2)    Eating when not hungry, and not stopping when full, producing an uncomfortable feeling;

3)    Eating very rapidly;

4)    Eating frequently alone or in secret, followed by depression, shame, guilt or other upset feelings;

5)    Frequently dieting, sometimes to no effect on weight loss.

The number of times per month that these episodes of binging occur is a key to diagnosing the disorder. While some people occasionally may binge, particularly during holidays where food is the centerpiece, the binge eater continuously engages in the behavior.

An official diagnosis is based on confirmation that binge eating happened at least once a week for three months or more and was accompanied by distress over the episode and a feeling that the eating behavior was out of control.

Doctors will examine whether the patient admits to eating rapidly, gets uncomfortably full, eats alone out of embarrassment or eats when not particularly hungry. All of these practices, combined with post-eating depression and guilt, lead to the formal diagnosis.

Unfortunately, it's difficult to detect this eating disorder, given the secretive nature of the practice. Family and friends can notice weight gain but may attribute it to things other than bingeing, like lack of exercise or poor diet choices. Researchers are still trying to determine a particular cause for the disorder. Some believe it may be related to genes, while others believe particular family dynamics can trigger the issue. Others feel it relates to depression, which is found in nearly every patient diagnosed with binge eating disorder.