How Not to Diet with Michael Greger, MD: PYP 362

Michael Greger's latest book, How Not to Diet, is just stunning.

It's a love song to science: its potential, its process, even its limitations.

There has never been a more comprehensive, accessible, and evidence-based look at our current knowledge of how to get to and maintain a healthy weight.

With almost 5000 citations, all easily clickable from the NutritionFacts.org website, there's none of the smoke and mirrors, intentional obfuscation, or sloppy interpretation that plagues most diet books.

In fact, Greger writes in the preface: “Here's the problem: I hate diet books. Furthermore, I hate diet books that purport to hate diet books, yet relish in all the same absurdities. This book is for those who want facts, not filler, fantasy, or fluff.”

I assumed – and Greger confirmed that he also assumed – that the book would be a comprehensive review of the literature that basically would tell me what I already know: that a whole foods, plant-based diet is the best way to eat, not only for health, but for svelth. (Not a word, but should be!)

And the book did not disappoint; it clearly shows that high-fiber, plant-based diets lead to normalized body mass through a wide variety of mechanisms:

* the ileal brake and the fiber feedback loop

* caloric density

* down-regulation of fat-metabolizing enzymes

* glycemic index

* reduction in hyper-palatability triggers

* and many more…

What I didn't expect to discover were a laundry list of, for lack of a better word, hacks that have been shown in rigorous scientific tests to support weight loss:

* when we eat

* when we exercise

* common spices

* the angle of our beds

* small amounts of vinegar at every meal

* eating and sipping slowly

* aggressive use of the bathroom scale

* and lots more…

We spoke for 29 minutes and 44 seconds about the book, about the future of research, and how each of us can take control of our weight in a world that drives us to over-consume.

Enjoy, add your voice to the conversation via the comment box below, and please share – that's how we spread our message and spread our roots.

Links

All the citations for How Not to Diet

Buy How Not to Diet on Amazon

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The Plant Yourself Podcast theme music, “Dance of Peace (Sabali Don),” is generously provided by Will Ridenour,