Very concise explanations why sugar and processed foods are the enemy and not fat. Goes along with what I've found works for me; no gluten, no grains, no dairy, no packaged, processed crap. Fresh veggies and meat with lots of ghee and avocados. Yum! ( )

Enjoyed this book. Some new ideas and reasons why we should reduce carb consumption. ( )

3/26/22

I found this book very useful. I'm a skeptic, and am tired of books that tout this or that diet without very convincing reasons. This author actually cites many studies with large study groups and points out the reasons our country (US) supports conflicting diets. Most of what he says is quite convincing. ( )

My functional/integrative medicine doctor recommended Dr. Hyman's books; this one was published in 2018 after the doctor had settled on his unfortunately named "pegan" diet (paleo, but with more veggies and less meat). It's not a diet for weight loss so much as it is a diet for better health, overlapping with Michael Pollan and other nutrition/food writers. There is a small selection of recipes included in the back, but most of them aren't much use to people who are sensitive to eggs and nuts.

He goes through the various findings on different food groups and compares them with the (largely erroneous) nutrition information we've been given by the AHA, FDA, etc. (who are largely influenced by the industries they're supposed to protect us from).

* small amounts of meat (grass-fed, organic, responsibly raised when possible). Fat/cholesterol from meat is OK and doesn't cause fat/cholesterol problems--those problems are actually, according to these studies, are more a result of too much highly-processed carbs and sugars (pre-packaged foods and the American diet), though it's best to try to increase your intake of omega-3s (from low-mercury fish, avocados, coconut oil, etc.).
* get rid of processed foods, preservatives, additives, dyes, as much as possible--bacon is relatively ok on occasion.
* as little sugar/sugar-substitutes as possible (fructose contained in whole fruits are ok, in small amounts--try to get low-glycemic, organic fruits when possible)
* unsweetened water, herbal/green tea, water with lemon, instead of sweet beverages
* low amounts of grains and starchy vegetables (aims for 1/2 cup, 3x/week). Whole oats are preferable to packaged cereals but are still very processed.
* bulk of your "carbs" should be from a variety of non-starchy vegetables (preferably organic when possible)

That's the basic idea. In addition, he recommends some daily supplements:

* multivitamin (check the quality, but don't bother going to his website--it's poorly organized and will just funnel you towards the vitamins he sells.
* purified fish oil (EPA/DHA) - 2 grams/day
* vit D3, to support immune system - 1000-2000 IU/day
* magnesium glycinate - 100-200 mg/day
* chromium, for metabolism - 200-500mcg
* alpha-lipoic acid, for mitochondria support - 300-600mcg
* COQ10 (this is the one my own doctor recommended to me, for mitochondrial support/energy) - 25-50mg/day
* resveratrol - 50-100mg
* milk thistle, for liver support - 50-100mg
* curcumin, for healthy liver, colon, musculoskeletal, cell function, etc. - 100-200mg/day
* Glutathione for cell function and detoxification - 25-50mg
* folate or methyl folate, for heart/brain health and DNA synthesis/repair - 400-800mcg.

Oddly not included in this list is the MCT oil he touts several times earlier in the book, which I think indicates sloppy editing--probably this last part of the book was just taken directly from a previous book, and not a thought more was given to it. ( )