After recovering from food addiction herself by maintaining a 100-lb weight loss for more than 12 years, Dr. Tarman is on the front lines in presenting the message about the problem of food addiction and recovery solutions through her work, her book, Food Junkies: Recovery From Food Addiction and her podcast Food Junkies.

We discuss how sugar and processed foods can be addictive and contribute to the growing obesity crisis and are the “tobacco of the 70s”. Since the truth about food addiction has not been acknowledged and accepted, the food industry, insurance, and pharmaceutical industries continue to benefit financially without addressing in a meaningful way how addictive foods contribute to health issues today.

The length of time it takes for people to withdraw from excess food, sugar, and trigger foods varies by individual but is typically three to four weeks.

“Food addiction is a biological, psychological phenomenon. It’s not about willpower. It’s not because you’re a pig and you don’t know how to stop. It’s about recognizing that something has taken over — remember the definition of addiction is you can’t stop even if you want to,” says Dr. Tarman.

Dr. Tarman cites the statistic in her book, Food Junkies: the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that by the year 2030, 84% of the U.S. population will be overweight and 42% will be obese.

Dr. Vera Tarman is on the faculty at the INFACT School and is an internationally renowned expert on sugar and food addiction and knows recovery is possible. Dr. Vera Tarman is the Medical Director of Renascent, one of Canada’s largest treatment centers for substance abuse where she works as an addiction specialist. Check out Dr. Tarman’s Facebook group