Review by Kevin T. Morgan
Blog (athlete with stent), Website (Old Dogs in Training LLC)
Tweet review: Carbs in food bad. Fats in food good. Proteins in food necessary.
Blog (athlete with stent), Website (Old Dogs in Training LLC)
Tweet review: Carbs in food bad. Fats in food good. Proteins in food necessary.
This book is rich in observations, thoughts, ideas and reasoning, though it does come across as somewhat ‘evangelistic’ because, clearly, the author is frustrated with the deafness of his prime audience, the medical community, to his message; Carbs are bad for you! As they say in England, none are so deaf as those who will not hear. Gary Taubes presents a carefully reasoned case for the ‘Low Carbohydrate Diet’ when it comes to addressing the ‘obesity/metabolic syndrome’ crisis in Western, and increasingly Eastern, society. He addresses the usual suspects, including high fructose corn syrup.
The author's opinions are based upon a thorough review of the literature, consultation with anthropologists, and his own experience and insights. Furthermore, the low carbohydrate case is strengthened by his documentation of resistance to consideration of this literature by the mainstream science media and government departments responsible for advising on nutrition, which he attributes to a state of ‘cognitive dissonance’ [page 39 of eBook]. The author states clearly that they became enamored with the ‘low fat diet’, being “trapped in a paradigm” [p15].
Cogent arguments are presented with respect to populations in which many obese but financially poor women have emaciated children due to the type of food they eat (carbohydrates!). I found it fascinating how I had fallen for the same line as many others, that of accusing fat or obese people of being lazy and eating too much (sloth and gluttony) [page 33]. I now regret my role in this, and I will modify my behavior appropriately (apologies!). It is so easy to blame the person for the disease, rather than working hard to find the real cause. Fat enriches our lives, provides energy when needed, and beautifies our women [page 61] – what would life be like without the beauty of women? Three ‘laws of adiposity’ are presented to guide the reader:
- Body fat is carefully regulated, if not exquisitely so [page 85].
- Obesity can be caused by a regulatory defect so small that it would be undetectable by any technique yet invented.
- Whatever makes us both fatter and heavier will also make us overeat.
Just like the laws of motion in Physics, a great deal of insight can be gained by pursuing reasoning that proceeds from these rules, which of course Gary Taubes does for you. I have considerable experience with the biochemical aspects of Gary Taubes's arguments, and I could not find any reasonable flaws in them.
My real problem with this book, which I admire, is a personal ethical dilemma. My challenge lies with my preference for avoiding or minimizing meat intake as I really like non-human animals, and eating them seems disrespectful, to say the least. I have never fully embraced a vegetarian diet, mainly because I have found that it difficult to maintain. Something always feels wrong or missing after a few months (the longest that I have attempted this course of action). I guess that I will have to increase my struggles on that front as a direct consequence of reading this ‘iconoclastic’ tome. I strongly recommend that you carefully read, as opposed to skim, this book if you have an interest in the issues discussed. This work is an indictment of the ‘low fat diet’ and the ‘restrict food intake and exercise to reduce your weight' approaches that are so widely proclaimed. I look forward to reading the inevitable rebuttals, as this is how we arrive at the real answer to life's persistent questions
-k @FitOldDog
My real problem with this book, which I admire, is a personal ethical dilemma. My challenge lies with my preference for avoiding or minimizing meat intake as I really like non-human animals, and eating them seems disrespectful, to say the least. I have never fully embraced a vegetarian diet, mainly because I have found that it difficult to maintain. Something always feels wrong or missing after a few months (the longest that I have attempted this course of action). I guess that I will have to increase my struggles on that front as a direct consequence of reading this ‘iconoclastic’ tome. I strongly recommend that you carefully read, as opposed to skim, this book if you have an interest in the issues discussed. This work is an indictment of the ‘low fat diet’ and the ‘restrict food intake and exercise to reduce your weight' approaches that are so widely proclaimed. I look forward to reading the inevitable rebuttals, as this is how we arrive at the real answer to life's persistent questions
-k @FitOldDog
Thank you, Kevin, for this insightful review. It seems that the more we restrict fat consumption as a nation and a world, the more obese we become. Unfortunately, the fat in processed foods has been replaced by sugars and salts, neither of which are healthy. Interestingly, I believe we are seeing the same trends in our feline companions. We are feeding them extruded, pelleted food made mostly of carbohydrates, resulting in an epidemic of feline diabetes. Their bodies respond as ours do to the massive influx of carbohydrates, causing insulin resistance. They were designed to eat lean protein, a modicum of fat, and almost no carbohydrates (obligate carnivores). We need to refer to our own intrinsic design to know that we cannot handle processed carbohydrates in the amounts that we consume them. Thanks again for your comments; I will enjoy reading this book.
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