Ep. 362: Why You Eat When You’re Not Hungry — and How to Stop with Dr. Jud Brewer
Ep. 362: Why You Eat When You’re Not Hungry — and How to Stop with Dr. Jud Brewer  
Podcast: PLANTSTRONG Podcast
Published On: Thu Jul 16 2026
Description: Ever eat when you weren’t really hungry and wonder why willpower wasn’t enough to stop you?This week, Rip talks with Dr. Jud Brewer - neuroscientist, psychiatrist, and author of The Hunger Habit - about cravings, emotional eating, and the science behind food habits.Rip and Brewer explore the difference between true physical hunger and what researchers call “hedonic hunger” — eating driven by emotions, stress, boredom, celebration, cravings, or cues in our environment. Dr. Jud explains why ultra-processed foods are engineered to hit the “bliss point” of sugar, fat, salt, crunch, and mouthfeel, making them especially hard to resist.They also dig into why willpower is such a shaky strategy. Most diet programs rely on some version of “just don’t eat that,” but Dr. Jud explains why shame and restriction often backfire. Instead, he teaches a more effective path: awareness.By paying close attention to how overeating actually feels — and how it feels when we stop at satisfied — the brain can begin to update the reward value of those habits. In other words, we can learn, through direct experience, that certain behaviors no longer serve us.This episode is a compassionate, science-backed invitation to stop blaming yourself and start getting curious.Watch the Episode on YouTubeEpisode WebpageLearn More About our 2026 Live PLANTSTRONG Events: https://plantstrongevents.com/ Let Us Help Your PLANTSTRONG JourneyLearn More About Our Corporate Wellness Program: https://liveplantstrong.com/corporate-wellness/ COMPLEMENT: Use code PLANTSTRONG for 30% off at https://lovecomplement.com/pages/plantstrong-special-offer Follow PLANTSTRONG and Rip Esselstynhttps://plantstrong.com/ https://www.facebook.com/GoPlantstrong https://www.instagram.com/goplantstrong/https://www.instagram.com/ripesselstyn/ Follow the PLANTSTRONG Podcast and Give the Show a 5-star RatingApple PodcastsSpotify