Ultra-Processed Food Addiction: A Little-Known and Growing Problem

Learn about the complexities of food addiction, its relationship with ultra-processed foods, and emerging treatment approaches.

Illustration by The Epoch Times, Shutterstock

Sunshine Gentile’s migraines started out feeling like the flu. She was 36 when they began, giving her an aching head and muscles and fatigue. The pain was worse if she moved around. Eventually, her migraines grew so bad that she'd be in bed for a week, and doctors couldn’t tell her why it was happening.

What she did know, and what frightened her, was that the painkillers that the doctors prescribed either didn’t work for long or came with unbearable side effects.

“It was scary because being that young and seeing that I was burning through all those medications at that rate made me realize there’s not enough on the market to get me through the rest of my life,” Gentile told The Epoch Times.

Her family encouraged her to eliminate possible triggers such as cleaners, perfumes, and detergents. When that didn’t work, she started giving up various foods. Nothing much changed when she gave up gluten, but cutting back on processed carbohydrates such as sugars, breads, and pasta would deliver profound relief. Specialists told her that food wasn’t causing her issues, but experience told her otherwise.

“My neurology team was amazing, but they just didn’t know. They hadn’t experienced this with anybody before.”

Unfortunately, learning what caused her migraines wasn’t the end of her battle. For Gentile and many others with food addiction, resisting comfort foods—even when they bring pain and disease—can feel like a hopeless battle. Gentile would find herself giving up one food, feeling better, and discovering a substitute food also made her miserable.

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Even with the cycle of crippling pain, she struggled to give up the foods at the center of her suffering. Her eventual recovery came when she could finally face and deal with her food addiction, a complex and sometimes controversial disorder that is closely linked to ultra-processed foods and their unusual effects on our brains and bodies.

Some experts suggest that we can crave certain foods that make it hard for us to give them up and cause withdrawal symptoms when we quit eating them. Studies suggest that ultra-processed foods, which are engineered to be tasty, might be addictive.

The NOVA Food Classification system, used in research, considers sugar-sweetened drinks and packaged snacks, pre-made frozen dishes, canned and instant soups, ice cream, chicken nuggets, and reconstituted meat products to be ultra-processed foods.

Unrecognized Disorder

Patients and doctors often fail to connect the dots between symptoms—such as migraines, joint pain, and insulin resistance—and food. The medical establishment is only now starting to focus on the nuances of nutrition and does not yet recognize food addiction. Many patients, some unaware of their own unhealthy eating habits, have little insight into the core of their problem.

Doctors rely on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) to determine mental health diagnoses, which, in turn, helps dictate the correct treatment for patients. However, food addiction isn’t officially considered a substance abuse disorder, despite some efforts to include it.

The condition has overlapping characteristics with obesity and binge eating disorder. A person may struggle with one, two, or all three issues. Some patients receive medication or surgery for obesity or get diagnosed with binge eating yet still feel unwell.

Food addiction is closely intertwined with industrialized ultra-processed food. Breads, cereals, packaged snacks, sugary drinks, fast foods, and frozen meals are often made with a combination of sugar, salt, and fat that triggers what’s called the “bliss point“—a dopamine response that fuels cravings for more. Research shows that people react to ingredients such as fat, added sugars, other sweeteners, salt, and starch in ways similar to illicit drugs, such as consuming higher and higher doses and experiencing rapid absorption.

The bliss point is the perfect combination of sugar, salt, and fat that makes us crave more of a certain food. Illustration by The Epoch Times

Food as a ‘Drug’

Ultra-processed food is so “wildly different” from real food that it should be considered a chemical substance, especially for children, Ashley Gearhardt, associate professor of psychology at the University of Michigan, told the American Psychological Association. Her research has found that 12 percent of children and 14 percent of adults show signs of food addiction.

“It’s not just really about the calories. It starts to be about the hedonics, the pleasure, the emotion regulation from a very, very young age,” Gearhardt said. “We do see that children who are showing these signs of addiction in their eating, they have higher body mass index, higher emotional overeating. They’re less sensitive to their satiety signals. They have greater body fat percentages.”

Gearhardt and other professionals have used the DSM model, traditionally used to differentiate social drinkers from alcohol addicts, and applied it to food. The result is her 25-question Yale Food Addiction Scale, which determines if someone is struggling with:

• Taking more of a substance than intended
• Wanting or unsuccessfully attempting to quit the substance
• Spending excessive time and effort to quit the substance
• Neglecting obligations or social functions because of substance use
• Continuing substance use even when feeling unwell
• Needing more of the substance for desired effects
• Experiencing withdrawal symptoms such as anxiety, agitation, or other physical struggles
• Facing clinically significant impairment or distress

Food Addiction or Something Else?

Despite growing recognition, many people still don’t believe that food addiction is real or that food is to blame for problems such as overeating and obesity. The Food Addiction Institute, a nonprofit organization, is lobbying to have it included among diagnosable substance abuse disorders and has made a public plea to supporters to sign its petition.

A 2024 study in Appetite noted ongoing debate about whether food addiction is a valid, useful, and measurable diagnosis. Based on statistical analysis, the authors suggested that food addiction isn’t the root of most problems and may indicate other mental health issues. In a sample of U.S. adults, the food addiction rate was 4.7 percent. However, at least 39 percent of the sample were overweight, dieted, attempted to control their weight, or believed that they were overweight.

Authors of an article in Obesity Review questioned whether food addiction was valid, found preliminary support, and suggested that more evidence is necessary before jumping to conclusions.

“We have therefore sought to be more positive, trying to suggest some ways in which the model could be explored further to determine its validity,” the authors wrote. “We take very seriously a recent caution against ‘tossing the baby out with the bathwater’ by simply dismissing the concept before the appropriate neuroscientific studies have been done in humans.”

Addiction Revelations

Gentile’s wake-up call came after watching videos from the Food Addiction Reset Community (ARC), a privately owned online support group for food addiction. It convinced her that food cravings were driving her physical problems.

“The rational part of my brain would never be willing to hurt myself in this way otherwise,” Gentile, who went on to become a certified addiction recovery advocate with ARC, said.

For Amy Lammert, a nurse who’s now an assistant director with ARC, this revelation was pivotal. She viewed it as equivalent to a diagnosis.

“If there was a cause,” she told The Epoch Times, “then there could be a solution.”

Lammert spent years on her feet, caring for long-term patients in a demanding environment. She had reservations about whether her body could keep up, as years of intense exercise only intensified her knee pain, and doctors wouldn’t recommend surgery.

She stumbled on an ARC video and wondered if food addiction could be a problem for her. She grew up eating both whole food and ultra-processed food and never separated the two as being different.

Lammert had always eaten whatever she wanted and was thin—until she became a mom. Then she tried one diet after another until an overweight doctor convinced her to give up dieting because her body was “apparently happy at this weight.” Nobody ever suggested to her that the type of food she ate could be a problem.

To test the addiction, Lammert removed some processed foods from her diet and experienced only minor pain relief. Desperate for better mobility, she finally gave up all processed food and sugar, and within four days, the pain lifted.

“The food addiction kind of came in through the back door. I wasn’t expecting it,” she said. “I don’t drink alcohol because one drink is not enough. I always knew I had a tendency to go down the addiction route. My drug of choice is sugar.”

Overlapping Conditions

Misconceptions often tangle with the overlap that food addiction has with other medical conditions. A 2024 study in the Journal of Behavioral Addictions explains the distinctions between obesity, binge eating, and food addiction.

About half of those who experienced binge eating—typically more severe cases—also had food addiction, according to study results. Binge eating refers to consuming significant amounts of food beyond what would be considered normal in a given situation or timeframe, accompanied by distress and a loss of control.

People with binge eating disorder often have periods of fasting or dieting to “make up” for binging. They are motivated by weight loss and body image concerns.

Food addiction and binge eating both involve unsuccessful attempts to reduce the amount of food, impulsivity, emotional dysregulation, reward dysfunction, and cravings. Emotional dysregulation means a lack of skills to handle emotions and turning to food for emotional regulation.

Both eating disorders and food addiction are associated with problems in the brain’s dopamine-related reward response. This shared neurological basis might explain why weight-loss programs often aren’t helpful for people with obesity who also struggle with food addiction. 

Distinguishing among these conditions might prompt “personalized assessments and tailored treatments for this patient population,” according to the study.

Hidden Addiction

Misconceptions about food addiction also make it particularly hard to recognize. The two women’s stories illustrate common misunderstandings.

Lammert and her doctor were focused on her weight, not the type of food she ate. Although she grew up eating healthy meals and always valued real food, there were always plenty of pre-packaged, industrial-made snacks in the pantry.

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For Gentile, the misconception was that she was dealing with an eating disorder, rather than an addiction, from a life of dieting and food struggles. She also became frustrated by attitudes that she encountered in the health care system that food cannot be addictive or even problematic.

Food Abstinence?

Addressing food addiction in a manner similar to other addictions affords people the opportunity to be healthy, according to H. Theresa Wright, a registered dietitian at Renaissance Nutrition Center. She described food addiction as “painfully repairable but treatable.”

The backbone of food addiction eating plans is abstaining from eating sugar and flour, as well as foods causing individual sensitivities, but getting adequate nutrients, Wright, author of “The Sane Food Solution,” told The Epoch Times.

“Abstinence means you’re not using ‘drug food’ you’ve been using,” she said. “It means you focus on using something else besides food to manage your feelings.

“Abstinence requires a whole lot of work. It requires spirituality, meditation, exercise, action, and making changes in your life.”

In addition to becoming convinced that certain foods are intolerable for their health, Wright said one needs to build rest into their lives. Without rest, there’s often a mindless rush that makes it easy to use food to numb or distract from feelings. However, rest offers time to reflect on emotions that might drive unhealthy food choices and build a schedule that allows for food planning and stress-reduction activities.

Unmanaged stress can be a risk factor for food addiction, as it can lead to leaning on the hyperpalatable nature of food to bring about positive chemical changes in the brain.

Because food addiction is often inextricable from emotional or mental issues that can surface when abusive eating practices are stopped, cognitive behavioral therapy is often a key part of recovery programs, Wright said. This therapy can introduce patients to tools that help regulate emotional health and change destructive thought patterns.

Gentile found support through the community aspect of ARC.

“We’re bathing our brain with messaging that this ARC community are our food people,” she said. “When it comes to how I make my food choices, I look to the other people in the ARC, not my family and friends who are eating and drinking all the things I’m trying to stay away from.” Gentile said until she found the community, dealing with food addiction alone added struggles of sadness and loneliness.

For those seeking support, there are programs that offer accountability and community. One of them is Overeaters Anonymous. Founded in Los Angeles in 1960, it is a free support group modeled after Alcoholics Anonymous. It provides in-person, telephone, and online check-ins in 7,000 meeting locations across 80 countries.

The Food Addiction Institute maintains an online directory of additional rehabilitation and recovery programs, as well as professionals specializing in food addiction counseling.

Costs of Food Addiction

Failing to formally acknowledge food addiction is a blindspot that keeps Americans perpetually craving foods that damage their metabolic health, Joan Ifland, founder of ARC, who holds a doctorate in addictive nutrition, told The Epoch Times.

Signs of poor cardiometabolic health include obesity, Type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and heart disease.

Food addiction could explain Americans’ continued struggle with high rates of cardiometabolic disease despite medical treatments, according to Ifland, who co-authored the textbook “Processed Food Addiction: Foundations, Assessment, and Recovery.”

Without recognizing the addiction component of related conditions, issues such as obesity and eating disorders can become a revolving door that profits both the food and medical industries, she said. A significant number of bariatric patients regain weight after surgery. Weight loss medications work better when accompanied by lifestyle changes.

Approximately 7 percent of U.S. adults have optimal cardiometabolic health, according to a 2022 investigation in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. This statistic demands nationwide and clinical public health interventions for people of all income levels and backgrounds, according to the authors.

Breaking Free

Food addiction experts believe that the solution could involve more support for overcoming cravings and changing eating habits.

Most Americans meet six or more food addiction criteria, according to research that Ifland compiled for her book, showing that people cannot stop eating junk food even when they suffer consequences for it. This is a level that demands significant support to overcome cravings and change eating habits, she noted.

Joan Ifland, founder of the Food Addiction Reset Community, suggests six ways to overcome food addiction. Illustration by The Epoch Times

Those with a severe addiction to alcohol often need two years of treatment, according to Ifland. Getting ultra-processed food addiction under control necessitates a similar response.

“You need very high-level support. Ultra-processed foods are harmful and quite dangerous in terms of the damage they do,” she said. “You have to surround yourself with people who are not eating processed foods and have not bought into the deception.”

The deception she refers to is subtle and influenced by tobacco companies—such as appealing to children in advertising and introducing hyper-palatable ingredients into processed foods.

Expand Options

Weight loss programs that teach only calorie counting or eating in moderation can backfire for those with food addiction, potentially causing withdrawal, promoting cravings, and leading to relapses, according to a 2024 review in Current Obesity Reports. It noted that there are no evidence-based interventions for ultra-processed food addiction, but the growing number of online self-help and community-based groups shows an unaddressed clinical need for help.

“There are abundant next steps in this line of research,” the authors wrote. “Developing and demonstrating the efficacy of novel, addiction-based treatments for [ultra-processed foods] addiction may result in more optimal clinical outcomes for this underserved population.”

Besides diet, Ifland suggests considering the following when overcoming food addiction:

• Creating a food plan that works for your life dynamics. Not everyone can give up all ultra-processed food at once.
• Developing tools to help select and prepare whole foods.
• Improving sleep skills, as sleep restriction affects metabolism and can change hunger cues.
• Reframing thoughts around food with exercises such as food flashcards. For instance, writing  “donut” on one side and words such as “obesity, fatigue, diabetes, and high blood pressure” on the other.
• Enhancing communication skills, such as learning to express needs. For example, asking others in the home to stop leaving ultra-processed foods on the counter.
• Establishing boundaries to prevent backsliding, including skills for dealing with spoken and unspoken pressure to eat like those around you.

Because so many people eat ultra-processed foods—about 57 percent of the calories eaten by U.S. adults—our brains are conditioned to perceive it as “normal” and resist the more unfamiliar behavior of eating whole foods.

“You need relationship management skills because everyone in your life will perceive this as weird,” Ifland said about being in food addiction recovery. “They will try to drag you back to eating processed foods.”

Join our discussion on ultra-processed food’s addictive nature here.