For many, the holiday season’s combination of festivities, family, and food makes this time of year joyous. If you're one of the nearly 29 million Americans who deal with an eating disorder at some point in your lifetime, though, the holidays can be hell—much like the rest of the year. 

In this episode of the Colloquy podcast, Harvard Medical School Professor Anne Becker, PhD ’90, one of the country’s leading experts on eating disorders, talks about why the illnesses are so deadly, why they so often go undiagnosed, and what we can do to help friends or family members who may be suffering.