Media by Others
Food Junkies
The Food Junkies Podcast evolved from the book. Each week, Vera Tarman, Clarrissa Kennedy, and Molly Painschab connect with scientists, Food Addiction clinicians, authors, and recovering Food Addicts to share fresh insights and tackle emerging debates.
Food Junkies Podcast: Are Your Kids Picky Eaters - how to change that with Natalie Peltro, 2026
In this episode, Natalie shares the framework she's used with hundreds of families to overcome picky eating — not through force, pressure, or sneaky tricks that backfire — but through biology, nervous system awareness, and what she calls the Four E's.
Whether you're navigating picky eating in your household, supporting clients who struggle with ultra-processed food habits from childhood, or just trying to understand why your kid will eat mac and cheese but nothing green, this conversation is full of practical, compassionate strategies you can start using today.
In this episode, we cover:
How Natalie's son went from eating only 3 foods (nonverbal, severely autistic) to graduating mainstream school with honors
Why "fed is best" may be an outdated framework in today's ultra-processed food environment
The biology of picky eating — zinc deficiency, taste perception, and why green foods taste bitter to nutrient-deficient kids
The 10% Fading Rule: how to transform mac and cheese into a nutrient-dense meal without your child noticing
The Three Stages of Picky Eaters: Resistor, Adventurer, and Negotiator — and why the approach must be different for each
The Four E's Framework: Expectation, Emotional Intelligence, Environment, and Encouragement
Why "taste training" works faster in kids than adults (3–5 days vs. 7–14)
How your nervous system is sabotaging mealtime — and what to do before you even pick up the plate
The coupon system, safe plates, and other creative strategies that actually work
How to talk to grandparents and caregivers about food changes without blowing up the relationship
About Natalie Peltro: Natalie is the co-founder of Blue Life RX and creator of the Neuronutrition Program (formerly "Bring the Fun Back to Mealtime"), which helps families with picky eaters — including children with autism and ARFID — expand their food diversity through biology-first, fun-first strategies. She's also the host of the upcoming Brilliant Brains podcast.
🌐 Website: https://www.blueliferx.com/neuronutrition
📱 Instagram: nataliepelto_blueliferx
ⓕ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BlueLifeRx
🎙️Podcast: Out in June 2026 – keep checking the website!!
The Food Junkies Podcast is hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Molly Painschab, and Clarissa Kennedy. New episodes every week.
📧Email us at foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
👍 Like, subscribe, and share if this episode resonated with you. Leave a comment below — we'd love to know: what's your biggest challenge around picky eating or feeding your family real food?
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More

Now Playing
Food Junkies Podcast: Are Your Kids Picky Eaters - how to change that with Natalie Peltro, 2026
What do you do when your child will only eat three foods — and none of ...
What do you do when your child will only eat three foods — and none of them are vegetables? For Natalie Peltro, certified nutritional therapist and lifestyle medicine expert, that ...was her reality. Her son was diagnosed with severe nonverbal autism at 18 months, and the journey to help him heal through food became the foundation of her entire career.
In this episode, Natalie shares the framework she's used with hundreds of families to overcome picky eating — not through force, pressure, or sneaky tricks that backfire — but through biology, nervous system awareness, and what she calls the Four E's.
Whether you're navigating picky eating in your household, supporting clients who struggle with ultra-processed food habits from childhood, or just trying to understand why your kid will eat mac and cheese but nothing green, this conversation is full of practical, compassionate strategies you can start using today.
In this episode, we cover:
How Natalie's son went from eating only 3 foods (nonverbal, severely autistic) to graduating mainstream school with honors
Why "fed is best" may be an outdated framework in today's ultra-processed food environment
The biology of picky eating — zinc deficiency, taste perception, and why green foods taste bitter to nutrient-deficient kids
The 10% Fading Rule: how to transform mac and cheese into a nutrient-dense meal without your child noticing
The Three Stages of Picky Eaters: Resistor, Adventurer, and Negotiator — and why the approach must be different for each
The Four E's Framework: Expectation, Emotional Intelligence, Environment, and Encouragement
Why "taste training" works faster in kids than adults (3–5 days vs. 7–14)
How your nervous system is sabotaging mealtime — and what to do before you even pick up the plate
The coupon system, safe plates, and other creative strategies that actually work
How to talk to grandparents and caregivers about food changes without blowing up the relationship
About Natalie Peltro: Natalie is the co-founder of Blue Life RX and creator of the Neuronutrition Program (formerly "Bring the Fun Back to Mealtime"), which helps families with picky eaters — including children with autism and ARFID — expand their food diversity through biology-first, fun-first strategies. She's also the host of the upcoming Brilliant Brains podcast.
🌐 Website: https://www.blueliferx.com/neuronutrition
📱 Instagram: nataliepelto_blueliferx
ⓕ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BlueLifeRx
🎙️Podcast: Out in June 2026 – keep checking the website!!
The Food Junkies Podcast is hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Molly Painschab, and Clarissa Kennedy. New episodes every week.
📧Email us at foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
👍 Like, subscribe, and share if this episode resonated with you. Leave a comment below — we'd love to know: what's your biggest challenge around picky eating or feeding your family real food?
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More
In this episode, Natalie shares the framework she's used with hundreds of families to overcome picky eating — not through force, pressure, or sneaky tricks that backfire — but through biology, nervous system awareness, and what she calls the Four E's.
Whether you're navigating picky eating in your household, supporting clients who struggle with ultra-processed food habits from childhood, or just trying to understand why your kid will eat mac and cheese but nothing green, this conversation is full of practical, compassionate strategies you can start using today.
In this episode, we cover:
How Natalie's son went from eating only 3 foods (nonverbal, severely autistic) to graduating mainstream school with honors
Why "fed is best" may be an outdated framework in today's ultra-processed food environment
The biology of picky eating — zinc deficiency, taste perception, and why green foods taste bitter to nutrient-deficient kids
The 10% Fading Rule: how to transform mac and cheese into a nutrient-dense meal without your child noticing
The Three Stages of Picky Eaters: Resistor, Adventurer, and Negotiator — and why the approach must be different for each
The Four E's Framework: Expectation, Emotional Intelligence, Environment, and Encouragement
Why "taste training" works faster in kids than adults (3–5 days vs. 7–14)
How your nervous system is sabotaging mealtime — and what to do before you even pick up the plate
The coupon system, safe plates, and other creative strategies that actually work
How to talk to grandparents and caregivers about food changes without blowing up the relationship
About Natalie Peltro: Natalie is the co-founder of Blue Life RX and creator of the Neuronutrition Program (formerly "Bring the Fun Back to Mealtime"), which helps families with picky eaters — including children with autism and ARFID — expand their food diversity through biology-first, fun-first strategies. She's also the host of the upcoming Brilliant Brains podcast.
🌐 Website: https://www.blueliferx.com/neuronutrition
📱 Instagram: nataliepelto_blueliferx
ⓕ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BlueLifeRx
🎙️Podcast: Out in June 2026 – keep checking the website!!
The Food Junkies Podcast is hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Molly Painschab, and Clarissa Kennedy. New episodes every week.
📧Email us at foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
👍 Like, subscribe, and share if this episode resonated with you. Leave a comment below — we'd love to know: what's your biggest challenge around picky eating or feeding your family real food?
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More

Now Playing
Food Junkies Podcast: What if a Food Addiction diet is better than Meds? w Dr Erin Bellamy, 2026
What if the most powerful tool for mental health recovery isn't a ...
What if the most powerful tool for mental health recovery isn't a medication — it's your metabolism - and your diet?
Dr. Erin Louise Bellamy joins Dr. Vera Tarman ...for a deep dive into ketogenic metabolic therapy: what it is, how it works, and why it may be one of the most underutilized interventions in both psychiatric care and food addiction recovery.
Dr. Bellamy is a chartered psychologist, CEO of IKRT (International Ketogenic Research & Therapy), and a research fellow at the University of East London. She has been researching and applying ketogenic metabolic therapy in clinical settings since 2014, with a background that bridges eating disorders, psychiatric research, and metabolic health.
In this episode, Vera and Erin discuss:
How Erin went from eating disorder and alexithymia research to ketogenic metabolic psychiatry — and why the field's "biopsychosocial" model was missing the bio
The difference between metabolic psychiatry, ketogenic therapy, and therapeutic carbohydrate restriction — and why the terminology matters
What carbohydrate range actually produces therapeutic ketosis (and why "dirty keto" doesn't cut it)
The shared mechanistic pathways across psychiatric diagnoses — including mitochondrial dysfunction, insulin resistance, and neuroinflammation
Why antipsychotic medications create metabolic dysfunction, and how ketogenic therapy can help offset those side effects
The GABA/glutamate shift that makes ketones naturally anxiolytic — and why this may work differently than the serotonin model of depression
The "buffer effect": what it feels like to be in ketosis when you're a food addict — and why some people describe it as a pane of glass between themselves and a trigger food
How ketogenic therapy compares to GLP-1 medications (Ozempic/Wegovy) for reducing food noise — and Erin's concerns about the long-term research
MCT oil vs. exogenous ketones: when each is useful, and when exogenous ketones are counterproductive
Applying ketogenic therapy to people with ADHD, bipolar disorder, and co-occurring food addiction
How to support vegan or plant-based clients who want to pursue ketogenic therapy
Why the first week matters most — and how to help clients through withdrawal without triggering a binge
The 19-person IKRT group program published in Frontiers — and what's coming next in the research
Connect with Dr. Erin Bellamy:
🌐Web: Integrative Ketogenic Research and Therapies | ketogenic diet and mental health
Shape
Food Junkies Podcast is hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Molly Painschab, and Clarissa Kennedy. New episodes every week.
Connect with Food Junkies Podcast:
🌐Web: Food Junkies Podcast
▶️ YouTube: Food Junkies Podcast - YouTube
💌Email: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More
Dr. Erin Louise Bellamy joins Dr. Vera Tarman ...for a deep dive into ketogenic metabolic therapy: what it is, how it works, and why it may be one of the most underutilized interventions in both psychiatric care and food addiction recovery.
Dr. Bellamy is a chartered psychologist, CEO of IKRT (International Ketogenic Research & Therapy), and a research fellow at the University of East London. She has been researching and applying ketogenic metabolic therapy in clinical settings since 2014, with a background that bridges eating disorders, psychiatric research, and metabolic health.
In this episode, Vera and Erin discuss:
How Erin went from eating disorder and alexithymia research to ketogenic metabolic psychiatry — and why the field's "biopsychosocial" model was missing the bio
The difference between metabolic psychiatry, ketogenic therapy, and therapeutic carbohydrate restriction — and why the terminology matters
What carbohydrate range actually produces therapeutic ketosis (and why "dirty keto" doesn't cut it)
The shared mechanistic pathways across psychiatric diagnoses — including mitochondrial dysfunction, insulin resistance, and neuroinflammation
Why antipsychotic medications create metabolic dysfunction, and how ketogenic therapy can help offset those side effects
The GABA/glutamate shift that makes ketones naturally anxiolytic — and why this may work differently than the serotonin model of depression
The "buffer effect": what it feels like to be in ketosis when you're a food addict — and why some people describe it as a pane of glass between themselves and a trigger food
How ketogenic therapy compares to GLP-1 medications (Ozempic/Wegovy) for reducing food noise — and Erin's concerns about the long-term research
MCT oil vs. exogenous ketones: when each is useful, and when exogenous ketones are counterproductive
Applying ketogenic therapy to people with ADHD, bipolar disorder, and co-occurring food addiction
How to support vegan or plant-based clients who want to pursue ketogenic therapy
Why the first week matters most — and how to help clients through withdrawal without triggering a binge
The 19-person IKRT group program published in Frontiers — and what's coming next in the research
Connect with Dr. Erin Bellamy:
🌐Web: Integrative Ketogenic Research and Therapies | ketogenic diet and mental health
Shape
Food Junkies Podcast is hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Molly Painschab, and Clarissa Kennedy. New episodes every week.
Connect with Food Junkies Podcast:
🌐Web: Food Junkies Podcast
▶️ YouTube: Food Junkies Podcast - YouTube
💌Email: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More

Now Playing
Food Junkies Podcast: Resilience in Recovery with Dr Stephen Sideroff, 2026
In real recovery, what can resilience do that sheer willpower simply ...
In real recovery, what can resilience do that sheer willpower simply cannot?
Welcome to the Food Junkies Podcast. My name is Dr. Vera Tarman, and I’m your host today speaking with ...Dr. Stephen Sideroff.
Dr. Sideroff is an internationally recognized psychologist, researcher, and resilience expert who has spent more than forty years at the intersection of stress, addiction, and optimal performance. He is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences at UCLA’s Geffen School of Medicine, with a joint appointment in Rheumatology. He earned his Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Miami, and went on to pioneer the stress, resilience, and chemical dependency programs at UCLA and the VA, including the Stress Strategies program at UCLA/Santa Monica Hospital.
He is the author of The 9 Pillars of Resilience: The Proven Path to Master Stress, Slow Aging and Increase Vitality.
🎙️ IN THIS EPISODE:
Why stress is the #1 driver of both addiction and relapse — and what to do about it
The ral definition of resilience
All Nine Pillars of Resilience explained — and how each one applies to food addiction
Why your inner critic is keeping you stuck — and how to replace it
The nervous system truth behind burnout: why most of us are already on the continuum
How to "dress rehearse" recovery moments so you're prepared when cravings hit
Why saying "this is difficult" actually makes things harder
The biological age study Dr. Sideroff is running right now — and his own remarkable results
How joy is not a luxury but a physiological necessity for recovery and aging
Why anxiety and worry are a faulty strategy — and what to do instead
The concept of "the path" — and why you don't have to do everything at once
What quantum leadership has to do with recovery culture
Why 12-step programs work through the lens of the resilience model
🏛️ THE NINE PILLARS OF RESILIENCE:
Relationship Pillars:
Relationship with yourself — your inner voice, self-compassion, self-acceptance
Relationship with others — healthy boundaries, connection, support
Relationship with something greater — community, spirituality, purpose
Organism Balance & Mastery:
Physical balance & mastery — nervous system regulation, relaxation, parasympathetic recovery
Cognitive balance & mastery — mindset, growth orientation, releasing negative thoughts
Emotional balance & mastery — healing emotional wounds, reducing reactivity
Engaging with the World:
Presence — awareness of your environment and the energy you project
Flexibility — adapting to obstacles, shifting perspective, seeing through others' eyes
Power — courage, focus, goal-setting, taking action in spite of fear
📖 DR. SIDEROFF'S BOOK: The Nine Pillars of Resilience: The Proven Path to Master Stress, Slow Aging, and Increase Vitality
🔗 CONNECT WITH DR. SIDEROFF:
🌐 Visit Home - Dr. Stephen Sideroff for resources, his book, and the resilience questionnaire
📬 CONNECT WITH FOOD JUNKIES:
📧 Email: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
🌐 Website: foodjunkiespodcast.comShape
If this episode resonated with you, please leave us a review and share it with someone in recovery who needs to hear that healing is a path — not a single decision.
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More
Welcome to the Food Junkies Podcast. My name is Dr. Vera Tarman, and I’m your host today speaking with ...Dr. Stephen Sideroff.
Dr. Sideroff is an internationally recognized psychologist, researcher, and resilience expert who has spent more than forty years at the intersection of stress, addiction, and optimal performance. He is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences at UCLA’s Geffen School of Medicine, with a joint appointment in Rheumatology. He earned his Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Miami, and went on to pioneer the stress, resilience, and chemical dependency programs at UCLA and the VA, including the Stress Strategies program at UCLA/Santa Monica Hospital.
He is the author of The 9 Pillars of Resilience: The Proven Path to Master Stress, Slow Aging and Increase Vitality.
🎙️ IN THIS EPISODE:
Why stress is the #1 driver of both addiction and relapse — and what to do about it
The ral definition of resilience
All Nine Pillars of Resilience explained — and how each one applies to food addiction
Why your inner critic is keeping you stuck — and how to replace it
The nervous system truth behind burnout: why most of us are already on the continuum
How to "dress rehearse" recovery moments so you're prepared when cravings hit
Why saying "this is difficult" actually makes things harder
The biological age study Dr. Sideroff is running right now — and his own remarkable results
How joy is not a luxury but a physiological necessity for recovery and aging
Why anxiety and worry are a faulty strategy — and what to do instead
The concept of "the path" — and why you don't have to do everything at once
What quantum leadership has to do with recovery culture
Why 12-step programs work through the lens of the resilience model
🏛️ THE NINE PILLARS OF RESILIENCE:
Relationship Pillars:
Relationship with yourself — your inner voice, self-compassion, self-acceptance
Relationship with others — healthy boundaries, connection, support
Relationship with something greater — community, spirituality, purpose
Organism Balance & Mastery:
Physical balance & mastery — nervous system regulation, relaxation, parasympathetic recovery
Cognitive balance & mastery — mindset, growth orientation, releasing negative thoughts
Emotional balance & mastery — healing emotional wounds, reducing reactivity
Engaging with the World:
Presence — awareness of your environment and the energy you project
Flexibility — adapting to obstacles, shifting perspective, seeing through others' eyes
Power — courage, focus, goal-setting, taking action in spite of fear
📖 DR. SIDEROFF'S BOOK: The Nine Pillars of Resilience: The Proven Path to Master Stress, Slow Aging, and Increase Vitality
🔗 CONNECT WITH DR. SIDEROFF:
🌐 Visit Home - Dr. Stephen Sideroff for resources, his book, and the resilience questionnaire
📬 CONNECT WITH FOOD JUNKIES:
📧 Email: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
🌐 Website: foodjunkiespodcast.comShape
If this episode resonated with you, please leave us a review and share it with someone in recovery who needs to hear that healing is a path — not a single decision.
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More

Now Playing
Food Junkies Podcast: The Lab Marker (ESR) that Could Change Recovery, with Bob Messerschmidt, 2026
The Lab Marker (ESR) that Could Change Recovery, with Bob ...
The Lab Marker (ESR) that Could Change Recovery, with Bob Messerschmidt, 2026.
What if your body could warn you before a relapse happens? In this fascinating episode, Dr. Vera Tarman sits ...down with Bob Messerschmidt — biomedical engineer, inventor, and one of the architects behind the original Apple Watch's health-sensing technology — to explore a surprisingly simple but powerful biomarker: the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR).
Bob is the founder of COR Health and has developed an FDA-registered at-home device that tracks chronic low-grade inflammation over time. For those of us in the food addiction and recovery world, this conversation opens a compelling new door: could inflammation tracking be the missing feedback loop for people working to stay abstinent from ultra-processed foods?
🎙️ IN THIS EPISODE:
Bob's personal health journey and how weight struggles led him to inflammation science
What ESR (erythrocyte sedimentation rate) is — and why it fell out of favor before we understood chronic inflammation
Why inflammation is now understood to underpin nearly all chronic disease
How ESR differs from CRP (C-reactive protein) and why its "slowness" is a feature
What does a high ESR score mean — and what you can do about it
Anti-inflammatory lifestyle interventions that move the needle (including one surprising nighttime trick)
How the COR Health device works: a simple weekly finger-stick test from home
The feedback loop concept: how seeing your own data creates self-efficacy and behavior change
Whether inflammation can precede a relapse — and what the data currently shows
How ESR compares to a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) as a recovery tool
Bob's thoughts on the Theranos dream — and whether democratized blood diagnostics is truly possible
The future of non-invasive glucose monitoring and wearable health tech
🍒 BOB'S ANTI-INFLAMMATORY TIPS FROM THE EPISODE:
Tart cherry juice (4 oz before bed — also improves sleep!)
Ketogenic eating patterns
Vegan dietary approaches
Quality sleep
Cold plunges
Grounding practices
🔗 LEARN MORE & GET THE DEVICE:
🌐 COR Health Website: corhealth.com
📬 CONNECT WITH FOOD JUNKIES:
📧 Email: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
🌐 Website: foodjunkiespodcast.com
If this episode sparked your curiosity, please leave us a review and share it with someone in recovery who might benefit from understanding the inflammation connection.
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More
What if your body could warn you before a relapse happens? In this fascinating episode, Dr. Vera Tarman sits ...down with Bob Messerschmidt — biomedical engineer, inventor, and one of the architects behind the original Apple Watch's health-sensing technology — to explore a surprisingly simple but powerful biomarker: the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR).
Bob is the founder of COR Health and has developed an FDA-registered at-home device that tracks chronic low-grade inflammation over time. For those of us in the food addiction and recovery world, this conversation opens a compelling new door: could inflammation tracking be the missing feedback loop for people working to stay abstinent from ultra-processed foods?
🎙️ IN THIS EPISODE:
Bob's personal health journey and how weight struggles led him to inflammation science
What ESR (erythrocyte sedimentation rate) is — and why it fell out of favor before we understood chronic inflammation
Why inflammation is now understood to underpin nearly all chronic disease
How ESR differs from CRP (C-reactive protein) and why its "slowness" is a feature
What does a high ESR score mean — and what you can do about it
Anti-inflammatory lifestyle interventions that move the needle (including one surprising nighttime trick)
How the COR Health device works: a simple weekly finger-stick test from home
The feedback loop concept: how seeing your own data creates self-efficacy and behavior change
Whether inflammation can precede a relapse — and what the data currently shows
How ESR compares to a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) as a recovery tool
Bob's thoughts on the Theranos dream — and whether democratized blood diagnostics is truly possible
The future of non-invasive glucose monitoring and wearable health tech
🍒 BOB'S ANTI-INFLAMMATORY TIPS FROM THE EPISODE:
Tart cherry juice (4 oz before bed — also improves sleep!)
Ketogenic eating patterns
Vegan dietary approaches
Quality sleep
Cold plunges
Grounding practices
🔗 LEARN MORE & GET THE DEVICE:
🌐 COR Health Website: corhealth.com
📬 CONNECT WITH FOOD JUNKIES:
📧 Email: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
🌐 Website: foodjunkiespodcast.com
If this episode sparked your curiosity, please leave us a review and share it with someone in recovery who might benefit from understanding the inflammation connection.
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More

Now Playing
Food Junkies Podcast: Why Motivation Isn't the Problem, Clinician's Corner, 2026
Are you exhausted from chasing motivation that never lasts? In this ...
Are you exhausted from chasing motivation that never lasts? In this Clinician's Corner episode, Molly Painschab and Clarissa Kennedy break down why motivation is actually an outcome, not a starting ...point — and what truly drives sustainable recovery from ultra-processed food use disorder.
Using the lens of Self-Determination Theory (SDT), they unpack the three psychological needs every person in recovery must have met: autonomy, relatedness, and competence — the often-overlooked key that separates short-term compliance from lasting change.
🎙️ IN THIS EPISODE:
Why "just get motivated" is the wrong advice — and what to focus on instead
The three pillars of Self-Determination Theory and how they apply to food addiction recovery
Why external pressure (shame, fear, "I should") can actually increase relapse risk
The difference between a stick-and-carrot and real motivation
What competence actually means
How the Foundations Program (81+ skills and tools!) was built around these principles
Why recovery is a learning process, not a decision
What the research now says about forced compliance
Small, practical ways to start building self-trust today
🛠️ WHAT'S IN THE FOUNDATIONS PROGRAM? The Sweet Sobriety Foundations Program includes 81+ skills and tools covering:
✔️ Nervous system regulation
✔️ CBT & DBT frameworks
✔️ Mindfulness & self-compassion practices
✔️ Recovery planning
✔️ Craving and urge management
✔️ Emotional awareness and distress tolerance
📬 CONNECT WITH US:
📧 Email: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
🌐 Website: foodjunkiespodcast.com
🍓 Learn more about Sweet Sobriety: http://www.sweetsobriety.ca
If you found this episode helpful, please leave us a review and share it with someone who needs to hear that the problem was never their motivation.
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More
Using the lens of Self-Determination Theory (SDT), they unpack the three psychological needs every person in recovery must have met: autonomy, relatedness, and competence — the often-overlooked key that separates short-term compliance from lasting change.
🎙️ IN THIS EPISODE:
Why "just get motivated" is the wrong advice — and what to focus on instead
The three pillars of Self-Determination Theory and how they apply to food addiction recovery
Why external pressure (shame, fear, "I should") can actually increase relapse risk
The difference between a stick-and-carrot and real motivation
What competence actually means
How the Foundations Program (81+ skills and tools!) was built around these principles
Why recovery is a learning process, not a decision
What the research now says about forced compliance
Small, practical ways to start building self-trust today
🛠️ WHAT'S IN THE FOUNDATIONS PROGRAM? The Sweet Sobriety Foundations Program includes 81+ skills and tools covering:
✔️ Nervous system regulation
✔️ CBT & DBT frameworks
✔️ Mindfulness & self-compassion practices
✔️ Recovery planning
✔️ Craving and urge management
✔️ Emotional awareness and distress tolerance
📬 CONNECT WITH US:
📧 Email: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
🌐 Website: foodjunkiespodcast.com
🍓 Learn more about Sweet Sobriety: http://www.sweetsobriety.ca
If you found this episode helpful, please leave us a review and share it with someone who needs to hear that the problem was never their motivation.
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More

Now Playing
Food Junkies Podcast: What Recovery Looks Like, with John Kelly, 2026
What does recovery look like — and how do we measure it? In this ...
What does recovery look like — and how do we measure it? In this episode, we're joined by Dr. John Kelly, one of the world's leading addiction researchers and founder ...of the Recovery Research Institute at Harvard Medical School, for a deep dive into the science behind what makes recovery possible, sustainable, and real.
Dr. Kelly breaks down the difference between remission and recovery, shares what decades of research tells us about who gets better (spoiler: most people do) and unpacks the active ingredients that help people build lives they love. We also get into the language we use around addiction, why it matters more than you think, and what the latest science says about stigma, stages of change, and recovery capital.
Whether you are in recovery, supporting someone who is, or working in the field — this episode is packed with hope, science, and practical insight.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
🔑 IN THIS EPISODE
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
• What recovery actually means — and how it's different from remission
• Why 75% of people with substance use disorder do recover (and what that means for you)
• The CHIME model: the 5 active ingredients of lasting recovery
→ Community | Hope | Identity | Meaning & Purpose | Empowerment
• Stages of Change (Prochaska & DiClemente) — and why just thinking about change counts
• Recovery Capital: what's in your "recovery bank account"?
• The power of language — why words like "abuser" cause measurable harm
• Stigma, genetics, and why addiction is nobody's fault
• What excites Dr. Kelly most about the future of addiction research
• Psychedelics and addiction treatment: cautious optimism from a Harvard researcher
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👤 ABOUT OUR GUEST
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John Kelly is the Elizabeth R. Spallin Professor of Psychiatry in the Field of Addiction Medicine at Harvard Medical School and founder and director of the Recovery Research Institute at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is one of the world's leading researchers on addiction recovery, mutual help organizations, and reducing stigma in the addiction field.
🔗 Recovery Research Institute: http://www.recoveryanswers.org
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🎙️ FOOD JUNKIES PODCAST
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The Food Junkies Podcast explores food addiction and ultra-processed food use disorder through honest conversations with clinicians, researchers, and people in recovery. Hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Clarissa Kennedy, and Molly Painschab.
📲 Subscribe so you never miss an episode
▶️ Find us on YouTube
👍 Like this video if it gives you hope
💬 Drop a comment — what resonated most with you?Show More
Dr. Kelly breaks down the difference between remission and recovery, shares what decades of research tells us about who gets better (spoiler: most people do) and unpacks the active ingredients that help people build lives they love. We also get into the language we use around addiction, why it matters more than you think, and what the latest science says about stigma, stages of change, and recovery capital.
Whether you are in recovery, supporting someone who is, or working in the field — this episode is packed with hope, science, and practical insight.
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🔑 IN THIS EPISODE
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• What recovery actually means — and how it's different from remission
• Why 75% of people with substance use disorder do recover (and what that means for you)
• The CHIME model: the 5 active ingredients of lasting recovery
→ Community | Hope | Identity | Meaning & Purpose | Empowerment
• Stages of Change (Prochaska & DiClemente) — and why just thinking about change counts
• Recovery Capital: what's in your "recovery bank account"?
• The power of language — why words like "abuser" cause measurable harm
• Stigma, genetics, and why addiction is nobody's fault
• What excites Dr. Kelly most about the future of addiction research
• Psychedelics and addiction treatment: cautious optimism from a Harvard researcher
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
👤 ABOUT OUR GUEST
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
John Kelly is the Elizabeth R. Spallin Professor of Psychiatry in the Field of Addiction Medicine at Harvard Medical School and founder and director of the Recovery Research Institute at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is one of the world's leading researchers on addiction recovery, mutual help organizations, and reducing stigma in the addiction field.
🔗 Recovery Research Institute: http://www.recoveryanswers.org
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
🎙️ FOOD JUNKIES PODCAST
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
The Food Junkies Podcast explores food addiction and ultra-processed food use disorder through honest conversations with clinicians, researchers, and people in recovery. Hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Clarissa Kennedy, and Molly Painschab.
📲 Subscribe so you never miss an episode
▶️ Find us on YouTube
👍 Like this video if it gives you hope
💬 Drop a comment — what resonated most with you?Show More

Now Playing
Food Junkies Podcast: Food Disgust and Food Addiction with Rachel Herz, 2026
Can. food disgust be leveraged in the treatment of ultraprocessed food ...
Can. food disgust be leveraged in the treatment of ultraprocessed food addiction?
In this fascinating episode, Dr. Vera Tarman sits down with Dr. Rachel Herz, neuroscientist, leading expert on the ...psychology of smell, and author of Why You Eat What You Eat and That's Disgusting. From the evolutionary roots of disgust to why ultra-processed foods bypass our natural aversion responses, this conversation will genuinely change how you think about what ends up on your plate — and in your mouth.
What You'll Learn in This Episode
Why disgust is almost entirely learned — and what the one innate exception is
The neuroanatomy of smell and why scent is so deeply tied to emotion and memory
How one bad experience with a food can create a lifelong aversion (one-trial learning)
The difference between disgust and fear — and why that distinction matters for disordered eating
Why non-tasters may be more prone to overeating than super tasters
How ultra-processed food is engineered to bypass our natural "this isn't real food" signals
Whether disgust could be a therapeutic tool in changing our relationship with UPFs
Why Dr. Herz believes disordered eating is psychological and behavioral — and where she and the Food Junkies team respectfully differ on the addiction model
Practical, science-backed strategies for becoming more intentional around eating
About Dr. Rachel Herz
Dr. Rachel Herz is a neuroscientist and faculty member at Brown University, widely regarded as the world's leading expert on the psychology of smell. She is a TED 2019 and TEDx 2024 speaker, has published 108 peer-reviewed research articles, and serves as an expert witness in legal cases involving smell. She is the incoming president of the International Society of Neural Gastronomy.
Her books include:
Sensation and Perception (widely used neuroscience textbook)
That's Disgusting: Unveiling the Mysteries of Repulsion — a New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice
Why You Eat What You Eat: The Science Behind Our Relationship with Food — named among the best food books of 2018 by Smithsonian and The New Yorker
Connect with Dr. Rachel Herz
🌐 rachelherz.com
Connect with Food Junkies
🎙️Food Junkies Podcast — available on all major platforms
🌐 foodjunkiespodcast.com
▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@FoodJunkiesPodcast
📘 Sugar-Free For Life: I’m Sweet Enough FB Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SugarFreeForLife
✨ Back-to-Basics Workshop: https://sweetsobriety.newzenler.com/courses/back-to-basics
The Food Junkies Podcast is hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Molly Painschab, and Clarissa Kennedy. We are dedicated to honest, evidence-informed conversations about food addiction, ultra-processed food use disorder, and recovery.
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More
In this fascinating episode, Dr. Vera Tarman sits down with Dr. Rachel Herz, neuroscientist, leading expert on the ...psychology of smell, and author of Why You Eat What You Eat and That's Disgusting. From the evolutionary roots of disgust to why ultra-processed foods bypass our natural aversion responses, this conversation will genuinely change how you think about what ends up on your plate — and in your mouth.
What You'll Learn in This Episode
Why disgust is almost entirely learned — and what the one innate exception is
The neuroanatomy of smell and why scent is so deeply tied to emotion and memory
How one bad experience with a food can create a lifelong aversion (one-trial learning)
The difference between disgust and fear — and why that distinction matters for disordered eating
Why non-tasters may be more prone to overeating than super tasters
How ultra-processed food is engineered to bypass our natural "this isn't real food" signals
Whether disgust could be a therapeutic tool in changing our relationship with UPFs
Why Dr. Herz believes disordered eating is psychological and behavioral — and where she and the Food Junkies team respectfully differ on the addiction model
Practical, science-backed strategies for becoming more intentional around eating
About Dr. Rachel Herz
Dr. Rachel Herz is a neuroscientist and faculty member at Brown University, widely regarded as the world's leading expert on the psychology of smell. She is a TED 2019 and TEDx 2024 speaker, has published 108 peer-reviewed research articles, and serves as an expert witness in legal cases involving smell. She is the incoming president of the International Society of Neural Gastronomy.
Her books include:
Sensation and Perception (widely used neuroscience textbook)
That's Disgusting: Unveiling the Mysteries of Repulsion — a New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice
Why You Eat What You Eat: The Science Behind Our Relationship with Food — named among the best food books of 2018 by Smithsonian and The New Yorker
Connect with Dr. Rachel Herz
🌐 rachelherz.com
Connect with Food Junkies
🎙️Food Junkies Podcast — available on all major platforms
🌐 foodjunkiespodcast.com
▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@FoodJunkiesPodcast
📘 Sugar-Free For Life: I’m Sweet Enough FB Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SugarFreeForLife
✨ Back-to-Basics Workshop: https://sweetsobriety.newzenler.com/courses/back-to-basics
The Food Junkies Podcast is hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Molly Painschab, and Clarissa Kennedy. We are dedicated to honest, evidence-informed conversations about food addiction, ultra-processed food use disorder, and recovery.
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More

Now Playing
Food Junkies Podcast: Highly Sensitive People and Food Addiction, with Esther Kane, 2026
Are you highly sensitive — and secretly using food to manage a world ...
Are you highly sensitive — and secretly using food to manage a world that feels like too much?
In this episode, Dr. Vera Tarman sits down with Esther Kane, MSW, a ...British Columbia-based psychotherapist with nearly 30 years of experience helping highly sensitive people (HSPs) break free from emotional eating and food addiction. Esther isn't just a clinician — she's an HSP herself who nearly died from an eating disorder and has spent decades figuring out what works.
If you've ever been told you're "too sensitive," struggled to explain why food feels like your only relief, or burned out trying to take care of everyone but yourself — this one's for you.
🕐 In This Episode
What is a Highly Sensitive Person? Based on 40+ years of research by Dr. Elaine Aron, HSPs make up 15–20% of the population. Their nervous systems process everything more deeply — emotions, sensory input, other people's pain. It's not a disorder. It's a biological trait. And it comes with superpowers most people never develop.
Why HSPs are so vulnerable to food addiction The world is chronically overstimulating for HSPs. Food numbs the overwhelm. It turns the volume down. Add in chronic people-pleasing, self-abandonment, absorbing everyone else's emotions, and being told your whole life that you're "too much” and food addiction makes complete sense as a survival strategy.
What recovery looks like for HSPs Esther doesn't start with the food. She starts with the nervous system. You can't take away someone's coping mechanism until they have something else to hold onto. She walks through the somatic tools, boundary work, and root-cause healing that move the needle for highly sensitive people.
🎙️ Connect with Esther Kane
🌐 estherkane.com
📺 YouTube: Compassionate Conversations
👇 Are YOU a highly sensitive person?
Drop a 🙋 in the comments if this episode described you — or share it with someone who has always been told they feel too much. They need to hear this.
Subscribe so you never miss an episode of Food Junkies — real conversations about food addiction, recovery, and what it takes to heal.
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More
In this episode, Dr. Vera Tarman sits down with Esther Kane, MSW, a ...British Columbia-based psychotherapist with nearly 30 years of experience helping highly sensitive people (HSPs) break free from emotional eating and food addiction. Esther isn't just a clinician — she's an HSP herself who nearly died from an eating disorder and has spent decades figuring out what works.
If you've ever been told you're "too sensitive," struggled to explain why food feels like your only relief, or burned out trying to take care of everyone but yourself — this one's for you.
🕐 In This Episode
What is a Highly Sensitive Person? Based on 40+ years of research by Dr. Elaine Aron, HSPs make up 15–20% of the population. Their nervous systems process everything more deeply — emotions, sensory input, other people's pain. It's not a disorder. It's a biological trait. And it comes with superpowers most people never develop.
Why HSPs are so vulnerable to food addiction The world is chronically overstimulating for HSPs. Food numbs the overwhelm. It turns the volume down. Add in chronic people-pleasing, self-abandonment, absorbing everyone else's emotions, and being told your whole life that you're "too much” and food addiction makes complete sense as a survival strategy.
What recovery looks like for HSPs Esther doesn't start with the food. She starts with the nervous system. You can't take away someone's coping mechanism until they have something else to hold onto. She walks through the somatic tools, boundary work, and root-cause healing that move the needle for highly sensitive people.
🎙️ Connect with Esther Kane
🌐 estherkane.com
📺 YouTube: Compassionate Conversations
👇 Are YOU a highly sensitive person?
Drop a 🙋 in the comments if this episode described you — or share it with someone who has always been told they feel too much. They need to hear this.
Subscribe so you never miss an episode of Food Junkies — real conversations about food addiction, recovery, and what it takes to heal.
The content of our show is educational only. It does not supplement or supersede your healthcare provider's professional relationship and direction. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified mental health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, substance use disorder, or mental health concern.Show More

Now Playing
Food Junkies Podcast: Recovery in Unsettled Times, Clinician's Corner, 2026
Life doesn't pause for recovery — and right now, life is a lot. In ...
Life doesn't pause for recovery — and right now, life is a lot. In this Clinician's Corner episode, co-hosts Molly Painschab and Clarissa Kennedy sit down for an honest, grounded ...conversation about what it looks like to stay connected to your recovery when the world feels like it's on fire and your personal life is a lot at the same time.
This isn't a pep talk. These are two clinicians talking real about the neuroscience of stress and cravings, the shame spiral that follows a slip, and what "minimum viable recovery" can look like when you're just trying to make it to tomorrow.
If you've been asking yourself why this is suddenly so hard? This episode is for you.
In This Episode, We Cover:
🧠 Why your brain is working against you right now The neuroscience behind chronic stress and cravings — and why a recovering brain is already running harder than average before you add the weight of the world on top.
🌍 The macro AND the micro From political instability and financial stress to grief, caregiving, and personal loss — we name what's happening and why pretending otherwise is doing you a disservice.
📱 Setting boundaries with the news cycle How to stop the doom scroll from hijacking your nervous system — without swinging to total avoidance. Finding the middle path that keeps you informed without dysregulated.
😔 The shame spiral that turns slips into recurrences It's not always the slip itself that does the damage. Molly breaks down why the judgment after the slip often has far longer-lasting consequences — and how to interrupt that cycle.
🛟 Minimum viable recovery What's the smallest version of recovery you can do today to make it to tomorrow? Clarissa introduces this framework and it will change how you think about hard seasons.
⚓ Recovery anchors and non-negotiables The value of identifying a few tethering behaviors before you're in crisis — and why protecting those anchors can keep you from unraveling.
💙 Co-regulation and connection We are not wired to regulate alone. From turning on your camera in group to body doubling with an emotional support human — why connection isn't optional when things get hard.
🌿 Meaning-making, spiritual practice, and nature Reconnecting with your why — the deep one, not the diet-culture one — and how spiritual practice and time in nature can restore a felt sense of control when everything else feels uncertain.
Resources & Links Mentioned
▶YouTube: Food Junkies Podcast - YouTube
🌐 Sweet Sobriety membership & groups: https://sweetsobriety.newzenler.com/courses/group-coaching-2025
📧 Email us with topic requests or questions: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
If this episode resonated with you: → Share it with someone who needs to hear it right now → Come to group — even if you've been avoiding it, just go → If you're a professional, bring this conversation to your next supervision session
The Food Junkies Podcast is hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Molly Painschab, and Clarissa Kennedy. New episodes drop weekly.
🎙️ Subscribe, leave a review, and share with someone in recovery who could use a reminder that they're not broken — they're just carrying a lot right now.
BACK-to-BASICS WORKSHOP with Megan Sloan
✨ What you’ll walk away with:
• Simple strategies to improve balance, posture & core stability
• A deeper understanding of your body and how it communicates with you
• Practical tools you can use immediately
• A stronger sense of trust and connection with your bodyShow More
This isn't a pep talk. These are two clinicians talking real about the neuroscience of stress and cravings, the shame spiral that follows a slip, and what "minimum viable recovery" can look like when you're just trying to make it to tomorrow.
If you've been asking yourself why this is suddenly so hard? This episode is for you.
In This Episode, We Cover:
🧠 Why your brain is working against you right now The neuroscience behind chronic stress and cravings — and why a recovering brain is already running harder than average before you add the weight of the world on top.
🌍 The macro AND the micro From political instability and financial stress to grief, caregiving, and personal loss — we name what's happening and why pretending otherwise is doing you a disservice.
📱 Setting boundaries with the news cycle How to stop the doom scroll from hijacking your nervous system — without swinging to total avoidance. Finding the middle path that keeps you informed without dysregulated.
😔 The shame spiral that turns slips into recurrences It's not always the slip itself that does the damage. Molly breaks down why the judgment after the slip often has far longer-lasting consequences — and how to interrupt that cycle.
🛟 Minimum viable recovery What's the smallest version of recovery you can do today to make it to tomorrow? Clarissa introduces this framework and it will change how you think about hard seasons.
⚓ Recovery anchors and non-negotiables The value of identifying a few tethering behaviors before you're in crisis — and why protecting those anchors can keep you from unraveling.
💙 Co-regulation and connection We are not wired to regulate alone. From turning on your camera in group to body doubling with an emotional support human — why connection isn't optional when things get hard.
🌿 Meaning-making, spiritual practice, and nature Reconnecting with your why — the deep one, not the diet-culture one — and how spiritual practice and time in nature can restore a felt sense of control when everything else feels uncertain.
Resources & Links Mentioned
▶YouTube: Food Junkies Podcast - YouTube
🌐 Sweet Sobriety membership & groups: https://sweetsobriety.newzenler.com/courses/group-coaching-2025
📧 Email us with topic requests or questions: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com
If this episode resonated with you: → Share it with someone who needs to hear it right now → Come to group — even if you've been avoiding it, just go → If you're a professional, bring this conversation to your next supervision session
The Food Junkies Podcast is hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Molly Painschab, and Clarissa Kennedy. New episodes drop weekly.
🎙️ Subscribe, leave a review, and share with someone in recovery who could use a reminder that they're not broken — they're just carrying a lot right now.
BACK-to-BASICS WORKSHOP with Megan Sloan
✨ What you’ll walk away with:
• Simple strategies to improve balance, posture & core stability
• A deeper understanding of your body and how it communicates with you
• Practical tools you can use immediately
• A stronger sense of trust and connection with your bodyShow More