There was a fascinating article in the New York Times Magazine on Sunday, February 2, 2003 -- "The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Deer." (No, I don't have that good a head for dates -- I remembered the article and just did a search on the New York Times website.) It discusses various sleep disorders including eating while semi-asleep. If you go to the New York Times website (www.newyorktimes.com) you can get a reprint of the article. Because it is more than two weeks old, you need to pay to download the article, but it is just a couple of dollars. The article quotes a lot of the researchers in the field and is probably a good place for your friend to start researching this topic.