AbstractFive years after treatment for obesity, combining cognitive-behavioral treatment with a very low calorie diet (VLCD) or a low calorie diet (LDC), the eating behavior of 112 female patients was studied. At the time of reassessment most of the women showed a restrained eating style combined with bingeing. Significantly more patients in the VLCD group than in the LCD group reported bingeing. More than half of the successfully treated women (BMI <30) reported binge eating. No association between treatment success and restrained eating style was found.