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Why Diets Fail (Because You're Addicted to Sugar): Science Explains How to End Cravings, Lose Weight, and Get Healthy
This revolutionary eating plan reveals definitive proof that sugar is addictive, and presents the first science-based program to cut out the sugar, stop the cravings that cause most diets to eventually fail, and lose weight--permanently.
If you’re like most people, you’ve tried a few (or maybe many) different diets without success. The truth is, most diets work for a while, but there’s usually a point at which the dietary restrictions become too difficult to maintain. Why? Because whether you’re following a low-carb, paleo, gluten-free, or even an all-liquid green juice diet, the addictive nature of sugar causes cravings to take over and sabotage your diet-of-the-moment.
In Why Diets Fail , Dr. Nicole M. Avena and John R. Talbott reveal definitive proof that sugar is addictive and present the first science-based program to stop the cravings and lose weight—permanently. A neuroscientist and food addiction expert, Dr. Avena has conducted groundbreaking research showing that sugar triggers the same responses in the brain as addictive drugs like cocaine, nicotine, and alcohol. And like those other substances, the more sugar you eat, the more you need to get the same pleasurable feelings. (No wonder your last diet didn’t stick.)
Avena and Talbott’s eight-step plan walks you through the process of going sugar-free and surviving the make-or-break withdrawal period—those first few weeks when your body feels the absence of its favorite sweetener most acutely. An easy-to-use Sugar Equivalency Table developed by Talbott lists the amount of sugar in hundreds of common foods so you know precisely what to eat and what to avoid. And when it comes to what you can eat, you have a lot to choose from. In fact, you’ll probably eat more on this diet than you normally do—while continuing to lose weight.
This science-based program is the diet to end all diets. It will help you break the yo-yo dieting cycle, end those maddening sugar cravings, and develop a new longing for the good food that will keep you fit, healthy, and happy.
If you’re like most people, you’ve tried a few (or maybe many) different diets without success. The truth is, most diets work for a while, but there’s usually a point at which the dietary restrictions become too difficult to maintain. Why? Because whether you’re following a low-carb, paleo, gluten-free, or even an all-liquid green juice diet, the addictive nature of sugar causes cravings to take over and sabotage your diet-of-the-moment.
In Why Diets Fail , Dr. Nicole M. Avena and John R. Talbott reveal definitive proof that sugar is addictive and present the first science-based program to stop the cravings and lose weight—permanently. A neuroscientist and food addiction expert, Dr. Avena has conducted groundbreaking research showing that sugar triggers the same responses in the brain as addictive drugs like cocaine, nicotine, and alcohol. And like those other substances, the more sugar you eat, the more you need to get the same pleasurable feelings. (No wonder your last diet didn’t stick.)
Avena and Talbott’s eight-step plan walks you through the process of going sugar-free and surviving the make-or-break withdrawal period—those first few weeks when your body feels the absence of its favorite sweetener most acutely. An easy-to-use Sugar Equivalency Table developed by Talbott lists the amount of sugar in hundreds of common foods so you know precisely what to eat and what to avoid. And when it comes to what you can eat, you have a lot to choose from. In fact, you’ll probably eat more on this diet than you normally do—while continuing to lose weight.
This science-based program is the diet to end all diets. It will help you break the yo-yo dieting cycle, end those maddening sugar cravings, and develop a new longing for the good food that will keep you fit, healthy, and happy.
230 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2013
56 people are currently reading
179 people want to read
About the author
Nicole M. Avena
8 books8 followersDr. Nicole Avena is an Associate Professor of Neuroscience at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, and a Visiting Professor of Health Psychology at Princeton University. She is a research neuroscientist and expert in the fields of nutrition, diet and addiction, with a special focus on nutrition during early life and pregnancy, and women’s health. She has done groundbreaking work developing models to characterize food addition and the dangers of excess sugar intake. Her research achievements have been honored by awards from several groups including the New York Academy of Sciences, the American Psychological Association, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. In addition to over 100 peer-reviewed scholarly publications, Dr. Avena has written several popular books, including Why Diets Fail: Because You’re Addicted to Sugar, What to Eat When You’re Pregnant, What to Feed Your Baby and Toddler and What to Eat When You Want to Get Pregnant. Her latest book, Sugarless, covers the latest science on sugar addiction and how to overcome it. It will be released in December, 2023, and it is available now for preorder. She frequently appears as a science expert in the media, including regular appearances on Good Day NY, The Doctors, and the former Dr. Oz Show as well as many news programs. Her work has been featured in Time Magazine, Bloomberg Business Week, The New York Times, and many other periodicals. Dr. Avena is a member of the Penguin Random House Speakers Bureau. She has the #2 most watched TED-ED Health talk, How Sugar Affects Your Brain, with over 17 million views and counting.
You can find her on social media @drnicoleavena IG, Facebook, LinkedIn
You can find her on social media @drnicoleavena IG, Facebook, LinkedIn
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
December 31, 2013
So many thoughts about this book. I should preface this review by saying that I am a Nutritional Sciences graduate student so I come at this book a little differently than many people. I don't have my degree yet though so I'm simply writing my review of this based on what I've learned so far and my own experiences.
I am a big believer that added sugars are the biggest dietary problem in American today so I was excited to read this book. I went into it thinking that it referred to added sugars, but was disappointed to find that that wasn't the case. In the end this is simple another low-carb diet marketing itself under the in-vogue hatred of added sugars. Not to mention that this book often uses the term "sugar" to encompass all carbohydrates which often left me shaking my head in confusion.
But let's get into some of the nitty gritty points here. First, let's talk about what I liked about the book. I liked that it was written by someone who successfully lost weight using this plan and a trained medical professional. I liked their timeline for implementing their plan. There's a suggested amount of time for each of the steps, but the plan encourages you to use your own judgement and take more time if you feel you are struggling. And I liked how they marketed it as a complete lifestyle change rather than a diet and their tips for maintaining the weight loss, sticking to the plan, and how to recover if you fall off the wagon. All of those tips were reasonable and could apply to any type of dietary change.
Second, we'll move on to what I didn't like. I completely believe the science behind people being addicted to food, especially foods with so much sugar. But I question how many people have such an extreme addiction to sugar that they need to give up pretty much all carbohydrates. My gut tells me that it's a very small percentage of the population. Additionally throughout the book they talk about people who are addicted and people who've had success implementing the plan, but who are these people? In the back there are two blogs by former "food addicts" and if that's who they're referring to I'm kind of appalled. As for their success rate as someone who's used to reading peer reviewed studies I get that this is different, but I still would have liked to have heard more about it.
One of their arguments is that leptin and insulin (two digestive hormones) interact with the same area of the brain as dopamine (a neurotransmitter connected to pleasure and things like drug addiction). When people gain weight the body becomes resistant to the messages leptin and insulin send the brain meaning you don't get the same sense of fullness you normally would. I didn't quite understand their argument since if your brain is resistant to leptin and insulin why does it matter if it's the same being affected as dopamine? But, they didn't go into a lot of detail, probably because it's not important to the layperson, so perhaps I'm just not getting the full picture.
But the bottom line to me, while reading, is would I ever want to follow this diet or recommend it to a client? My answer is a resounding no. Why? First, until I see research telling me otherwise I don't believe such drastic measures are necessary for a large percentage of the population. In my opinion the average person would be alienated and ultimately set themselves up for failure by trying to stick to such an extremely limited plan. Second, after reading the entire book I still don't understand what I would eat. As someone who eats a healthy, well rounded diet I understand that this book isn't aimed at me, but sometimes I eat too much sugar, especially coming off the holiday season, so I wouldn't mind cutting back, but they gave one example of a meal plan and it didn't sound too appetizing. Not to mention for someone who doesn't like to eat a lot of meat the options are extremely limited. Third, I just don't see this as being feasible for most people. The average person, single or married, with kids or without, doesn't have a lot of time and this plan to me screams time consuming. I do think eating healthy takes time and effort, but not in this extreme of a way.
By far the worst part of this book to me was when a chapter opened with a Gwyneth Paltrow quote! A Gwyneth Paltrow quote! Seriously? You want me to take your science book seriously and you're quoting Gwyneth Paltrow? In my head I joked that they could have at least picked a celebrity who struggled with their weight. Then a few chapter later they opened with a Carnie Wilson quote and that wasn't any better. So basically no celebrity quotes in science books any more. Please.
I received an electronic review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
I am a big believer that added sugars are the biggest dietary problem in American today so I was excited to read this book. I went into it thinking that it referred to added sugars, but was disappointed to find that that wasn't the case. In the end this is simple another low-carb diet marketing itself under the in-vogue hatred of added sugars. Not to mention that this book often uses the term "sugar" to encompass all carbohydrates which often left me shaking my head in confusion.
But let's get into some of the nitty gritty points here. First, let's talk about what I liked about the book. I liked that it was written by someone who successfully lost weight using this plan and a trained medical professional. I liked their timeline for implementing their plan. There's a suggested amount of time for each of the steps, but the plan encourages you to use your own judgement and take more time if you feel you are struggling. And I liked how they marketed it as a complete lifestyle change rather than a diet and their tips for maintaining the weight loss, sticking to the plan, and how to recover if you fall off the wagon. All of those tips were reasonable and could apply to any type of dietary change.
Second, we'll move on to what I didn't like. I completely believe the science behind people being addicted to food, especially foods with so much sugar. But I question how many people have such an extreme addiction to sugar that they need to give up pretty much all carbohydrates. My gut tells me that it's a very small percentage of the population. Additionally throughout the book they talk about people who are addicted and people who've had success implementing the plan, but who are these people? In the back there are two blogs by former "food addicts" and if that's who they're referring to I'm kind of appalled. As for their success rate as someone who's used to reading peer reviewed studies I get that this is different, but I still would have liked to have heard more about it.
One of their arguments is that leptin and insulin (two digestive hormones) interact with the same area of the brain as dopamine (a neurotransmitter connected to pleasure and things like drug addiction). When people gain weight the body becomes resistant to the messages leptin and insulin send the brain meaning you don't get the same sense of fullness you normally would. I didn't quite understand their argument since if your brain is resistant to leptin and insulin why does it matter if it's the same being affected as dopamine? But, they didn't go into a lot of detail, probably because it's not important to the layperson, so perhaps I'm just not getting the full picture.
But the bottom line to me, while reading, is would I ever want to follow this diet or recommend it to a client? My answer is a resounding no. Why? First, until I see research telling me otherwise I don't believe such drastic measures are necessary for a large percentage of the population. In my opinion the average person would be alienated and ultimately set themselves up for failure by trying to stick to such an extremely limited plan. Second, after reading the entire book I still don't understand what I would eat. As someone who eats a healthy, well rounded diet I understand that this book isn't aimed at me, but sometimes I eat too much sugar, especially coming off the holiday season, so I wouldn't mind cutting back, but they gave one example of a meal plan and it didn't sound too appetizing. Not to mention for someone who doesn't like to eat a lot of meat the options are extremely limited. Third, I just don't see this as being feasible for most people. The average person, single or married, with kids or without, doesn't have a lot of time and this plan to me screams time consuming. I do think eating healthy takes time and effort, but not in this extreme of a way.
By far the worst part of this book to me was when a chapter opened with a Gwyneth Paltrow quote! A Gwyneth Paltrow quote! Seriously? You want me to take your science book seriously and you're quoting Gwyneth Paltrow? In my head I joked that they could have at least picked a celebrity who struggled with their weight. Then a few chapter later they opened with a Carnie Wilson quote and that wasn't any better. So basically no celebrity quotes in science books any more. Please.
I received an electronic review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
December 29, 2013
I'm really interested in sugar addiction, so I had high hopes for this book. But its just "meh." While they get the science right, they don't offer a lot of helpful advice (at least in my opinion) about kicking the sugar habit. Basically they just keep repeating "Cutting out sugar is hard. Cutting out sugar is hard." Not to sound like a teenager in the early-90s, but no duh. If you're interested in food and specifically the dangers of sugar, stick with Gary Taubes.
August 14, 2019
So, I’m pretty sure this guy wants me to give up carbs. While I agree that added sugar is the primary dietary issue facing Americans today, a life without ALL carbs seems like a very sad thing indeed. Does this guy think we’re all tigers or something?
I just can’t get excited about a life full of steaks and bacon, so I quit about 30% in and decided I’d read enough self-help books for one summer.
I just can’t get excited about a life full of steaks and bacon, so I quit about 30% in and decided I’d read enough self-help books for one summer.
March 21, 2016
Spoiler alert:
Why do diets fail? Because diets are generally periods of restricted eating. Because we have developed addictive behaviors in how we relate to food. Because we treat our discomforts by eating. Because the foods we tend to like and thus eat a lot of, aren't good for us but the foods that are good for us don't inspire the same kinds of food urges.
I liked the premise of the book but the practical applications - the recommended foods, I didn't agree with. Basically, this book prescribes a Paleo-type diet, which I think is healthy but I don't agree with the heavy emphasis on meat and dairy that it suggests. I saw a lot of cheese and milk in the recommendations, I saw kidney beans appear on a list of foods to eat with moderation.
So I had some mixed feelings about this book and the practical tips didn't really work for me.
3/5 stars
Why do diets fail? Because diets are generally periods of restricted eating. Because we have developed addictive behaviors in how we relate to food. Because we treat our discomforts by eating. Because the foods we tend to like and thus eat a lot of, aren't good for us but the foods that are good for us don't inspire the same kinds of food urges.
I liked the premise of the book but the practical applications - the recommended foods, I didn't agree with. Basically, this book prescribes a Paleo-type diet, which I think is healthy but I don't agree with the heavy emphasis on meat and dairy that it suggests. I saw a lot of cheese and milk in the recommendations, I saw kidney beans appear on a list of foods to eat with moderation.
So I had some mixed feelings about this book and the practical tips didn't really work for me.
3/5 stars
January 10, 2019
This book simply repeats itself again and again. Like many other books, it emphasizes the addictive nature of sugary foods (almost to the point of beating a dead horse) with a little scientific evidence scattered here and there. Its one redeeming quality is that it reads as more of a workbook that includes “food for thought” sections for the reader to reflect on their own diet. For someone who’s never read a single book or article about the impact of sugar on the diet, maybe this book is monumental, but as someone with a degree in nutrition science, I was underwhelmed and learned nothing new from this read.
February 10, 2021
It's a great book for a beginner into ideal ways to eat. I did love the way they categorize common foods in a sugar equivalency table. If you are looking for a practical step by step method to end your addiction to sugar, this book has some great practical steps.
September 30, 2019
This book is a bit repetitive but a good look at the good industry.
January 2, 2022
Excellent books
August 19, 2019
It has been a journey to read this book. I am glad I finally finished it. Although I have started many of the tips before I finished the book, I still learned a lot from this book. It has been a journey for me to get away from sugar. I am much closer today than I was five years ago. I am excited to continue this process with a different mindset. I didn't necessarily enjoy all the information in the book, but the information I think will help me kick sugars once and for all.
February 12, 2015
This is a good book explaining the science of sugar & starch addiction, how to go through withdrawal, different techniques for reducing sugar intake (cold turkey vs. moderation, etc.), recommitment after relapses, navigating social and societal pressures to eat sugars, and ideas for maintenance. I like that it's not solely focused on weight loss but also on health, though be warned that weight loss and dieting are definitely (and probably pretty obviously) an emphasis. I like that it's not a narrow "eat on this plan" sort of diet book, because those are always pointless to me. I don't need new recipes — I need to know how the foods I already eat fit in (or don't, or can be modified) with the overarching plan, and this book does a good job of explaining that.
I appreciated the no-nonsense, tough-love approach. You can tell the author is science-minded and not trying to sell you something. I hate diet books that read like infomercials; this one is just straightforward.
One helpful feature in the appendix is a list of foods (including name-brand and fast foods) and their sugar equivalency (0-100). It makes it pretty easy to see at a glance which foods are low in sugars (e.g., meats, vegetables, dairy) and which aren't (e.g., grains, cereals, desserts — duh) and can help you make smarter choices in in-between categories such as fruits and nuts. I'd have liked more guidance than the book gave (0-5 ok, 5-10 restrict, 10+ greatly restrict or avoid) on how to choose mid-level foods from the chart. For instance, is there a suggested daily limit of 5-10 foods or weekly limit of 10+ foods? You're supposed to be able to download the table from the site (whydietsfailbook . com), but I don't see it there — maybe it was recently redesigned. I'm going to look for a similar phone app, because that would be handy when out and about if I have questions about foods.
I appreciated the no-nonsense, tough-love approach. You can tell the author is science-minded and not trying to sell you something. I hate diet books that read like infomercials; this one is just straightforward.
One helpful feature in the appendix is a list of foods (including name-brand and fast foods) and their sugar equivalency (0-100). It makes it pretty easy to see at a glance which foods are low in sugars (e.g., meats, vegetables, dairy) and which aren't (e.g., grains, cereals, desserts — duh) and can help you make smarter choices in in-between categories such as fruits and nuts. I'd have liked more guidance than the book gave (0-5 ok, 5-10 restrict, 10+ greatly restrict or avoid) on how to choose mid-level foods from the chart. For instance, is there a suggested daily limit of 5-10 foods or weekly limit of 10+ foods? You're supposed to be able to download the table from the site (whydietsfailbook . com), but I don't see it there — maybe it was recently redesigned. I'm going to look for a similar phone app, because that would be handy when out and about if I have questions about foods.
September 15, 2014
First, let me advise that I am a former research grad student of Princeton University and heard about the author Dr. Avena while she was discovering many of the actual scientific explanations written about in this book at Princeton dating back to 2001-2002.
After reading this book I was glad to have finally read one whose author has actually done the scientific research to justify their claims which can be found in many scientific journals for those of you who reviewed this book and claim to be students of nutrition, etc.
Thankfully she wrote this book to appeal to the less scientific-minded individual (which includes 98% of the population) and I think that was achieved.
Additionally when reading some of the bizarre reviews of this book I couldn't help but think that people are prone to believe, and now consider experts, individuals who read others papers and research and include them in their books.
It's like writing about how someone else would fix your car and claiming you were a mechanic. Or writing about how to properly fly a plane when you've never flown one. That's the correlation I get and find completely unnerving that science is superseded by journalism and theory.
Great book and hope their is more to come from authors with actual scientific and medical research backgrounds.
After reading this book I was glad to have finally read one whose author has actually done the scientific research to justify their claims which can be found in many scientific journals for those of you who reviewed this book and claim to be students of nutrition, etc.
Thankfully she wrote this book to appeal to the less scientific-minded individual (which includes 98% of the population) and I think that was achieved.
Additionally when reading some of the bizarre reviews of this book I couldn't help but think that people are prone to believe, and now consider experts, individuals who read others papers and research and include them in their books.
It's like writing about how someone else would fix your car and claiming you were a mechanic. Or writing about how to properly fly a plane when you've never flown one. That's the correlation I get and find completely unnerving that science is superseded by journalism and theory.
Great book and hope their is more to come from authors with actual scientific and medical research backgrounds.
January 29, 2014
Very disappointing. I'm open to considering the possibility of using "addiction" as a way to look at what high sugar consumption does to the brain, but this book did a poor job of explaining it. fMRI imaging and saying things like "can overlap with areas that are activated in drug use" just doesn't give us much info or much reason for the other, emphatic statements in the book (and on the cover!) And THEN the authors do a crazy bait-and-switch, telling us how much sugar is bad, how awful drinking a Coke is, and then suddenly tacking on "and other carbohydrates." This eating plan is very, very , very carbohydrate-restrictive, and we are given NO good reasons or evidence why brown rice is as bad as a Twinkie. None. But we have to get rid of it, totally, anyway? The book CLAIMS it has "vegetarian" options, but that consists of ONE page--about 3/4 of a page, actually. And I'm VEGAN. Basically on this plan I could eat spinach. Broccoli. That's about it. Crazy. It tells a few anecdotes, especially one of the co-authors, who did this and lost tons of weight, but I'm unconvinced this will help me avoid heart disease, colon cancer and other hereditary problems I may be subject to. Not a good job at all.
August 6, 2016
I have struggled with sugar in my diet for decades. Several times, I've been able to kick the habit completely, often for months at a time. But somehow, sugar insidiously sneaks back in -- sometimes because of social pressure (holiday eating), but more frequently lately due to a heavy travel schedule. I've often wondered why I can't eat just one cookie and be satisfied. It's like once the floodgates open, kapowee. I'm trapped again.
This book explains why and how sugar is addictive -- not just emotionally, but also biologically. The authors give scientific evidence proving why it's so hard to get off sugar, and how sugar is found is so many of our modern foods.
Admittedly, a lot of the information in the book is not new, especially if you've been reading about nutrition for years. However, the addiction slant is really helpful. It makes an excellent companion book to such classics as Daniel Amen's work (Change Your Brain, Change Your Life), Magic Foods, and Sugar Blues.
I respected this book so much that as soon as I finished it, I immediately bought a copy of his previous book about Survival Investing for my Kindle.
This book explains why and how sugar is addictive -- not just emotionally, but also biologically. The authors give scientific evidence proving why it's so hard to get off sugar, and how sugar is found is so many of our modern foods.
Admittedly, a lot of the information in the book is not new, especially if you've been reading about nutrition for years. However, the addiction slant is really helpful. It makes an excellent companion book to such classics as Daniel Amen's work (Change Your Brain, Change Your Life), Magic Foods, and Sugar Blues.
I respected this book so much that as soon as I finished it, I immediately bought a copy of his previous book about Survival Investing for my Kindle.
March 11, 2023
This is not just about why diets fail. It is promoting a specific low sugar, low carb diet. Some of the suggestions are great: make your choice of foods a lifelong lifestyle change rather than a temporary alteration, eliminate sugary drinks, and eliminate junk food. However, some of their suggestions are just not healthy and not supported by science.
They lost me when they advocated eliminating ALL carbs, including whole grains and beans, and suggested replacing pasta with a bun-free hot dog instead of substituting a whole grain or bean pasta for the refined white flour pasta. How is a hot dog healthy? They also ignored high salt content and not only ignored fat content, but encouraged saturated fat content.
They lost me when they advocated eliminating ALL carbs, including whole grains and beans, and suggested replacing pasta with a bun-free hot dog instead of substituting a whole grain or bean pasta for the refined white flour pasta. How is a hot dog healthy? They also ignored high salt content and not only ignored fat content, but encouraged saturated fat content.
January 31, 2014
I thought that this book was more focused on carbohydrate restriction than on breaking sugar addictions. I got the message that quitting sugar is hard, but I wanted more solutions to breaking the cycle. Perhaps I was again looking for the easy solution. In fact there is no easy way to lose weight. Other diets have proven that carb restriction usually suppresses cravings and the weight loss and health benefits have been widely publicized. I just didn't see much new in this approach. It wasn't badly written, didn't talk down to the reader, but just go in aware that carb restriction is the end goal.
*I received my copy from NetGalley.com in exchange for an honest review.
*I received my copy from NetGalley.com in exchange for an honest review.
July 23, 2016
Everybody should read this book.
it felt like the book was written for me personally, and I know many readers will identify with it.
The ideas and premise of the book made such sense and prompted me to make significant changes in my life. It's been a week since I finished the book and I have significantly decreased my sugar intake while increasing fruit and vegetable intake. And I can already tell the difference. It's not going to be easy to wean myself off the sugar and junk food completely, but with this book I have the tools and the motivation to continue.
it felt like the book was written for me personally, and I know many readers will identify with it.
The ideas and premise of the book made such sense and prompted me to make significant changes in my life. It's been a week since I finished the book and I have significantly decreased my sugar intake while increasing fruit and vegetable intake. And I can already tell the difference. It's not going to be easy to wean myself off the sugar and junk food completely, but with this book I have the tools and the motivation to continue.
January 3, 2014
Finished this book last week and started cutting out sugar related foods yesterday and already feel better. This book was a down to earth read that even I could understand. I liked how it flowed and the suggestions it gave to start a new lifestyle not just another fad diet. I think I will be able to get through the difficult withdrawal symptoms this time knowing now what to expect. Wish me luck and great book.
January 3, 2014
I loved this book. I was waiting for something like this to come along. I have known for some time that I am addicted to sugar, but this book made me realize that it isn't my fault. Addiction to food can lead to overeating, and that is what makes it so hard to lost weight and stay on a diet. I found the book to be well written and fun. It takes a lot of science talk and puts it in a way that is easy to follow, and useful. I am glad that I read this, and I think it will change my life.
August 5, 2016
This book's central theme is to remove sugar from one's dietary intake. In addition, they made the point that such changes should not be a "diet" but a life style change on permanent basis. Despite the title, this is not a scientific inquiry into the reasons for the failure of dietary intervention, instead, it is an advocacy and self-help for a low-sugar diet. The scientific evidences and commentaries are thin and shallow, nothing above and beyond Taube's and other more systematic books.
September 15, 2014
Great book and well written. I'm fairly new to this forum but thought some of the negative reviews about were a little bitter sounding considering what the book was about, helping people.
Overall the thoughts posted were good though.
Guess you cant please everyone and you know what they say...those who can't, teach and those who can't teach criticize. Look forward to being apart of the group.
Overall the thoughts posted were good though.
Guess you cant please everyone and you know what they say...those who can't, teach and those who can't teach criticize. Look forward to being apart of the group.
October 29, 2015
No help at all. I've had much better luck with books talking about addiction in general. Stop eating sweets and simple carbohydrates? Oh really? I surely had no idea before you've enlightened me. Of course I've never tried that before - why, the idea never came into my mind! And it's so easy to do, too - you just need to hear it from the author and then bingo, you've stopped, you're happy and thin.
Urrgh. I pity the time wasted on reading that piece of rubbish.
Urrgh. I pity the time wasted on reading that piece of rubbish.
June 23, 2014
Not much new in this book if you have read anything in this genre, just the general rant against sugar (and grains in a lesser sense). Not as scientific as other books, could have benefitted from more statistics and cold hard facts. Writing style was okay, but nothing special and not very engaging. The suggested steps were cliche. An okay book.
June 23, 2014
One more sugar is the issue diet book
One more sugar is the issue diet book
Easy to read, well written and researched. Nothing new, we all need to eat less sugar. Now I need to follow the doctors direction.
One more sugar is the issue diet book
Easy to read, well written and researched. Nothing new, we all need to eat less sugar. Now I need to follow the doctors direction.
July 15, 2015
I thought this book had a lot of good information for those us not intimately aware of the effects of drug use on the brain or of the science behind how we process food. I found it a fascinating read and it helped me come to a lot of helpful (and I hope transformative) conclusions.
January 13, 2015
This was a small book but still more than was needed to cover this topic. It was all good information but ultimately, sugar is addictive, it's hard to stop eating, but when you do there many health benefits to be had.
September 1, 2014
Not much news here, and pretty basic.
September 7, 2014
very useful book
did-not-finish
February 23, 2015I thought that it was a very bland book. I didn't enjoy it enough to finish it. I didn't think it was that great of information provided either.
March 7, 2016
A great book for anyone wanting to kick their sugar addiction. Very informative and has a helpful chart to help readers gradually wean themselves off sugar and sugar leaden products.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews