The Switch: Ignite Your Metabolism with Intermittent Fasting, Protein Cycling, and Keto

by James W. Clement, Kristin Loberg (With), George M Church (Foreword)

How can you lose dramatic weight, ease chronic conditions, and stay healthier longer? Flip the switch on your metabolism with intermittent fasting, protein cycling, and keto!

Within each of us is an ancient mechanism that eliminates toxic materials, initiates fat burning, and protects cells from becoming dysfunctional--or turning cancerous. It's called autophagy, and when it's turned on, the complex operation not only can slow down the aging process, it can optimize biological function as a whole, helping to stave off all manner of diseases and affording us the healthy life spans we never thought possible. It's the body's ultimate switch to life.

So how can we positively activate this switch? How frequently should we fast and for how long? Which foods dial up autophagy or, conversely, turn it down? How much exercise and what types are recommended? What's the sweet spot between intermittent fasting, protein cycling, and ketogenic eating?

Backed by a wealth of scientific data and featuring a gallery of guidelines to follow for lasting results, The Switch decodes the science of autophagy and teaches you how to control it and maximize its profound impact.

Genres: Health, Nonfiction, Personal Development, Audiobook, Nutrition, Fitness, Food

320 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 2019

Reviews

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book on the science behind longevity diets, although it is a bit overcomplicated for simple dietary advice (there's a chapter at the end which is sufficient if you accept what the author says and develops with support, but that chapter should be even more explicitly how-to).

Essentially, based on research about people who have lived past 105 years, blue zones of extreme longevity globally, and laboratory research, it seems that the ideal diet is low-GI plants, with relatively small amounts of high-omega3 fats, and relatively low amounts of protein, with very low carbohydrates generally, particularly high-GI refined carbohydrates. So, essentially the opposite of the mainstream modern diet, but largely in-line with current best dietary advice from most sources.

The somewhat novel part here is having distinct anabolic and catabolic diets throughout the year (roughly 4:8 ratio), and a focus on encouraging autophagy through diet during 8 months of the year to reduce risk of cancer, especially from middle age onward.

The actual advice isn't particularly novel, but the justification and evidence for the advice is better than I've seen before.

[Silver · Rating 1 out of 5]

The book basically says eat a nutrient deficient diet and supplement with vitamins and minerals. This is not sustainable. Is he expecting all people in the world to educate themselves about nutrition, blood tests and vitamins? Not to mention the fact that human metabolism is so complex we dont even know all necessary supplements.

The book has ideas that contradict the latest findings about saturated fat intake. It also focuses on a environmentally unsustainable diet: mediterranian/okinawan. Eat lots of fresh vegetables etc - how come then people in the nordic regions had similar life expectancy as Okinawans without any fresh food and lots of animal produce, eggs, dairy, carbs (fermented or kept in cellars) during most of the year (winter) for over ten thousand years? We dont all live on the equator and it would be unresponsible shipping vegetables from other side of the world. Stick to foods from local farms.

Recommendations on fasting seem sound though and its a great overview of the autophagy switch. Diet advice though is subjective, misinformed, and applible to only certain regions of the world.

I think the real message should have been: eat fresh local foods and fast every day - this means no over eating and little carbs/sugar.

[Marin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Suprisingly good book on a popular topic these days. It is pretty scientific, going over various research papers (with references), explaining how different types of dieting and dietary habits influence body on a literally cellural level.
Very interesting read for anyone who wants to know how the body works and make an informed decision on their diet.

[Paul Vogelzang · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great, unique research, plus research is timely and relevant to aging.
I was provided ARC, and interviewed the author, James Clement, who I found smart, articulate and honest. Excellent book.

[Ginger Hudock · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Switch is a review for lay people of much of the scientific data about how to live a long and healthy life. The author is a researcher who has looked at life extension. The book covers the genetics, epigenetics and ethnographic data for people who are living long disease-free lives. This is a hot topic and has been covered in a number of recent books.
As a nutritionist, I have studied this topic and read much of the research cited in the book myself. I agree with most of the points in the book, but not all. First, his dietary suggestions are VERY complicated. He suggests everyone should eat a very low protein diet, have a variety of fasting routines and vary diet according to the season. To do all of these things is not realistic for most people, and probably not all necessary for healthy individuals. The ketogenic diet can be excellent for weight loss and other conditions such as type 2 diabetes, epilepsy and cancer. Clement suggests almost everyone should use it, and the data does not seem to support this. Similarly, he recommends a very low protein diet for everyone. Again, this may be helpful with cancer, but research data does not strongly support this for other conditions, in my professional opinion. Some research suggests the elderly should increase their protein intake, including animal protein. And, while some form of fasting has been found in most civilizations, and may be appropriate for many people, the research data still does not favor one particular fasting approach.
I recommend this book for those who would like a general summary of some of the longevity and health data available. I do not recommend the very complicated implementation plan proposed by the author.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Rachel Dawson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book. Unfortunately I did not.
It started with what seemed like the first two chapters were devoted to "although I am not a doctor, these other learned people that I know, think I am smart enough to write this book" dialogue. This then meandered along with some sometimes interesting facts which could have been taken from The Longevity Diet.
It was topped off with some correlations between hairless rats, whales and the odd ciggie and whiskey being good for you. Oh and take some aspirin and metformin as well. Great stuff.
Disclaimer - I already practise a fair amount of the ideas presented in this book and am a nutritionist so I guess I just expected more.
Still - drawing the smoking conclusion and the barrels of correlation = causation really irked me.

[Justin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book, for free, in exchange for an honest review.

On the one hand the takeaway from this book is pretty similar to many other diet books.
On the other hand if you are willing to put in the work this book has a great deal of background information not present in other books which will help you make more educated decisions. I normally have at most a few notes for an ebook, this one has a few dozen so that says something about its utility.

I have little background in science outside of computer science and this book reads like a lullaby - an interesting one - to me. Meaning it is easily understandable to me without any need to resort to googling. I am interested in health and listen to countless podcasts and picked up what I needed to get this from people like David Sinclair, Rhonda Patrick and Peter Attia. If you like those people I imagine you'd like this. I imagine without this background you'd need to put a dozen or so terms into wikipedia. The terms you'd learn are imperative to knowing how the body works so its worth the work.

In other words, if you are interested in things like how glucagon works this book is for you. If you want to be spoon-fed your information you're probably better off reading the latest Dr Oz book as you weren't planning on learning why things work and will accept shallow answers without a mechanistic explanation. Let's face it, nutrition is not a science and you will have to do your own legwork or you will be at the whims of lobbying groups pushing "super" foods with trumped up evidence or well meaning groups causing obesity epidemics by recommending low fat diets because they didn't have time to better research (and to think I like McGovern as a person!). Lastly, if you are not willing to do the work you will most likely complain about how this book is too sciencey which collectively explains the horrendous decisions our species is making.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating read about autophagy + intermittent fasting + keto eating/way of life. The data shared explains how/why our bodies need to eat versus how many of us have eat to live lifestyles. Knowing what foods promote autophagy and how our bodies can avoid the genetic diseases we could be cursed with. We don’t have to accept what our genetics say we are prone to suffer from. With proper nutty, we can change it and live longer, fuller lives.

[Molly Sutter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super science-y but not too hard to follow if you're focused. I think I'll give some of the author's suggestions a try.

[Margaret Harrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommend

A thorough look at omega 3s and why it’s important to have them as opposed to omega 6s. It changed my grocery shopping.

[Capt. H. Hornblower Of His Majesty’s Navy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Switch
“Ignite Your Metabolism with Intermittent Fasting, Protein Cycling, and Keto”
By James W Clement (with Kristen Loberg)

Overview
"The Switch" is a Health Sciences Book first and a Diet Book as an afterthought. The author purports to have read tens of thousands of scientific papers over the years, but he’s a lawyer by training who has turned into a research scientist and entrepreneur. So naturally he would write a health and nutrition book based on zero of his actual medical or health accreditations in order to monetize on all his hard work, right? Yep.

Having said that, it was an entertaining read. The health science education was particularly appealing to me. He goes through the history of topics that support his claims, avoids the history of topics that don’t support his claims, and provides interesting perspectives on various biological processes. If you can read in between the lines with these kinds of books, it’s possible to piece together a bigger picture that can shape your own choices to diet and longevity.

The title of book refers to the up regulation of Autophagy in the body during periods of fasting and the down regulation of the mTOR pathway that contributes to aging more rapidly and becoming more susceptible to cancerous cell growth, which is prevalent during periods of frequent or constant food consumption. His Diet recommendations on a “High Fat, Low Protein, Low Refined Carb” eating plan with a Catabolic Focus 8 months out of the year and an Anabolic Focus for 4 months was confusing at best and I imagine this is where the bulk of critics focus their energy on tearing down the book. A cursory examination online didn’t reveal any forums with people who have adopted this eating plan either. But the principles behind the eating plan have value. It's very beneficial to have a foreknowledge of the biological benefits of fasting, anabolism vs. catabolism, Autophagy vs. mTOR pathways in the body, hormone reactions like insulin vs. glucagon, factors that influence various gene expressions, and underlying implications prevalent in virtually all diseases of affluence are all covered in this book, which the author writes in an interesting and compelling way (for someone who likes reading Health & Nutrition books).

Salient Points🤔:

Fasting vs. Feasting 🍽️
1. The dichotomy between anabolism and catabolism when understanding one’s metabolism. Anabolism is prominent during nutrient abundance and is the body’s way of building cells. Catabolism is prominent during nutrient scarcity and is the body’s way of breaking down cells for energy.
2. The catabolic process of “autophagy” is a more specific type of catabolism that focuses on recycling cellular components, including damaged organelles and proteins, within the cell.
3. Autophagy is generally highest in the body when cells are under stress, such as during a period of fasting. Studies suggest that autophagy peaks between 24 and 48 hours of fasting. While autophagy can be triggered by other methods like exercise and calorie restriction, fasting is the most well-established and effective way to induce it.
4. Mitochondria are amazing little “organelles” that inhabit cells by approximately 100 per cell. There are tens of trillions cells in the body. These organelles help cells produce ATP which is the fuel our body needs to survive. Healthy mitochondria are the cornerstone of health and disease prevention. Damaged and dysfunctional mitochondria are linked with every disease imaginable.
5. Autophagy is the biological process that repairs and replaces mitochondria as they become worn out or defective. It also limits DNA damage and chromosomal instability, which have led scientists to call it “the guardian of the genome”.
6. The mTOR gene turns on during food consumption. It inhibits autophagy because it promotes cell growth and biosynthetic processes, which are generally antagonistic to the catabolic process of autophagy.
7. Excessive activation of the mTOR pathway, such as during periods of frequent or constant food consumption, is generally considered dangerous and linked to various diseases. It can disrupt normal cell processes, leading to conditions like cancer, metabolic disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases.
8. The caffeine found in coffee is thought to help inhibit the mTOR pathway and promote the activation of autophagy.
9. Insulin (the hormone naturally produced in the body to help regulate blood sugar levels during food intake) and glucagon (the hormone naturally produced in the body during periods of fasting which signals glucose release from fat cells) are on opposite sides of a seesaw. If one goes up, the other goes down.
10. "The Switch" Plan itself requires switching from a more famine oriented/autophagic/catabolic way of living 3/4 of the time each week/month/year and a more feasting oriented/mTOR activating/anabolic way of eating 1/4 of the time each week/month/year. While it seems like it would be incredibly hard to implement such a plan without an app or a tracker of some kind, the feast vs. famine principles are really valuable to me as I tailor my eating habits throughout the week/month/year. Knowing that having a bigger meal or 2 or one that involves more IGF-1 gene expression is a good thing every now and then is really good to keep in mind when following an otherwise ascetic way of eating.

Other Health Concepts⚕️
1. Findings from a Centenarian study have determined that genetics play a far less important role than was previously believed to be the key to living longer. Data suggests lifestyle choices including health, exercise, and nutrition play a more central role.
2. The IGF-1 gene is responsible for tissue and bone growth in the body. Consuming a moderate or high protein diet switches this gene on more frequently, accelerates the aging process in the body, and makes cells more susceptible to cancerous growth.
3. Not until 2003, when the mapping of the Human Genome was completed, did scientists definitely know that all of the previous man-like derivative species discovered from fossil records over the ages were genetically related to our current species of Homo sapien. It is now established that the human genome has had a 0.5% mutation rate per million years. This could suggest that the Hunter-Gatherer diet of Homo erectus 2 million years ago is more suited to our bodies than the more agricultural, grain-based diet of the past 12,000 years. Even singling in our own species, which has been around for 200,000 years, farming practices only account for 6% of the length of our nutritional lifestyle.
4. Linking the concept of Hormesis, or the process of exposing the body to small doses of something that could be fatal at larger doses, to that of Exercising (oxygen deprivation) was intriguing.
5. Visceral adipose tissue (VAT) or Belly Fat is the worse kind of fat to have on the body because it has the most metabolic consequences, one of which deals with fat cells becoming senescent: they cease to divide but refuse to die off. Senescent cells give off pro-inflammatory signals that tell the Immune System to mobilize defenses much more frequently. They can also cause Stem Cells, or cells that can morph into any kind of cell needed in a given situation, to go dormant.
6. The concept of Protein Cycling was intriguing, or going through longer periods of low protein ingestion followed by shorter periods of higher protein amounts. My wife and I do that without even realizing it: we like to eat red meat about once or twice a month and otherwise stick to eggs, beans, nuts, and the small amounts of protein naturally occurring in fruits and vegetables the rest of the time. We are Protein Cyclers!

Animal Studies 🐖
1. Bowhead whales are the longest living mammal known to science, cases citing whales who have lived over 200 years. It is surmised that they go through extensive periods of fasting and oxygen deprivation which might help their longevity.
2. The Naked Mole-Rat has an average lifespan that’s 3-4 times that of other rodents and a genome that seems to be impervious to cancerous cell growth. One thought the author cites is that the rodents undergo regular Hypoxia or oxygen deprivation similar to when humans exercise. Naked mole rats can generate energy from fructose instead of glucose, which requires oxygen. This allows them to survive in environments with low oxygen levels.

Aggravations 🤢
1. The author seems to draw much of his High-Fat Diet focus from an obscure 1983 study on the advocacy of a High Fat, Low Protein, Low Carb diet, or on the speculative nature of what Hunter Gatherers would have eaten 2 million years ago. Not the strongest foundation of research imho.
2. The author supports controversial high fat foods like Canola oil since it has a high smoke point. Huh?
3. The author frequently mentions “carbs” without any qualifier on the type of carb he’s talking about. He often doesn’t differentiate between refined carbs to carbs derived from whole foods like fruits and vegetables. I think he was referring to refined carbs most of the time, but it was a bit confusing.
4. The author mentions several things that can be misleading or taken out of context that could be hazardous to health, such as a high fat diet (all foods that contain high amounts of fat?), smoking to increase longevity (start smoking?), the health promoting effects of red wine (become a lush?), taking small amounts of poison to bolster the body’s resistance to it (all poisons?)
5. Similar to the previous point, the amount of times the author says “I’m not saying…” in reference to introducing a provocative topic that he actually doesn’t support… was more than a few times.
6. Never a fan of any diet book that recommends copious amounts of supplements. While the author did not advise a strenuous regiment, he did support regular supplementation. My opinion on supplements is this: get them through your food unless in very specific medical situations, as the only thing the supplement industry can guarantee is to take your money.
7. The author has a habit of “overdoing it” at times. He talks about this or that food to induce or promote Autophagic-reactions or to inhibit mTOR pathways but he mentions the same things can occur naturally by simply fasting and eliminate snacking between meals. I’m a big fan of the KISS principle: Keep it short and simple.
8. I'm a big fan of serving sizes on packaging to help me and my kids to determine what's a safe and responsible amount of food. 1 serving of this. 2 servings? Hmm, OK but not very often. I'm pretty sure that 84 macadamia nuts daily qualifies as 3-4 servings per day though, as the author recommends.

Final Thoughts
I did enjoy many topics in the book, especially related to “The Switch” between “turning on” Autophagy (related to periods of fasting) and “turning off” the mTOR pathway (related to periods in and around food consumption), hormesis, fat cells, obscure health inferences of other animals, and the tidbit about how the Human Genome Project revealed that we’re related genetically to all previous Homo-species and maybe we should eat a bit more like them. While I do not intend to adopt his prescribed eating plan (whatever it was… see I’ve already forgotten) I do eat a mostly vegetarian diet, lots of beans, veggies, fruit, nuts, goat and sheep products, eggs once a week, seafood and/or red meat maybe once or twice a month, reduce my snacking, avoid (as best as possible) refined carbs, flours, bread, limit sugary foods. I think maybe this way of eating is actually close to what he’s talking about though. I am however a fan of fasting for its autophagy-promoting effects. I have done a 16/8 IF several years ago and have had wonderful health effects from it. Then my wife and I had kids and that put a damper on things with their constant desire for food, especially sweet food. But now I want to get back to it as my middle aged VAT stores are getting a little out of hand due to becoming lax on snacking and refined carbs. It’s time to rev up Autophagy and hopefully live an even longer, healthier life!

3 Stars ⭐️

[Becky Philo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read similar books about how to eat to activate metabolism and live a healthy life. What makes this book different from others is the research associated with the author’s points of view. I found it interesting to see why certain foods and habits are related to a healthier lifestyle. Some people may not be interested in all the research studies, but I learned a lot and hope to implement some new habits into my daily diet.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This isn’t just another diet book. The author dives into the science behind eating. I found it fascinating.

[Apollo Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has some wonderful ideas, and connects them to some real evidence of health and longevity improvements, both in specific existing subcultures with remarkable longevity and in lab results. But in terms of guiding us to a new way of eating, for greater health and longevity, I'd say it only gets 60% of the way there. Many of the specific dietary recommendations laid out in Chapter 9 (the dietary protocol chapter) were unsupported by any reference or research, and were very different from what I've seen among other writers who are aligned with these general topics.

* He recommended some pseudo-foods like canola oil and textured vegetable protein.

* He wrote pretty exclusively about what to eat during the low-protein phase. No guidance on the higher-protein phase - what do we do then? Double the amount? Triple the amount? What's the carb guidance in that phase? Should we continue intermittent fasting? No guidance. Also no guidance on how to integrate exercise; a question that arises in my mind in when we should do weight training - would this be only in the building phase?

* He raves about macadamia nuts as a source of Omega-3 oils. Now Macadamias are very healthy nuts, and they do have the best omega-3 to omega-6 ratio of all the nuts (as far as I've been able to tell - he doesn't actually give any numbers, and they're hard to track down online). But the overall amount of both is small, and it's still not a good ratio. Eat salmon for omega-3; macadamias are good for their healthy saturated and monounsaturated oils. So this is another pointer for me that I can't really trust what he's saying, in terms of direct advice. I did appreciate being warned about the high omega-6 content of other nuts, which does pan out.

* He recommends, at one point, "less than 20g/day" of carbohydrates. At other points, he recommends "unlimited" vegetables; and recommends "10-25% of calories" come from low-glycemic vegetables. The math here doesn't add up - suppose I try to get 10% of my daily 2000 calories/day from his low-glycemic vegetable list - say 100 calories of Cauliflower and 100 of Zucchini. That's nearly a pound of cauliflower (400g) and a little over a pound of Zucchini (525g), which totals 30g of carbs. From my experience, it's extraordinarily difficult to keep carbs under 20g and still eat any significant amount of vegetables.

* He even includes yams in his list of vegetables, with no explanation. From other sources, I know yams are some of the healthiest carbs you can eat, but they're still very carby, 24% net carbs by mass. (And most of the rest of the mass is water.) And then on another page, he says no yams, grr. (Can we get an editor?)

These issues left me without a lot of faith in the rest of his guidance. The crux of his dietary recommendation is the idea that we should spend about 2/3 of our lives in catabolic / low-protein / autophagy phase, and the other 1/3 in an anabolic / building / higher-protein phase. But again there's no research to back this up - in fact he specifically comments on there being "no consensus". What's this number based on? I'd appreciate seeing his reasoning on why this seems like a good proportion, at least.

All that said - I really appreciated the detailed explanations of the importance of spending at least some time, regularly, in autophagy, and it did lead to immediate changes in my diet (getting a tighter handle on the carbs and taking the protein down a few notches). I'm trying out his 2 months autophagy, 1 month building approach during January/February/March of this year, and so far the diet has felt good and I've lost 3 pounds. (I don't need to lose a lot, but I consistently feel like I'm about 5-10 lbs over what I'd like, so this worked for me!) So with all my frustrations regarding the details, I'm grateful for his perspective and influence. I was just hoping for something more complete.

I also recommend his podcast interview by Dave Asprey at https://daveasprey.com/james-clement-... for a brief introduction to these ideas. (There's a transcript.)

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book. I think it's very complimentary to David Sinclair's book 'Lifespan'. But whereas 'Lifespan' is an overview of a number of topics relating to anti-aging. This book is a deep dive into the one specific topic of how diet can influence aging. And it's quite science heavy, but I believe it's worth the effort to get through.

I see a lot of reviewers have criticized the book for being overly complicated and for not providing a simple, easy to follow dietary protocol which anyone can follow. I understand why people would say that. It's true, it's not simple and prescriptive like your average diet book. This makes it a bit harder to implement the ideas. But I think the reason is because it is actually not a diet book. It is a science book. The goal is to educate and inform. Not to write you a simple one size fits all recipe to save you the effort of thinking for yourself.

Having said that the last chapter offers a number of suggestions of ways to incorporate the learning from this book into your own life. I see people have made criticisms that this is too confusing and also unsustainable and not appropriate for all people, etc.. Again I think they missed the point. The idea is not to do everything on the list. The idea is here are some ideas, pick some that suit you.

Unfortunately I think complicated and self directed approaches as presented in this book, will always be a harder sell than the type of hard lined, black and white, simplistic diet books which tend to be the best sellers in the health genre. But truth is complex and no one knows everything. Which is why I believe we need more books like this that educate. Rather than books which simple make rules.

[Roxanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A combined crash course on human evolution, evolutionary biology and the author's research into what makes a healthy long life (his Supercentenarian Research Study) in one short book!

What transpires is a highly practical suggested dietary plan that promises to be "The Switch" for autophagy, the anti-aging process that removes and recycles dangerous & damaged particles from your cells while boosting your immune system and reducing risk of inflammation, neurological disorders and cancers.

Unlike many dietary lifestyles (eg. Mediterranean, Ketogenic, Intermittent Fasting etc), the "Switch" suggests following a 8 months on (famine or catabolic state inducing autophagy), 4 months off (feast or anabolic states inducing growth).

All the conventional wisdom about dietary choices are there - from minimising animal protein intake, to eating oily fish, to regular fasting. But how you choose this 3/2 ratio is up to you. You DO have to align with one of the preferred dietary lifestyles, as you're after all aiming to follow that 8 months of the year. But I found the idea of switching throughout the year not only less restrictive but also highly adaptable especially to those who have food allergies or other dietary restrictions. It's also more realistic because there's "built in" feast months and one can easily coincide that with holidays.

[Jackie]

I just finished The Obesity Code, so maybe it was a bit soon to pick up another book on such a similar topic when i have gotten out of the habit of reading nonfiction. That being said, i found The Obesity Code much more accessible. This author gets so deep on things that my eyes glazed over almost immediately. I genuinely do not care about why Easter island is named what it is, or the invention of the electron microscope.

And while i would have skimmed through the book and just read chapters that seemed to have more information on what i wanted to learn about, the chapter names are useless for figuring out where information might be hidden (“garbage trucks and recycling plants” or “dwarfs and mutants” do not discuss those topics in the way you think they might).

If you’re a real science nerd (which i guess I’m not) you may enjoy this book. But a casual reader trying to learn more about healthy lifestyles is probably going to have a hard time getting through this book.

[Carlos · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book incredibly informative. Having experimented with ketogenic diets and intermittent fasting I was happy to Clement honestly assess their benefits and limitations all the while giving the reader a masterclass in metabolic biology. Clement doesn’t bury the reader with a biology lecture but makes sure that there is enough information to understand why the changes he proposes work and based on what research as well as the limitations to be aware of. The book almost stands as an amazing resource to understand the quite powerful role of nutrition in managing the aging process and dismisses the counter claim that it is all in the genetic lottery. Whether or not Clement persuades the reader to take the whole of his nutritional advice, his data-based argument is sure to make even those with the strongest sweet-tooth put down a cookie more often than before.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this would be a quick read, but it's packed full of scientific and nutrition info. I've been around long enough to know that this info will change in say 10 years, but for now it seems like solid advice. My only criticism is that everyone is different, and the book doesn't seem to acknowledge this and implies that this approach is for everyone -- wrong. However, it does have value and is worth trying (at least some of it).

Thanks very much for the review copy!!

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think that this book was well researched and well written, the science is very understandable even if you don’t have a scientific background. He put forward a very solid case for intermittent fasting and eating whole natural foods. My only issue is the amount of testing he expects normal people to undergo as well as the amount of supplements he expects people to take. I think the more challenging the structure is the less chance that people will follow it.

[Cathy Jamison · Rating 3 out of 5]

There was some good information here, but nothing really new. I found it too sciency with not enough practical advice of what we can actually do. You'd be better off reading Lifespan by David Sinclair or Superhuman by Dave Aspray.

[Mrs C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite detailed and complex explanation of how fasting triggers autophagy which is one of the reasons for longevity. Lots of new terms to keep track of like mTOR, IGF-1, AMPK (a kind of enzyme). Growth hormones and hormones found in food are also mentioned and disrupt the balance of good health.

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intermittent fasting works because it activates the hormone glucagon, which functions opposite of insulin to keep your blood glucose levels balanced.

If you keep your mind and body busy, you are going to be around for a long time.

Morning walks and chocolate.

Eat more macadamia nuts!

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The latest research on autophagy in layman's terms. Invaluable.

[Axmed Bahjad]

It is a brilliant book. I would recommend for those of us who want to be health/healthier!

[Supinder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extremely informative. Written in a breezy and easily digestible manner. Key points focus around the process of autophagy and the role of mTOR. Surprisingly counterfactual information on hormesis.

[Joseph Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author is a former lawyer and entrepreneur who redirected his efforts in order to prolong the lifespans of his nonagenarian parents. He is something of a polymath who daily reads and absorbs numerous medical and scientific research papers.

His dietary approach is to incorporate a number of popular diets into one overarching diet. Let’s start with the paleo diet. The explanation based on evolution is that our distant ancestors lived with feast and famine so we should too but in a more controlled way such as eight months of calorie restriction followed by four months of protein fueled muscle building. The emphasis with the calorie restriction part seems to be on keto; in other words avoiding carbs in order to burn off the fat. This strikes me as a little odd since I would presume most people reading this book are interested in longevity and want to maintain their desired weight on their current calorie restriction diet. There’s not much here about whole grains and complex carbohydrates although he avoids mentioning gluten, thank goodness.

In any case he feels the ancestors depended more on gathering than hunting so the protein should be plant based and cold water oily fish, not red (beef, pork and lamb), cured, smoked and processed meats. The plant based protein he likes best is tree nuts, especially the macadamian although I have been led to believe, and he says nothing to contradict this, that the walnut is to be preferred. But that is a small point.

I would also ignore his suggestion to use MCT (medium chain triglycerides), aka coconut oil perhaps best known as an ingredient in Bullet Proof Coffee. I ordered a small three ounce bottle of the stuff only to find to find that it has fourteen grams of saturated fat per tablespoon. As with the macadamian nut he doesn’t explain why he prefers medium chain over long chain triglycerides.

One thing I did find interesting is, I believe he said, that autophagy only begins after you have fasted for at least sixteen hours. I don’t think that was footnoted, however. Elsewhere I have read it starts after four days into a fast. I have to live and maintain domestic tranquillity with the other members of my family so I won’t be fasting for sixteen hours; fourteen is about all I can swing. And a four day fast is similarly unrealistic for me.

[Boon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This intriguing book, authored by a renowned self-researcher, provides a deep dive into the mechanisms of our body's metabolism. The author, who is not only a researcher but also a practitioner of the lifestyle he advocates, presents a compelling case for caloric restriction and limited animal protein consumption as a pathway to activate the process of autophagy, which he suggests can lead to a longer life.

The concept is fascinating and, while it may require a significant lifetime commitment, could provide considerable health benefits for those willing to make the necessary lifestyle changes. That being said, the book does not shy away from the complexities and challenges of such an approach.

A certain level of contradiction exists within the text, particularly in regards to the ketogenic diet and the recommendation to limit animal protein. This could be confusing for readers who are familiar with the high protein intake typically associated with the ketogenic diet.

In conclusion, "The Switch" is a valuable read for those interested in exploring innovative ways to improve their health and potentially extend their lifespan. The book will require thoughtful consideration and perhaps a measure of patience to reconcile some contradictory points, but overall, it offers an insightful look into the potential benefits of caloric restriction and autophagy activation.

[Cătălina Coman · Rating 5 out of 5]

O carte plină de informații relevante, utile și concludente! Mi-a plăcut enorm s-o parcurg, am desenat-o și-am umplut-o de sticky notes la care plănuiesc să revin!

CUVINTE CHEIE: autofagie, post intermitent, dieta keto (ketogenică), carbohidrații ne omoară, bolile civilizației susținute de alimentație mega defectuoasă

CE MI-A PLĂCUT:
- subiectele dezbătute sunt de maxim interes pentru mine
- informațiile oferite sunt bine documentate, exista nșpe mii de studii în carte și sunt citate opiniile unor oameni din domeniul medicinei, geneticii, fiziologiei (adică oameni care oferă credibilitate și încredere prin poziția în care au ajuns - pe unii chiar îi urmăream deja)
- am trecut prin câteva concepte interesante și m-a motivat f mult să caut și alte surse de informare
- o văd ca pe una din cele mai bune cărți peste care am dat pur întâmplător

E adevărat că anumite informații se repetă destul de mult, dar "repetiția este mama-nvățăturii". Chiar mă gândeam la un moment dat că a mai spus lucrul respectiv de câteva ori, însă mi-am dat seama că așa e mai ușor să-mi rămână ideea pomenită în cap.

[Eugene Yeo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very informative book on autophagy, which is the process or recycling body cells , burn fat, and maintaining healthy body functions. It tells you how to activate it in order to reap the benefits which includes, longer life, improved brain activity, more energy and the avoidance of the disease of civilisation ( alzhemier's, obesity, heart failure, etc). The main change you need to do with your life, are dietary ones which the books explains in detail. And it gives excellent guidelines in the last chapters, tho I have to say, are only for the strong-willed as a lot of the common food must be exempted.

Despite that, I only gave this book a two-star rating as I am looking for a book on eating to gain muscles and improve my performance calisthenics-wise. I would however recommend this book to those who are facing health issues due to poor dietary choices and strongly want to make a change.

Good luck.