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Starved to Obesity: My Journey Out of Food Addiction and How You Can Escape It Too!
Emily Boller’s self-help book provides the necessary inspiration, education, and practical tips for you to escape food addiction—and in the process, shed unwanted pounds and reclaim your health.
Chubby in childhood, anorexic in her teens, and then obese until age 47, Emily Boller was desperate to find freedom from her struggles with food. When she began documenting her weight loss journey online, she never expected to become an inspirational voice for food addiction recovery to millions.
Starved to Obesity combines her personal journey, hard-won wisdom, and practical tips with Joel Fuhrman, M.D.’s teachings to create a powerful resource that will inspire and help you break free from entanglements that sabotage health and well-being. And, as the result of losing a child to suicide, she knows firsthand the impact of trauma and grief on addiction recovery—and how to recover from relapse as well. If you want long-term freedom, this book will show you the way!
“I have written this book because I wholeheartedly wish there had been a book such as this when I was a kid. It would have been helpful to me and to those in my circles of influence . . . and could’ve possibly saved me and my then- and future family many years of needless pain and suffering.” — Emily Boller
“She has learned a lot and is now a scholar in this field of health transformations.” — Joel Fuhrman, M.D., Board-Certified Family Physician specializing in nutritional medicine, six-time New York Times best-selling author, including Eat to Live
“ Starved to Obesity is foundational to true recovery, and turns recovery into something attainable and natural rather than a perpetual struggle. Beautifully, magnificently done!” — Jeffrey Rediger, M.D., MDiv, Faculty, Harvard Medical School, Medical Director of Adult Psychiatric and Community Programs at McLean Southeast, McLean Hospital—Affiliate of Harvard Medical School; Chief of Behavioral Medicine at Good Samaritan Medical Center
“I will recommend Starved to Obesity to all of my patients struggling with weight, food addictions and, emotional challenges of many kinds. It is a gift to us all.” — Michael Klaper, M.D., Nutrition-Based Medicine, Author, Speaker
“If you, a friend, or a loved one are struggling with dieting, emotional eating, weight loss, or health challenges, Starved to Obesity can change your life. It is a beacon of hope and a north star pointing the way to freedom.” — Scott Stoll, M.D., Co-founder and Chairman of The Plantrician Project Alive! A Physician's Biblical and Scientific Guide to Nutrition
“ Starved to Obesity gives us a compelling insight into the fundamental reasons behind food addiction and binge eating. . . Starved to Obesity offers a science-supported, practical guide to finding a healthy relationship with food. It’s well researched and wide reaching If you struggle with your weight and want to learn from someone who has ‘been there, done that,’ this book is for you.” –Dr. David Friedman, Syndicated TV/Radio health expert, #1 international bestselling author of Food How to Eat in a World of Fads and Fiction
“We are facing an epidemic of obesity and Type 2 diabetes with its acute, chronic, debilitating, deadly diseases. Fast food and sugars are horribly addictive. This book completely describes the problem and give a solution. A great book! I would recommend it to everyone.” — Rudy Kachmann, M.D., Neurosurgeon, Author of fifteen wellness books, TV and radio wellness authority
“ . . . applicable for today’s culture . . .” — Ken Hood, Wellness Pastor at James River Church, Springfield, MO
“The truth in this life-giving book will set you free.” — Carol Doscher, President & CEO, Graceworks, Inc., New York, NY
Chubby in childhood, anorexic in her teens, and then obese until age 47, Emily Boller was desperate to find freedom from her struggles with food. When she began documenting her weight loss journey online, she never expected to become an inspirational voice for food addiction recovery to millions.
Starved to Obesity combines her personal journey, hard-won wisdom, and practical tips with Joel Fuhrman, M.D.’s teachings to create a powerful resource that will inspire and help you break free from entanglements that sabotage health and well-being. And, as the result of losing a child to suicide, she knows firsthand the impact of trauma and grief on addiction recovery—and how to recover from relapse as well. If you want long-term freedom, this book will show you the way!
“I have written this book because I wholeheartedly wish there had been a book such as this when I was a kid. It would have been helpful to me and to those in my circles of influence . . . and could’ve possibly saved me and my then- and future family many years of needless pain and suffering.” — Emily Boller
“She has learned a lot and is now a scholar in this field of health transformations.” — Joel Fuhrman, M.D., Board-Certified Family Physician specializing in nutritional medicine, six-time New York Times best-selling author, including Eat to Live
“ Starved to Obesity is foundational to true recovery, and turns recovery into something attainable and natural rather than a perpetual struggle. Beautifully, magnificently done!” — Jeffrey Rediger, M.D., MDiv, Faculty, Harvard Medical School, Medical Director of Adult Psychiatric and Community Programs at McLean Southeast, McLean Hospital—Affiliate of Harvard Medical School; Chief of Behavioral Medicine at Good Samaritan Medical Center
“I will recommend Starved to Obesity to all of my patients struggling with weight, food addictions and, emotional challenges of many kinds. It is a gift to us all.” — Michael Klaper, M.D., Nutrition-Based Medicine, Author, Speaker
“If you, a friend, or a loved one are struggling with dieting, emotional eating, weight loss, or health challenges, Starved to Obesity can change your life. It is a beacon of hope and a north star pointing the way to freedom.” — Scott Stoll, M.D., Co-founder and Chairman of The Plantrician Project Alive! A Physician's Biblical and Scientific Guide to Nutrition
“ Starved to Obesity gives us a compelling insight into the fundamental reasons behind food addiction and binge eating. . . Starved to Obesity offers a science-supported, practical guide to finding a healthy relationship with food. It’s well researched and wide reaching If you struggle with your weight and want to learn from someone who has ‘been there, done that,’ this book is for you.” –Dr. David Friedman, Syndicated TV/Radio health expert, #1 international bestselling author of Food How to Eat in a World of Fads and Fiction
“We are facing an epidemic of obesity and Type 2 diabetes with its acute, chronic, debilitating, deadly diseases. Fast food and sugars are horribly addictive. This book completely describes the problem and give a solution. A great book! I would recommend it to everyone.” — Rudy Kachmann, M.D., Neurosurgeon, Author of fifteen wellness books, TV and radio wellness authority
“ . . . applicable for today’s culture . . .” — Ken Hood, Wellness Pastor at James River Church, Springfield, MO
“The truth in this life-giving book will set you free.” — Carol Doscher, President & CEO, Graceworks, Inc., New York, NY
160 pages, Paperback
Published April 16, 2019
19 people are currently reading
47 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
April 27, 2019
Basically a cheerleader for Dr. Fuhrman's eating plan. Her highly religious focus did not appeal to me. It may prove helpful to some who struggle with eating issues, but it did not resonate with me. Quite well written and a quick read.
May 6, 2020
Dont waste a check out on this. Just get Dr. FUHRman books
March 16, 2021
What an annoying piece of cheerleading drivel about how we should be happy to be in a thin body and grow to love eating plants without salt. Yuck!
March 5, 2022
I received this book for free, so I would like to start saying I don’t think I’m the ideal reader for this book. I would love to stop eating processed sugar and I definitely have cravings like the majority of people, but I do not have a full-blown addiction and my relationship with food is not nearly as complex or problematic as the reader.
I read this book for practical advice and I received some of that (even things like unload the dishwasher in the morning so you can keep your counters clean throughout the day and make it easier and more enjoyable to cook at home. That’s good, very practical advice!).
However I also just finished reading “Atomic Habits” and I found a number of similarities (keeping your kitchen clean probably counts as make it satisfying or something), so I think Atomic Habits is actually a more applicable book for people like me.
That being said, if you have a complex relationship with food, a history of disordered eating, or have a legitimate addiction, I think this book actually could change your life. She’s not a researcher it really is just what’s worked for her, and I think if you’re in a similar situation it could add a lot of practicality and hope. I probably will not recommend to my loved ones, but I think this book could mean a lot in the hands of its ideal audience.
I read this book for practical advice and I received some of that (even things like unload the dishwasher in the morning so you can keep your counters clean throughout the day and make it easier and more enjoyable to cook at home. That’s good, very practical advice!).
However I also just finished reading “Atomic Habits” and I found a number of similarities (keeping your kitchen clean probably counts as make it satisfying or something), so I think Atomic Habits is actually a more applicable book for people like me.
That being said, if you have a complex relationship with food, a history of disordered eating, or have a legitimate addiction, I think this book actually could change your life. She’s not a researcher it really is just what’s worked for her, and I think if you’re in a similar situation it could add a lot of practicality and hope. I probably will not recommend to my loved ones, but I think this book could mean a lot in the hands of its ideal audience.
June 8, 2021
Great book!
Read it in 3 days! Very motivating as a 48 year old woman who’s husband has diabetes and was just diagnosed with cancer. To read what she went through but pushed through it was just what I needed right now!
Read it in 3 days! Very motivating as a 48 year old woman who’s husband has diabetes and was just diagnosed with cancer. To read what she went through but pushed through it was just what I needed right now!
Read
July 6, 2021I listened to the audio version. Whats up with listing every scrumptious food you can think of in the first chapter? How does that help someone on a freakin diet? That ticked me off. Done with book.
0 stars.
0 stars.
September 21, 2024
This is a super quick read about the author's experience in losing 100 pounds in 1 year (and keeping it off) by adapting a nutritarian lifestyle, which included eating 3 meals a day and eliminating flours, sugars, and animals from her diet.
September 28, 2025
Eye opening book!
The chemicals in foods today is just ridiculous. How did we get this far out of balance with food? As a person who gave up smoking 18 years ago and now struggles with food addiction instead, the words in this book resonate so much with me.
The chemicals in foods today is just ridiculous. How did we get this far out of balance with food? As a person who gave up smoking 18 years ago and now struggles with food addiction instead, the words in this book resonate so much with me.
May 4, 2021
One phrase/idea hit me like a brick! "There is no such thing as eating everything in moderation"!! Could it be that I've been fooling myself thinking that I can still have the pie and eat it, even if occasionally!
Eating the problem foods that we can't help binge on is like someone who had quitted smoking but says smoking one last cigarette is no problem. That was a true revelation for me. I'll start treating problem foods as they are, without having to go through the agony of eating just a little or convincing myself that I'm stronger than it!! Just don't eat it! Period!!
Thank you Emily.
That amazing idea aside. It seemed contradictory to say that over processing foods and easy to swallow food are too be avoided when a big chuck of the diet uses blenders to make juices, smoothies, and creams (humus). Then it all falls flat when there is no serious mentioning of exercise, or simply mentioning that it's optional! When we all know, and me from experience, that there is no lasting results from diet only. Exercise is the only way through a healthy psychological set of mind.
Eating the problem foods that we can't help binge on is like someone who had quitted smoking but says smoking one last cigarette is no problem. That was a true revelation for me. I'll start treating problem foods as they are, without having to go through the agony of eating just a little or convincing myself that I'm stronger than it!! Just don't eat it! Period!!
Thank you Emily.
That amazing idea aside. It seemed contradictory to say that over processing foods and easy to swallow food are too be avoided when a big chuck of the diet uses blenders to make juices, smoothies, and creams (humus). Then it all falls flat when there is no serious mentioning of exercise, or simply mentioning that it's optional! When we all know, and me from experience, that there is no lasting results from diet only. Exercise is the only way through a healthy psychological set of mind.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews