What does it take to turn personal pain into policy change? In this episode, Dr. Vera Tarman sits down with Chérie St. Arnauld, Executive Director of Metabolic Revolution and a passionate advocate for metabolic health, to explore the power of grassroots mobilization in the fight against ultra-processed foods.

Chérie grew up in a household shaped by economic constraints and ultra-processed food. It was her sister's cancer diagnosis, and the radical dietary intervention that gave her 10 more years of life, that forever changed how Chérie understood the relationship between food and healing. Today, she's channeling that lived experience into one of the most dynamic grassroots organizations in the metabolic health space.

In this conversation, Vera and Chérie explore what the food addiction and metabolic health communities can learn from each other, and what it actually looks like to build a movement from the ground up.

🎙️ What We Cover:

• Chérie's story: growing up on ultra-processed foods, her sister's illness, and the whole-food dietary shift that changed everything

• How a ketogenic diet transformed Chérie's mental health and clarity

• The founding of Metabolic Revolution and its mission to empower individuals to demand change from their institutions

• The October 2024 Rally for Metabolic Health at the Washington Monument — how it happened, who spoke, and what it sparked

• The petition to ban ultra-processed foods from school meals — and the volunteer-led school lunch committee it inspired

• A halted ketogenic therapy research study at the University of Maryland — and how Metabolic Revolution took action

• The parallel between Big Food and Big Tobacco — and what a master settlement agreement could look like

• Grassroots strategies: rallies, community walks, petitions, state attorney general investigations, and more

• Why individual stories + research + cost data may be the most powerful combination in advocacy

• The intersection of food addiction and metabolic health — and why these movements are stronger together

• What the food addiction world can learn from Metabolic Revolution's bottom-up approach

🔗 Resource(s) Mentioned:

• Metabolic Revolution: metabolicrevolution.org

🙌 If you or someone you love is struggling with ultra-processed food use disorder, please visit us at sweetsobriety.ca and foodjunkiespodcast.com

Connect with Food Junkies:

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💻 Website: foodjunkiespodcast.com

▶️ YouTube: Food Junkies Podcast - YouTube

💌 Email: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com

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The Food Junkies Podcast is hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Molly Painschab, and Clarissa Kennedy. We explore the science, stories, and solutions behind food addiction and ultra-processed food use disorder.

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.

If you're considering personalized assistance, CJ, a Certified Addiction Professional specializing in Food Addiction, is here for one-on-one coaching. Reach out to CJ at cjnguy@myfoodaddictioncoach.com

Interested in sharing your recovery story on our show? We'd love to hear from you! Please email FJRecoverystories@gmail.com

What's really happening inside your child's body when they eat ultra-processed food? In this episode, Dr. Vera Tarman sits down with Dr. Jacob May — mitochondrial researcher, registered dietitian, and Associate Professor at Pennington Biomedical Research Center — to explore the cellular and metabolic consequences of a diet dominated by ultra-processed foods, particularly in children.

Dr. May leads the Mitochondrial Energetics and Nutrient Utilization Laboratory, where his team investigates how dietary patterns shape metabolism at the cellular level. He's a keynote speaker, precision nutrition researcher, and practicing clinician — and his insights here are both science-forward and refreshingly practical.

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

• Why mitochondria can't tell the difference between a McDonald's burger and organic beef — and why that still matters
• What phytonutrients and zoonutrients are, and why ultra-processing strips them out
• How ultra-processed foods drive insulin resistance through a damaging feedback loop
• Whether children are more resilient or more vulnerable to the effects of UPFs — and why the answer is complicated
• What the research actually says about saturated fat, ketogenic diets, and insulin sensitivity
• How the gut microbiome is affected by ultra-processed food intake
• Why breath biomarkers may be the future of non-invasive metabolic screening
• What GLP-1 medications mean for the future of nutrition science — and why dietitians aren't obsolete
• Practical, real-world advice for feeding children in an ultra-processed food environment

About Dr. Jacob May:

Dr. Jacob May is an Associate Professor at Pennington Biomedical Research Center and head of the Mitochondrial Energetics and Nutrient Utilization Laboratory. His research focuses on how dietary patterns — including ketogenic and ultra-processed food diets — affect cellular metabolism, insulin sensitivity, and metabolic disease. He holds a PhD in nutrition science and is a Registered Dietitian with an active clinical practice. He was a keynote speaker at Pennington's 2025 Childhood Obesity Conference.

Email Dr. May: Jacob.Mey@pbrc.edu

Connect with Food Junkies: 🎙️ Subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts 💻 Website: foodjunkiespodcast.com ▶️ YouTube: Food Junkies Podcast - YouTube 💌 Email: foodjunkiespodcast@gmail.com

The Food Junkies Podcast is hosted by Dr. Vera Tarman, Molly Painschab, and Clarissa Kennedy. We explore the science, stories, and solutions behind food addiction and ultra-processed food use disorder.

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.