From: barbm@panix.com (Barbara Michalak)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.books.reviews,rec.arts.books,alt.support.diet
Subject: Review: Living Without Dieting by Foreyt & Goodrick (weight mgt.)
Date: 31 Dec 1994 23:39:56 GMT

Book Review: "Living Without Dieting," by John P. Foreyt and G. Ken
Goodrick. Warner Books, 1994; first published 1992. 204 pages, including
54 pages of useful appendices and index. ISBN 0-446-38269-8

This book is high on my short list of books that should be read and re-read by
anyone who has an eating disorder, or has weight concerns and wishes to deal
with them without triggering an eating disorder. It is a blessing to someone
in the position of counseling young people about weight concerns.

"Living Without Dieting" is no-nonsense, no-hype, research-based treatment
program for weight management, working on both your mind and your body. Clear
language, and even some fun -- you will never forget the lesson for you in
the story of the zoo birds that kept killing their well-fed young.

The current edition is from a mainstream publisher, Warner Books. The original
edition, which I saw first, was from a smaller publisher. I frankly was
sceptical about the likelihood that that the book could move into the new
edition without losing some of its honesty and picking up some of the bloated,
hard-sell promises we see in most "diet" books. I was wrong: here it is, word
for word true to the original, so far as I can see. Just as valuable, and much
more easily available.

The authors are ph.d.'s associated with the Baylor College of Medicine and its
Nutrition Research Clinic, where they are involved in the areas of
eating/exercise disorders, obesity, diet modification and cardiovascular risk
reduction. The preface soberly cautions, "The treatment program we recommend
will help overweight individuals achieve optimal physical and mental health.
It requires changes in lifestyle, attitude and relationships with others. ...
Those individuals who vomit, or use laxatives or diuretics regularly to
control their weight may also be helped by this book, but they must first
consult with an eatintg disorders therapist and a physician. Those who have
serious depression or excessive stress are advised to see a psychologist
before beginning."

"Lose 50 pounds in two years!" would be a good head for an advertisement for
the book, the authors say. That's probably the most flamboyant statement in
the book, underlining their commitment to slow weight loss. They're also
committed to speedy delivery of information and treatment recommendations.
Before you even get to page 1, there's a 23-question true-false "Frustrated
Dieter's Quiz." Based on your answers, you are sent direct to the appropriate
chapters ... for example, the chapter on social isolation; the chapters that
deal with abnormal eating episodes; or self-blame.

The 10-page Appendix A, "Getting Professional Help," is valuable on its own.
It helps you evaluate weight clinics, and features 22 questions to put to a
health professional at a clinic you are considering, and then guides you in
evaluating the answers.

Read your way slowly and mindfully through this book, and you will have gone a
long way toward understanding and accepting what is a realistic weight goal
for you .. and learning how to achieve that weight goal with healthy eating
and exercise.

Here are some quotes: "Losing weight by dieting is not unlike breath holding.
The body will take over control after a while, and it will cause breathing and
eating even if the mind doesn't want to." ... "Humans are instinctively
programmed to eat high fat foods." ... "Going on a diet is like taking a drug.
It gives you a brief 'high' because you lose weight and feel more energy for a
short period of time. But over the long haul, it is harmful."

"Heredity (accounts) for about 70% of body fatness." ... "family environment
alone has no apparent effect at all." ... A slow metabolism and a large number
of fat cells can be inherited and probably play a major role in the
development of obesity ... our resting metabolic rate is inherited." "The
set-point is ... a range of pounds over which we tend to fluctuate depending
on our motivation, exercise, and eating patterns." ... "We can all eat a
healthful diet and exercise regularly, while learning to accept the genetic
factors over which we have little or no control."

"It is now thought that restrictive dieting is one of the main causes of binge
eating problems." ... "Restrictive dieting seems to increase cravings for
calorie-dense food." ... "We define food dependence as a state of relying on
food to feel better." ... "Eating has a calming effect on animals. It can be
especially calming after nervousness related to dieting. You are probably not
a "food addict" any more than you would be an "air addict" by gasping for
breath after shallow breathing. Thus, food may not be like a drug, but eating
may have a drug-like effect."

Plus chapters on Lookism, becoming an exercise enthusiast, how to become a
low-fat eater, and a plan that includes setting up a support system, as well
as low-fat eating and exercise.

"Living Without Dieting" is in bookstores, and I saw it in the new Gurze
catalog. Haven't tried my library, but nudge yours.   [Review copyright 1994,
Barbara J. Michalak; 12/94)

This review was posted earlier this week in alt.support.eating-disord, 
where I maintain the FAQ.