"The End of Overeating"

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xonophone
xonophone Posts: 474 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Has anyone else read this book? I just picked it up yesterday and was hooked as soon as I read the intro because with every line I read, I just kept thinking, "OMG, that is ME to a T! My overeating wasn't a problem when I was younger, but these last 6 or 7 years my waisline has expanded because my eating habits didn't change when my metabolism did. Very enlightnening stuff - I can barely put the book down. I encourage anyone with a food addiction to read this book. I'd love to hear opinions from other who read it.

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  • Julie_W
    Julie_W Posts: 4
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    I just finished this book and it was enlightening. As you did, I also saw myslef in the pages of this book. I always wondered why just knowing that that cookie or bag of chips was in the kitchen was enough to drive me crazy until I would finally cave and go grab it and eat it even though I was not hungry. I just had to have it. I joke that the junk food calls to me. Now I get it! It's designed to! I highly recommend this book to everyone who has had trouble with overeating or uncontrolled eating. It really gets to the heart of the issue and the science behind those insatiable cravings. I've ordered my own copy to look back to as a reference.

    For anyone interested the book is
    "The End of Overeating- Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite" by David A. Kessler MD

    Amazon.com has a short 4min vidoe of the author talking about his book.
  • xonophone
    xonophone Posts: 474 Member
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    I'm glad someone else here liked the book as much as I did. I am proud to say that in the 6 months since I read the book I have not eaten any fast food, nor have I eaten at any chain restaurants. Even under "dire" circumstances when I am in a big rush and need to eat on the run, I will instead run into a supermarket now and get some fruit, cheese, maybe pre-chopped veggies, yogurt...anything to avoid eating chicken or beef that really isn't true meat anymore, and coated with artificial flavorings that stimulate our endocrine system into craving more crap. I have found that by eating more healtful snacks and meals that consist of whole foods I don't crave food in general anymore either - so YAY to no more overeating! However, on the rare occasion when I do fall off the wagon (which tends to happen at social events) I find that it takes DAYS for my body to stop craving sugar, salt and fat!!! It's amazing how our bodies respond to what we put into it.

    I just finished another great book titled "The Omnivore's Dilemma." After reading it you will take your new eating habits one step further and seek out organic foods and grass-fed beef!
  • amg_89
    amg_89 Posts: 184
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    I haven't read "The End of Overeating" but I have started "The Omnivore's Dilemma" and I'm loving it! I"ll ook for the other one.
  • kanban
    kanban Posts: 1 Member
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    I picked up "The End of Overeating" after hearing the author on NPR a few weeks ago. I'm surprised there is not more discussion of this groundbreaking book by a former FDA commissioner--the guy directly responsible for the "Nutrition Facts" labels on food today!

    His concept is revolutionary, but unfortunately not as "sexy" as Atkins etc. and not easy to explain in a few words.

    The gist is that modern foods high in sugar, fat, and salt have retrained our brains to be hyperstimulated toward "rewarding" foods (I told you it was hard to explain). In the last section, he lays out a series of techniques you can use to rewire your brain to counter hyperstimulation and head off cravings - for example, mental rehearsal of what you will do when you encounter temptations--just like an elite athlete anticipates every aspect of a rehearsed dive, golf swing, tennis opponent's movement, etc.

    He also outlines principles of "Food Rehab."

    He talks about reframing the mental conversation about food - so instead of "I really want that, and it's just a cupcake", the internal discussion becomes: "I just ate and I don't need that cupcake, and if I eat it, I'll eat three, feel bad afterward, and spend the rest of the week trying to work it off."

    He also recommends following simple rules as a replacement for chaos of random modern eating - such as, "I never eat donuts in the conference room," "fries are not on my plan," or "I only eat high-protein, low-sugar meals at lunch." Ideally, the rules are based on the actual triggers that you document - the ones that send you into unplanned or uncontrollable eating. For example, if tasting a bit of your child's ice cream sparks a craving that results in your raiding the snack drawer, the rule becomes "I never sample my kids' ice cream".

    It also helps NOT to have a snack drawer... but his point is that you CANNOT win simply by trying to avoid temptation. in our society, it is impossible to avoid easy opportunities to eat incredibly bad, calorie-dense, craving-inducing food.
  • xonophone
    xonophone Posts: 474 Member
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    Thanks for your input Kanban! I too was hoping for a lively discussion about this book.

    Personally, I would like to say that some of his strategies were ones I had begun to employ before I even read the book: mental rehearsal, establishing food rules, and the most important one for me: planning meals ahead! Also, as a student of science, I equate what he is saying about hyperstimulating foods, to what I have also learned about drug/substance abuse, which is to say that they are all substances that stimulate the pleasure-center of the brain: the hypothalamus. Over time, the hypothalamus needs more and more of the stimuli to have that satisfying effect. Truly, those sugar, fat and salt-laden foods are very addictive and hard to quit.

    Good luck to you on your healthful eating plan!
  • jbootman
    jbootman Posts: 145 Member
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    I want to revive this topic for any new and some of you who have motivation or other issues.

    This summer I came across this by accident at the library and am now 65 pounds lighter,

    no magic pills, no special foods, no exercise,

    just calories in calories out

    and most important low sugar, low salt and low fat,

    at the beginning it was scary as anyone addiction breaking will tell you, I soon found the strength to change my habits, and now the cravings are actually lessening,

    it is not fun, but it is really working, and best of all I see food not as fun, a social activity, a shopping activity or anything other than fuel,

    nutrition has become very important, if I am going to eat a calorie it had better be carrying lots of vitamins and micro nutrients,

    I beg each and everyone here to read this book
  • Sporty98
    Sporty98 Posts: 321 Member
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    Just bought the book.....I'm having a hard time putting it down! It's well written and makes a lot of sense!
  • jbootman
    jbootman Posts: 145 Member
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    brava, your life will never be the same, I have such a hard time looking at restaurant or fast food now, which of course is a good thing,

    just horrid how the food industry can only seem to increase the taste by fat/salt/sugar,

    wait until you read about them putting the meat into washing machine like machines to pretenderize them for us!!!!

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