On Monday, Oct. 26, Adelman spoke up against junk food in a health crusade in front of USF’s Sessums Mall Chick-fil-A. ORACLE PHOTO/ALEXIS CARUTHERS
An Instagram dietary critic with more than half a million followers came to USF to confront college students’ eating habits firsthand.
Steven Adelman, known online as @antisludgemovement and @adelman.aspires, has built a following by critiquing what he calls “sludge”: heavily processed foods with preservatives and seed oils.
His critiques range from potato chips to Chick-fil-A, which is where he was at USF on Monday, Oct. 26.
As of Oct. 30, Adelman’s primary Instagram account has 526,000 followers, with another 69,000 on TikTok. Over just the past week, he’s racked up more than 4 million views on his videos.
His signature delivery is monotone and surreal. Adelman wears a full suit and scrolls through while injecting critiques about the food shown on a scrolling panel on the right.
He has a running bit of using the word “optimal” when referring to healthy, whole foods and “sludge” when referring to unhealthy junk food.
In a recent Reel reacting to a creator’s meal, Adelman said, “If this dish becomes consistent, your doctor is going to become a very rich man,” warning viewers that usual “sludge” will leave them in poor health.
He is direct, and his videos are fast-paced and straight to the point, pointing out that certain users who eat “sludge” will get chronic disease.
At USF, however, the character gave way to a polite organizer eager to debate a crowd of students raising their hands.
Between discussions, Adelman handed out packets of protein cereal from Lovebird, which donates 20% of their profits to children’s cancer funds, according to their website.
Beyond his campus giveaways, Adelman promotes an online “Anti-Sludge Movement” store featuring slogans such as “Resist The Sludge,” “I’m Anti-Sludge” and “Eat Real Food.”
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The visit was part of a tour across Florida’s largest colleges, following stops at Florida International University, Florida Atlantic University and a 200-student turnout at Miami-Dade College.
Adelman said his movement began in 2025 after realizing that 99% of prepackaged food is “sludge,” leaving home-cooked whole foods as the only way to eat clean. He expressed pity for those trapped in modern eating habits.
“They have no idea what they’re doing,” Adelman said. “They don’t know what it really feels like to be a human, to thrive, to have good energy, to have mental clarity. They’re so caught up in just eating normalized, poisonous food that they just don’t truly understand what they need to be really eating.”
For students in the crowd, reactions ranged from genuine curiosity to skepticism over whether the event was just an extension of the existing bit Adelman keeps up.
Braylon Okine, a freshman cybersecurity major and self-described “pro-sludge” consumer, said that the protest felt performative.
“I feel like most people here probably didn’t know who he was before, and just saw a crowd and came over,” Okine said.
Okine added that watching Adelman talk was not going to inspire him to lead a healthier lifestyle.
“I think I’m good,” Braylon said.
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Geoffrey Green, a sophomore history major, agreed that while advocating for proper nutrition is valid, Adelman’s delivery lacked scientific backing.
“Getting vitamins, eating vegetables, and eating whole foods is a really good point,” Green said. “But the sensationalism of eating healthy is going in the wrong direction.”
Others saw the persona as a hook for a more sincere message. Adrian Molinero, a sophomore biology major, noted that while Adelman’s early videos focused more on building a character, his campus visits show good intentions.
“I feel like he might just be building a character so people get attached, [but] I think he’s pushing things that he actually believes in,” Molinero said, “I don’t think he’s just doing it for the views.”
The event also drew its own share of absurdity: Devon Weish, a sophomore mechanical engineering major, showed up to eat a full raw chicken in a way of protest to Adelman.
While insisting he was “not trolling,” he said his actions were an ironic response to Adelman’s claims about health and that eating a raw chicken was “true whole foods.”
Beyond the theatrics, students weighed in on the reality of avoiding processed food within a college lifestyle.
Lauren Acevedo, a senior communications major, said his content inspired her to lay off “sludge,” though convenience often wins out.
“I’m a college student, so sometimes I just need quick things,” Acevedo said. “Sometimes I need Subway or Chick-fil-A real quick, so honestly, it could be hit or miss.”
Youssef Charrada, a third-year econometrics major, initially came to laugh at Adelman’s work, but was impressed after asking Adelman about seed oils and food addiction.
“He actually was pretty informative, and he gave proper points that made sense,” Charrada said. “I think he probably became funny and turned to an actual movement.”
Charrada added that USF “100%” has a sludge problem, pointing out that campus dining halls and fast-food chains rely on calorie-heavy, processed ingredients.
With more campus stops ahead, Adelman plans to escalate his in-person approach.
“ We’re going to keep doing them, [and] they’re going to get bigger and bigger,” Adelman said. “A lot more in-person content, approaching people, really just doing crazy stuff– and it’s going to work.”