A couple of Cupertino women think they know the answer to that question. Which is why Susan Martin and Dr. Teri Quatman have recently opened the Clinic for Chronic Dieters and Compulsive Overeaters.

Martin says, "We are not a diet or weight-loss program. We hope to catch the attention of people who are ready to admit that a diet hasn't solved the problem." She says what's new is their approach to uncovering the causes of eating disorders.

She should know: Martin went from being anorexic to bulimic and ended up fat. At that point, she started looking inward and looking in the library for an explanation for her behavior. She says, "One of the things I learned is that there's this thing called hyperinsulinemia." The key word there is "insulin." Elevated insulin levels, Martin says, "trigger compulsive overeating and increase the desire for fats, sugar, salt and volume." So, Martin and Quatman will teach patients how to avoid hyperinsulinemia because, Martin says, "the condition can turn the body into a fat-storing machine."

Practicing good nutrition and encouraging people to get up and move around are also critical elements of the program. To Martin, the latter doesn't necessarily mean exercise. Just walking instead of driving or taking the stairs instead of an elevator works. Her experience also taught her counting calories isn't important. Instead she says, "Eat as much cereal as you want instead of a pizza. Find out what types of foods work for you." These sorts of issues are addressed in weekly workshops that are held over a period of 12 weeks.

The program is a long-term commitment. That's why another component addresses what Martin refers to as the diet mentality. "We begin to work with people to develop ego strength, to begin to take responsibility, to make choices, so they don't feel taken over by food," she says. "It's really not about deprivation. It is OK to go to a party and eat what you want. But if you're spinning out of control, understand what you're doing."

The second component of the program includes 10 one-hour group "work" sessions, where patients help one another to "confront and solve their overeating problem."

Martin has degrees in counseling psychology, exercise physiology and nutritional science. Quatman is a Stanford-trained psychologist who is currently a professor of counseling psychology at Santa Clara University.

Martin says, "People who come to the clinic will have to confront the truth of what they've been doing. In the moment overeating takes people over, it's usually fueled by a lack of awareness of what and why they're doing it." The bottom line, she adds, "is having to get real."

The Clinic for Chronic Dieters and Compulsive Overeaters is hosting an open house on Feb. 8 at 7:00 p.m. at 20432 Silverado Ave. in Cupertino. For more information, call 408.366.1980.