Change Your Diet, Change Your Mind: A Powerful Plan to Improve Mood, Overcome Anxiety and Protect Memory for a Lifetime of Optimal Mental Health

by Dr Georgia Ede

Are you struggling with attention problems, mood swings, food obsession, or depression? Whatever the issue, you have far more control than you realize. In Change Your Diet, Change Your Mind, Dr Georgia Ede reveals that the most powerful way to change brain chemistry is with food - because that's where brain chemicals come from in the first place.

In this provocative, illuminating guide, Dr Ede explains why nearly everything we think we know about brain-healthy diets is wrong. The truth is that meat is not dangerous, vegan diets are not healthier, and antioxidants are not the answer. Change Your Diet, Change Your Mind will empower you

- Understand how unscientific research drives fickle news headlines and dietary guidance

- Evaluate yourself for signs of insulin resistance - the silent metabolic disease that robs your brain of energy

- Improve your mental health with a personalized plan to suit your own food preferences and health goals

Drawing on a wide range of scientific disciplines, including biochemistry, neuroscience, and botany, Dr Ede will ignite your curiosity about the fascinating world of food and its role in nourishing, protecting, and energizing your brain.

PLEASE This title comes with an accompanying PDF.

Genres: Health, Nonfiction, Nutrition, Mental Health, Food, Self Help, Science

Audible Audio

Published January 30, 2024

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the author made some helpful points about diet, I struggle to put faith into someone who says there is only one correct way of eating. She is REALLY all about the meat eating. I started to wonder if she was getting paid by meat industry lobbyists. She has absolutely nothing bad to say about meat. She writes nothing about the negative environmental impact of animal agriculture, the deforestation, the pollution, the greenhouse emissions. She doesn't go into the horrific living conditions of the animals on factory farms. I started thinking about the Barbra Kingsolver memoir Animal Vegetable Miracle, where she moves her family to a small farm and they start to grow all their own food - the animals that they slaughter themselves and the vegetables. That is healthy meat grown in a healthy environment. The animal isn't pumped full of hormones and chemicals and slaughtered inhumanely. Sadly, that is not the kind of meat most people eat. And of course she does not mention the people who have moral issues against eating flesh. I'm not a vegan or a vegetarian. I do eat meat. However, I don't eat almost exclusively meat which is what the book promotes. I also kept thinking, dang what is her grocery bill for all that meat?

She writes about how nutritional advice has changed over the years and how we are always learning more. Yet somehow now the buck stops here and her advice is 100% correct? Why are you right and other people wrong? She doesn't prove to me that she is the true path. I got a real cherry picking evidence vibe from the book.

This book basically got me really confused and frustrated and unsure of who to believe or how I should eat. Her diet suggestions don't seem feasible long term. I just want to eat one way for the rest of my life, not be hopping on and off of hyper specific diets you cannot do forever. I thought of those 100+ aged elderly people who when asked how they have lived so long, give wildly different answers. "I drank a glass of wine every day!" "I never touched a drop of alcohol!" "I ate a candy bar every day!" I only sleep 5 hours a night!" Etc. Different strokes for different folks, ya know?

I did appreciate her discussion of processed foods. She was preaching to the choir but I still learned things. Ok, so maybe this is the food advice everyone can follow? Don't have the majority of the food you eat be ultra processed. (She of course, says no processed food ever but she also says no fruits or veggies or dairy or nuts or grain or desserts. It's meat and eggs only, baby! She begrudgingly lists a few "ok" fruits and veggies if you must insist on eating them.) The rise of foods that our ancestors wouldn't recognize is disturbing. The fact that the vast majority of food that people eat is ultra processed is creepy and sad.

I am going to take some of her advice to heart. I do need to eat more protein and less carbs and balance my diet more. It makes me cranky to know that because I like carbs. They are so yummy! And I like sugar! Also yummy! Again, I cannot go cold turkey the rest of my life like she suggests doing but I should stay aware of hidden sugars and make sure I keep my intake low. I don't drink sugary drinks, just water, so that helps. And if you don't eat much processed foods, that too will cut down on sugar. I 100% do not agree with her that the sugars in fruits are bad. Dude, chill out.

Quotes I might want to reference in the future:

If your diet is too high in linoleic acid, you may have more trouble making the omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA, which could make you more prone to chronic inflammation (DHA helps resolve inflammation in the brain, and EPA helps resolve inflammation in the rest of the body).No! Nuts and tofu have linoleic acid! Sob

Sugary instant oatmeal breakfast triggers a dramatic rise in adrenaline-much higher than steel-cut oatmeal -even though both meals contained the same amount of carbohydrate...Since it takes nearly five hours for these sugar-driven adrenaline waves to wash over you, it's not always easy to make the connection between how you feel and what you ate and drank so much earlier.

insulin spikes puts you on a hormonal roller coaster all day long and well into the night that can have a profound impact on your mood, energy, sleep and appetite

Continuous glucose monitoring measures your glucose around the clock using a painless sensor patch that adheres to the surface of your skin. Each patch lasts for ten to fourteen days. CGMs are available without a prescription in Canada and many European countries, but in the United States, they still require a prescription and aren't usually covered by insurance. A single patch will give you up to two weeks worth of valuable insight into your metabolism. This is the 3rd book I have read suggesting you wear one of these to figure out your insulin.

Mild hypoglycemia: Glucose levels between 55 and 69 mg fall into a gray area because some people tolerate them well and others don't. If your glucose falls into this range and you experience any symptoms of hypoglycemia, such as anxiety, nausea, shaking, sweating, dizziness, headache, hunger, racing heart, confusion, or poor coordination, drink 1 tablespoon of fruit juice, recheck your glucose in 15 minutes, and consult a health professional. This is 100% me if I eat certain foods. UGH.

Sometimes people experience symptoms that feel like hypoglycemia even though their blood glucose hasn't fallen below 70 mg/dl. In most people, symptoms of "hypoglycemia" don't occur because glucose is too low; they occur because glucose is falling too fast or from too great a height, causing their stress hormones to overreact. overreact. In these cases, the symptoms aren't being caused by low blood sugar; they are caused by stress hormones the body releases to prevent low blood sugar. This protective hormonal reaction is fairly common and usually means that there are too many refined carbohydrates or too much carbohydrate in general in your diet for your metabolism to safely handle. If this happens to you, have something to eat so you'll feel better, but consider changing your diet to prevent it from happening again. Or maybe this is me!? I gotta get one of those monitors to figure it out. No! Not my carbs!!!

Your morning fasting glucose (before you've had anything to eat or drink except water) should be no higher than 99 mg/dI (between 70 and 85 is ideal). If your morning fasting glucose is too high, you may have eaten too much carbohydrate the day before or eaten too close to bedtime the night before. Aim to spend most of your day between about 70 mg/dl and 100 mg/dl. Keep your glucose below 125 mg/dl at all times, including 1-2 hours after meals, when it tends to be at its highest.

There is no single direct test for insulin resistance, so doctors use a combination of three simple blood tests-fasting insulin, fasting lipids (cholesterol and triglycerides), and fasting glucose--to estimate where you stand on the insulin resistance spectrum.

A staggering 81 percent of people with Alzheimer's disease have insulin resistance. Furthermore, the younger you are when you are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, the greater your risk of developing Alzheimer's as you age. AAAGGGHHHH

Beano®, an over-the-counter anti-gas remedy, contains the same enzyme that your colon bacteria make, so if you swallow this enzyme before you eat beans, it will break the starches down into sugars in your upper intestine where they can be absorbed.

All plant foods contain lectins, but the highest concentrations are found in kidney beans, fava beans, peanuts (which are technically legumes), peas, soybeans, and wheat.Lectins have been shown in laboratory studies to damage human intestinal cells and in animal studies to poke holes in their intestinal linings, leading researchers to speculate about whether they could contribute to increased intestinal permeability (aka "leaky gut"') in living humans Peanut butter! Bread! Tofu! I am grasping onto that word "speculate". So not proven!


Researchers at UCLA found that approximately 15 percent of healthy blood donors tested positive for antibodies to lectins from wheat, kidney beans, peanuts, peas, soybeans, and lentils. The fact that lectins can trigger your body to produce antibodies lends support to the theory that lectin-rich seed foods may help pave a path to autoimmune diseases- THEORY not FACT. Just like the theory of eggs being super bad for you and this author LOVES eggs.

People with autism spectrum disorder and bipolar disorder are more likely to have antibodies against gluten-derived peptides (incompletely digested protein fragments) in their bloodstream than those in the general population. There are published case reports of people with autism improving on gluten-free diets and several studies suggesting that wheat can contribute to depression and anxiety symptoms in some people. Improving how? "Suggesting". "Some people". No 100% this is a fact comments.

All red meat, seafood, poultry, and eggs are permitted. They must be free of starchy coatings, thickened gravies, sweetened sauces, sweetened marinades, and sugary rubs. So basically plain meat and eggs are the only thing 100% good for you, hmmmmm.

Carbohydrate tolerance varies greatly from one person to the next, but most of us now have some degree of insulin resistance and can't safely process the amount of carbohydrate in a "normal" diet. (The U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommend that 45 to 65 percent of your calories come from carbohydrate, which on a 2,000 calorie per day diet translates to between 225 and 325 grams of carbohydrate per day.) She suggests that AT MOST you have 90g. Ooof. My plan is to aim for 50% of my macronutrients being carbs which, if my protein needs to be 72g based on my weight, I can have 144g. Hmmmm.

Blood Ketone Monitoring: The most accurate way to measure ketones is with a blood meter, which measures BHB. Choose a meter that measures both ketones and glucose, such as the Keto-Mojo GK+.) Testing requires that you prick your finger, measuring once a day is usually sufficient She is ALL ABOUT the keto diet

Taking a histamine neutralizing enzyme supplement (diamine oxidase or DAO for
short) before meals may help a histamine reaction. She says loads of people have this reaction. The internet says "it's important to note that histamine intolerance is relatively uncommon, affecting only a small percentage of the population"

Fasting drops insulin like a stone. Everything we eat raises insulin to some extent, so nothing lowers insulin more effectively than not eating at all. If you stray from your healthy eating plan and need to get your glucose and insulin levels back under control, fasting is the most efficient way to accomplish this. It is perfectly safe to go without food for fourteen hours I was imagining something much more extreme! If you finish dinner at 7pm & go to bed at 10pm without snacking and then eat breakfast at 9am that is fasting! That actually sounds doable.

whey protein powder spikes insulin almost as much as pure glucose does.Huh, who knew.

Caffeine stimulates the release of the stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol and 250+mg promote slightly higher glucose levels. It stimulates glutamate (the brain's "gas pedal" and dopamine activity, and suppresses GABA (the brain's calming neurotransmitter) and adenosine (a sleep-promoting neurotransmitor).This is why caffeine can make you feel positive and alert but also why it is such a common cause of insomnia and panic attacks. From the internet - A standard 8-ounce cup of brewed coffee typically contains about 95 mg. However, actual caffeine content can vary significantly, ranging from 70 to 140 mg per cup, depending on several factors. So one cup of coffee is fine. Why doesn't she say that?

It can take sixteen to twenty-four hours for caffeine to completely clear the bloodstream, so even a small quantity first thing in the morning can interfere with quality sleep in sensitive individuals. If you are a slow metabolizer, it can build up in your bloodstream over time and cause chronic anxiety and insomnia From the internet - Those with lower body weights may be more sensitive to caffeine's effects and potentially experience them for longer periods. This explains why my body flips our on strong coffee

Splurging on bananas, salty nuts, and roasted sweet potatoes is much safer and healthier than crossing the line into the toxic realm of cookies, ice cream, and chips. Toxic. Oh for Pete's sake. I bet she's a lot of fun at a party.

When you say no to cake, French fries, and candy bars, what are you saying yes to instead? Remind yourself of the goals you set out to accomplish and why they are important to you. Good advice about anything really. Instead of focusing on the no and what you can't have, focus on what you are saying yes to and what you will have by making the change.

[enchantingprose · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is impactful. I’ve read lots of mental health books, self help and psychology related books so let me tell you how impressed I am with this one. It’s a simple concept backed by extensive research. This author is so experienced in what she writes about that she made a complex book seem like reading a tabloid. The author breaks down the issues and in the end leaves you with specific and detailed steps to attain what she is claiming. She’s claiming that changing what you eat will eliminate your mental issues. Imagine years of depression, anxiety, mood swings all caused by the fact that you chose to eat what you wanted.

[Jeatherhane Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me almost a month to read this book and I have been driving my friends and family crazy talking about it. I love books that explain the science behind everyday things, and this one is very heavy on the science.

The first thing the author does in this book is to examine how we acquire our knowledge about nutrition. She questions the validity of many studies and claims that the “wisdom” that we have about food is not based in science. She breaks foods down into the macro and micro nutrients and gives an overview of the chemistry and biology happening at a cellular level in our bodies, in particular the cells in our brains.

In the end, the author champions a ketogenic diet and advocates eating meat over plants. She suggests that we don’t need to ingest carbohydrates at all, and that we especially need to avoid refined carbs. She goes as far as citing examples of such diet changes improving and even eliminating psychiatric problems.

While I don’t think I will be taking my diet to this extreme, reading this book has made me think about what I’m eating. I no longer eat whatever I see in front of me. I have almost completely cut out refined carbs. For me, knowing what effect something will have on my brain and body has helped me to make choices about what I eat.

Thank you @gcpbalance for the review copy and Hachette Audio for the advance listening copy.

[Justin Brummett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Change Your Diet Change Your Mind.
I thought it was a very interesting and informative book.
It explains how your diet affects your mental health as well as your physical health and the whys and what’s that do it. How foods can affect you positively and negatively.
There are also some meal plans and recipes.
I found it to be easy to comprehend and hope to put my newfound knowledge to use.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

April 2024- I have experienced a miraculous improvement in my mental health since implementing the suggestions from this book. In fact, I went from having panic attacks multiple times a month, to not one single panic attack since I started eating paleo/carnivore in January 2024. That’s a full three months panic attack free! I have tried SO many medications, therapies and treatments from both conventional and alternative approaches over the past couple decades and I have been in talk therapy for 13 years and no approaches have made a difference like this dietary change.
What has worked for me is eliminating all sugar, processed food, grains and most vegetables while still eating plenty of meat, eggs and some fermented dairy and a small amount of fruits like avocados and low GI fruits like berries. I have even been able to eat ‘normal’ on holidays without severe consequences, but if I fall off the plan for more than a few days, I start to feel my mental stability slip. I actually started eating carnivore in January and experienced a miraculous calming to my mood, and did some research and came across this book. It helped me understand WHY I have been feeling so much better, which I think is crucial for me to make this a long term commitment for my health. It also gave me recipes and some inspiring case studies. The author gives three levels to entry to try this diet: the Quiet diet (which is basically a paleo diet with a bit more restriction around certain vegetable and fruits and elimination of seed oils, and a consideration for staying moderate to low carb), Quiet Keto (which is a keto approach with high fat, super low carb and moderate protein) and lastly, Quiet Carnivore (which is an entirely animal based diet free of all plant foods).
Some days, I eat carnivore and some days I eat some plant foods. This book aided me in finding something that worked for me and understanding why it’s working.

A fantastic book. Well written. Well cited sources. Easy to follow. Not repetitive. I highly recommend this book.

UPDATE: Feb 2025. I wanted to update this review to reflect my experience with the recommendations from this book. While following the recommendations, I became pregnant on Oct of 2024. Once pregnant in the first trimester, I found that my body wasn’t liking the way I had been eating. I became very nauseous and couldn’t stomach as much meat, eggs and even felt averse to many of the foods that had been my staples. It became necessary to add more variety and more carbohydrates. I was very concerned that my mental health would decline, however, it did not. I have continued to have more stable moods, zero panic attacks and generally maintain or even improve on the progress I had made initially in Jan 2024. Perhaps something about the pregnancy hormones makes my body more able to handle variety and carbs in my diet. I added in some gluten free grains, legumes, nuts, fruits and veggies. I still do not eat sugar, seed oils, or processed foods except on rare occasions. I may return to eating as recommended by the book once I am no longer pregnant if I need to, but I am really enjoy having more variety and freedom in my diet at the moment. I added this update to show that I have retained the benefits I saw on the diet even after I stopped following it, and the knowledge I gained from the book is still very useful. I still highly recommend the book to anyone suffering from mental health challenges.

[Emily Stephens · Rating 2 out of 5]

Proceed with caution. I started this book, got most the way through and just stopped . I would not recommend the book for someone who has struggled or is struggling with disordered eating . Dr. Ede suggests that nearly all foods but animal foods (excluding dairy- dairy is also bad ) are bad for your mental health. Her least restrictive plan is quiet paleo - aka , paleo but with only a short list of vegetables and fruits, rather than any fruit and vegetable, which is what paleo normally recommends.

[Amy Labbe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this extremely informative and enjoyable to read. I loved the section "A guided tour through your brain," which included information on how psychiatric medications work and how nutrition affects this. I especially liked all of the discussion regarding meat and its importance in a species appropriate diet as I've followed a carnivore way of eating for several years.

[K S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone suffering from poor health or poor mental health due to metabolic dysfunction can benefit from this protocol. This gives hope that simple changes can have a huge impact on quality of life. The explanations are simple but thorough and well received by anyone who desires to know the science behind the “why” we should change our diet.

[Carissa Zaffiro · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a NYT rec on nutrition & mental health. Interesting brain science foundation, I just can't find myself trusting a scientist who points to scarce research and then spends so much time backing a specific diet. Especially when the diet is a carnivore diet!

[Mike Lisanke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book with a lot of science. Almost nothing went unexplained as just an author's opinion. And as my notes indicate, some of us geek out on biochemistry, and this author didn't shy from providing the biochemistry mechanisms in the explanation of why things helped or hurt us. I'm not one to take in recommendations (especially coaching/advice) ant this book does some of this (including meal planning tips/advice). To me, this is easy enough to skip when it becomes redundant (but this book doesn't go overboard on any thing that detracts from its main topic).

I highly recommend Ede's book and watching her videos.

[Gavin · Rating 1 out of 5]

The author has the academic chops to have written a much better book, one that doesn't put persuasion above information. This book falls into the category of MDs who have some born-again personal dietary moment and see an opportunity for personal brand building. I am open to having my mind changed, but not by such faulty, specious logic and serial anecdotes as this author rests on.

This book, in summary, says:
- Adopt a keto diet. The author recommends eating 100% meat.
- Sugar is bad for you.
- Plants (especially seeds) are trying to hurt you. 👀🤨 (Just wait until you hear her logic on this, summarized below.)
- Epidemiological studies are less reliable than double blind controlled studies.

The author isn't wrong that some cultures eat a lot of meat. But copying this diet without adopting the culture and lifestyle while also living in a different climate does not guarantee the same health outcomes. For a much better, more information-focused book on various cultural diets and lifestyles, I recommend The Lifeways of Hunter-Gatherers: The Foraging Spectrum by Robert L. Kelly.

There is some useful information here, like the omega 6 to 3 ratio. But there were many more cringe-worthy morsels laid out for the uncritical pop-diet audience, which twisted my insides and offended my brain. These included:

- Swiss cheese logic, such as:
1. As the body processes high blood sugar, it releases stress hormones.
2. This is like when a toddler reaches for candy on a shelf and his mom pulls him away for his own good.
3. This must stress the toddler.
4. Therefore, your body is telling you not to eat sugar.
5. Eating sugar is bad for you.

- Seed and plant oils are a super new human food (like 1960s) with an industrial/slavery legacy and to make them you need industrial chemical processes. BS. Olive oil amphoras at the bottom of the Mediterranean say otherwise. Also, making sesame oil just means grinding and straining the seeds.

- There is a lot of "we don't know about this, but it's very concerning" and "our ancestors ate this, so we should too." To some extent, I can appreciate that. But the wording is designed to all point in the same direction (aka cherry picking and pursuasion-based writing), so it doesn't give a full picture.

- Dr. Ede's questionnaire to self-diagnose for addictive sugar eating is basically, "do you feel tired or bad after eating?" That's not a very rigorous assessment.

- "There aren't any studies on this, but it's safe to say that plants don't make seeds with your health in mind" therefore don't eat seeds like grains, beans, coffee, or chocolate. 🤨

- "No self-respecting plant wants you to eat the rest of its body. So all vegetables - without exception - are trying to hurt you." Direct quote. 🙈 This is terribly flawed logic, especially in a book that tries to sell a 100% meat diet, presumably eating only animals that have evolved to want you to eat them and therefore aren't trying to hurt you. There is no discussion of the (actually interesting) chemical responses plants have to being eaten, which depend on time, how much is being eaten, who is doing the eating, what kind of plant, etc. Increasing tannins with increased grazing is one example, or cow saliva stimulating grass growth. And that's not even my main beef with the quote.

- "Mushrooms are technically not plants," which is like saying animals are technically not mushrooms. 😂 I mean, it's not wrong, but as this is the only thing she has to say about fungi, the reader can appreciate the book is mainly a keto club with which to bludgeon the reader and not a serious look at the many different things people eat.

In short, this is a diet fad book written by somebody who should know better. There is interesting new research and there are interesting lifestyle and dietary practices among various societies that could inform and influence people, but not if they are burried in a hyped up persuasion piece with arguments as weak as those above.

This book is just one more person shouting her opinions as loudly as she can, ensuring the public remains confusedly pong-ponging between dietary fads while increasing the mistrust of dietary science. It's the sort of flat-earther approach that questions the scientific consensus in the interests of giving people (some carefully curated, fringe) information so they can "make their own choice."

[Helena Raywood · Rating 2 out of 5]

As many have said this book covers the fundaments of a healthy diet and makes connections between food and mental health that are not widely discussed, however the author continually suggests there is not enough evidence or studies are not done to a sufficient standard to support well documented “healthy” diets - Mediterranean etc - yet puts stock in her own opinions about foods that have NO scientific studies backing them. I just can’t get behind the idea that legumes are poison, sorry. I feel this book encourages extremely disordered eating and food views. Maybe helpful if you are extremely unwell and have tried every other elimination diet, but not worth the risks for me.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is excellent. It's dense with the technical clinical references but it's comprehensive in the information it gives about how the body works, how the mind works and how they both team up to make you, you. The book, at the same time, is comprehensible, so that I can clearly understand what works and what doesn't work, what I can do to better my health, my brain, my mood, and so I could start right away to make changes that have helped me see good effects in myself and feeling better. I recommend this book to anyone.

[Mary Jackson _TheMaryReader · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very interesting and complex read. I learned so much and I am making a lot of changes. This is a must read and one that I plan to share with many friends.
The Mary Reader received this book from the publisher for review. A favorable review was not required, and all views expressed are our own.

[Patty Welsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a practicing LCSW, I appreciate that there is something for patients to try who either can’t tolerate psychiatric medications, or are reluctant to take medication. I have already been recommending this book to friends and family - excellent information!

[Erin Kerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing read, packed with science and explanations that make difficult concepts digestible for anyone. I’ll be interviewing the author for the Sparking Wholeness podcast this week, and I can’t wait!

[Nate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve read a stack of books about health and nutrition; generally they’re either lambasting the food industry or arguing for a specific diet while heaping scorn upon all others. This one is more focused on the effects of food on mental health.
It attempts to navigate through false claims, poorly researched conclusions and unfounded assumptions made about various foods and diets over the years. It gets into the effect that certain food intolerances can have on brain health.
She suggests testing yourself by trying certain elimination diets which she elaborates on in the final chapters.
The big takeaway though is: processed food is trash, some people can’t handle dairy, some can’t handle wheat and many plants, legumes and nightshades can give you trouble.

[Siim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think Georgia Ede's book is better than Christopher's. She's sassy and sarcastic and when she explains the studies presented she gives you the background information you need understand her conclusion. I am definitely a much better scientist now because I read this book. In particular the part where she explains the shortcomings of nutritional epidemiology. I really recommend anyone who's interested to read the original paper by Austin Bradford: "The Environment and Disease: Association or Causation?" - https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles...

However one thing I did not like. Is how she was a bit asymmetrical about how she used authority to bolster her point of view. Maybe I'm misrepresenting the book but it seemed to me like occasionally she would rebel against authority (let's say the WHO, with good reason, and she would explain her reasoning) but when the authority was in favour of her general thesis, she would not take the same time to look at what the reasoning was for the authority in question (some European country health agency saying that certain diets are unsuitable for newborns (I think it was a vegan diet). It was a relatively minor thing, but I think would've made it better, if she had also been as detailed and critical of authorities that she used to reinforce her argument.

[J R · Rating 5 out of 5]

First learned about Dr Ede after a YouTube Dr Berry interview on February 5, 2024.

Basically, she begins by saying you must remove the bad food from your diet before you add good food to your diet. Although, this depends what you’re eating. But, add pure animal protein.

Excess glucose isn't the only instigator of damaging inflammation and oxidative stress in the brain we need to be mindful of; other aspects of lifestyle including smoking, vaping, and drinking alcohol are common culprits as well, but most of us recognize these as harmful habits so we wouldn't expect them to have brain benefits. Unfortunately, this is not the case with vegetable oil. We have long been told that vegetable oils such as soybean and sunflower oil are good for us because they are rich in essential plant PUFAs and free of saturated fat and cholesterol, but these oils are now coming under increasing scrutiny for their potential role in the decline of our mental and physical health.

Unlike sugar, which could be extracted from cane by human hands with hard labor and hot water, most vegetable oils couldn't have existed before the Industrial Revolution, because extracting oil from corn, grape seeds, and other seed crops and refining it into a clear, odorless substance is virtually impossible without heavy machinery and chemical engineers.

As Nina Teicholz chronicles in The Big Fat Surprise, prior to the twentieth century, with the exception of olive oil (which was not widely available), oils were not viewed as food: "Oils weren't even considered edible. They didn't belong in the kitchen. They were used to make soaps, candles, waxes, cosmetics, varnishes, linoleum, resins, lubricants, and fuels.

The first vegetable oil to be slipped into our food supply was cottonseed oil. Extracted from the agricultural waste of the cotton industry, cottonseed oil became a cheap replacement for liquid animal fats like whale oil (used in lamps and candles) and solid animal fats like lard and tallow (used in cooking).

Then in 1908, as Teicholz goes on to describe, the Proctor & Gamble company patented an industrial method for partially hydrogenating cottonseed oil, which magically transformed it from a toxic, unappealing liquid into a familiar-looking solid. "The original idea at the company had been to employ this new substance to make soap, but the white or yellowish creamy product, which looked so much like lard, also suggested a food use... Finally, [Proctor & Gamble] settled on the name Crisco, derived from its chief ingredient, crystallized cottonseed oil. Clever marketing convinced consumers to welcome Crisco into their kitchens as a clean, modern, and affordable improvement over old-world animal fats.

It wouldn't be long before corn oil was hardened into margarine as a Depression-era replacement for butter (ultimately inspiring the trendy, plant-based buttery spreads of today). But liquid vegetable oils wouldn't find their way into our cupboards until the 1960s, after they were endorsed as "heart healthy" by the American Heart Association— a once tiny organization that amassed scientific and political power largely fueled by funding from Proctor & Gamble.

Industrially refined vegetable oils like canola (from rapeseed), safflower, soybean, sunflower, corn, and grape seed oils have now infiltrated nearly every processed food product on the market from salad dressings to potato chips to oat milk.

Good read indeed

[Rebecca K. · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a mental health professional with a doctorate, this book pissed me off. She talks about the issues with nutrition science not having good research (e.g., RCTs) yet goes on to talk about how successful her specific diet can be for improving mental health symptoms WITHOUT REFERENCING RCTs. Instead, she talks about her experience working with "100s of patients." I appreciated her providing some qualifiers for using her diet, but it needs to be put at the beginning. Is it worth looking at how nutrition can impact mental health? For sure. But Dr. Ede needs to be cautious of the conclusions that she draws WITHOUT HAVING DONE RCTs. This book is also frustrating because the info contradicts several of the points of Fiber Fueled. Takeaway? We are learning about nutrition and its impact on mental and physical health. Therefore, we can't make generalized, casual claims especially without experimental research. There is also no mention of the mental health challenges that can be associated with restrictive eating and dieting (see Anti-Diet, Maintenance Phase).

Anyways, whatever. Be cautious when reading and don't assume that if you read this book and follow her guidelines that your mental health symptoms will be cured. We understand mental health through a biopsychosocial lens, which is actually well researched.

[James Ilango · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting read. Dr. Ede communicates complex ideas in a palatable and easy to digest way that offers a lot of hope.

[Ellen · Rating 1 out of 5]

I stuck it out to finish this book and I regret it.

[Roy Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I feel like this is one I've been waiting for. This is the book you give to your family members to help them understand why you eat a certain way when you are overcoming a medical issue.

This would make a good trilogy beginning with Cracked, followed by Brain Energy, then this.

So many topics are touched on in this book the way that I wanted them touched on.

That being said, there were issues that I had:

1.) Metabolic flexibility should be explained as the ability to use your body fat for fuel as well as the food on your plate. It should not be explained as the ability to switch between carbs and fat for fuel.

2.) In that same vein, I question her saying that glucose is a clean source of brain fuel and fatty acids are a dirty source of brain fuel.

3.) Her referring to ketones as an alternate source of brain fuel is inaccurate.

4.) Her targets for what is considered healthy blood pressure are too low.

5.) Scaring people away from factory farmed animals will stop a lot of people from finding the relief they need.

6.) Unless you have epileptic seizures, there is no need to limit your protein. Of course, that doesn't mean to chase large protein amounts either. There are quite a few people who had problems with a ketogenic way of eating because they weren't consuming enough protein.

7.) Unless you have Type One diabetes, you most likely don't NEED to be checking your glucose.

8.) I don't encourage testing for ketones, and I especially don't encourage chasing certain ketone numbers.

9.) Don't assume you should be supplementing potassium. I have never run across someone who actually needed it.

10.) She gave a warning and a list of the types of people who should not start a ketogenic way of eating. Most of the issues are helped by a ketogenic way of eating.

11.) That relates to my final gripe, which isn't her fault. This is the United States. Anyone can get sued for just about anything. Which means she HAS to say things like "Consult with your doctor before trying XYZ". But you can't continue suffering just because your doctor is a fucking dumbass.

[Jenine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some good points on foods that can affect your mental health. Looks like lots of technical research. I noticed changing my diet has helped my anxiety tremendously. But all she does is preach the keto diet and how only meat is the perfect food. I stopped before the chapter that says nuts and seeds are bad for you. Like… there’s gonna be nothing left to eat in my life. And one of her patients is on a diet where she has beef broth and coconut oil twice a day? For years? 🤢🤢🤢 Had to put it down.
Also… if we came from apes 6 million years ago… why did we just decide to stop eating fruits and veggies and start craving meat? Makes no sense. I appreciate the facts, I don’t appreciate the opinions on where humans came from or the obsession with ketogenic diets

[Severija · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pagaliau prisiruošiau perskaityt, nes jau buvo nusibodę :D Turinys geras, iš esmės kažko baisiai naujo nesužinojau, bet reziumė: jeigu turi emocinių sunkumų, verta išbandyti karnivoro dietą - jei esi veganas, vegan paleo arba vegan keto. Net ir neturint emocinių sunkumų, proto aštrumui ir šiaip sveikatai geriau nevartot greitų anglių. Daržovės nėra nekaltutės, pvz kai kuriems vengtinj špinatai ar pomidorai, aišku, ir bulvės ir pan. Daug rašo apie ketozės naudą (psichikai), na, o ji lengviausiai pasiekiama vartojant riebalus vietoj anglių bazės, bet man čia jau too much :D
Šiaip fainai, kad autorė nebruka tos keto kaip ultimalaus gėrio, vien dėl to noris bent kažkiek atsižvelgt į jos rekomendacijas ir išbandyt siūlomus receptus.

[Annie Weber · Rating 4 out of 5]

lordy this took forever

[Haylee Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little science-y, but a great read. Practical, research-based advice.

[Frank · Rating 1 out of 5]

So much BS all packed into one book

[Josh Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been reading the canon for things related to metabolic and mitochondrial health.

I kind of hadn't looked at any of the recent literature related to the ketogenic diet since maybe 2020, and then earlier this year picked it all up again and I'm thrilled with the new books and literature.

the first time I tried a continuous blood glucose monitor, I was amazed and fascinated by the data. I've done it again a few times since then, so I think I have a good mental model for how my blood sugar moves when eating, and how it moves when fasting. (I did multiple day fasts with the cgm sometimes, and watched with interest as each day my blood sugar levels would rise as I got close to waking up each day, even if I wasn't eating anything. my body can raise my own blood sugar levels if it wants. *I do not need to eat anything to increase my blood sugar levels*

phew. I really don't think anyone needs as much meat as the author thinks ppl need. most days, I don't eat meat.

I'd never conceived of the ketogenic diet as a tool for managing moods, but after reading this and other books that talk about the energy systems of the brain, it makes a ton of sense.

it's funny that the intervention of getting a little bit of exercise and not eating sugar, processed food, carbs, and doing a little bit of fasting has a far larger intervention and impact on the average person then a dozen psychiatric medicines.

I fucking hate the modern western medical system. it deals death and delusion in every direction.

for what it's worth I eat a very low meat keto diet. every couple days I'll have sardines or salmon, otherwise it's eggs, mushrooms, broccoli, asparagus, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, zucchini, squash, coconut cream, hard cheese, kimchi and sauerkraut and olive oil and evoo and coconut oil and kombucha and electrolytes and some vitamins and supplements. magnesium, potassium, sodium, fish oil, an occasional probiotic, vitamin d.

I still occasionally binge with sourdough, banana bread, animal crackers, ice cream, and more. I appreciate now that the sugar and carb part of my diet interacts with the opioid receptor system in my brain.

and when I binge, no sweat. I still fast everyday, by not eating until lunch or a late lunch, sometimes I do longer fasts, and most of the food that I eat is wildly healthy and fatty. I might soak my system in poison, but then I go back to a no-poison pattern of eating for days.

I remain sensitive to insulin, thus I get to avoid most modern health maladies? I think that's the point of this book. stay insulin sensitive, eat no sugar bc it's functional poison, eat few carbs. the body is brilliant and can sus everything else out.

I've been a big fan of the mood changes. I keep wondering if i am making it up, and I don't think I am. a month ago I googled 'keto mood reddit' and was shook, eager to try out of the same would happen for me.

so far so good.

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loaded with helpful information for those interested in a keto or carnivore way of eating! Appreciated the cholesterol and histamine intolerance info, too.