! It is an eating disorder, just like anorexia. And heartbreaking. While this woman and those like her are the butt of jokes, I just feel a tremendous sadness for her and her family.