Rarely do I give a book this short five stars, or now, here on Storygraph, 4.5 or more, but it's worth it.

Great book overall, which says we need to move past the “dietary wars” of the past generation and look at what we know now on nutrition and weight.

 

Those dietary wars, Schatzker notes, began back in the late 1900s, when USDA et al worried Americans were eating too much saturated fat. So, while trying not to offend the meat and dairy industry too much, it said more grains, fruits and veggies. Unfortunately, on grains, it didn’t say white vs wheat flour.

 

Obesity rates climbed.

 

Atkins/keto diets said “eat more meat.” Even more, and more vociferously, the likes of Gary Taubes said “eat more fats,” and even a James Hamblin at the Atlantic claims sturated fats have been overly villainized, based on relatively recent studies he knows have some ethical questions.

 

A  pox on all your houses, Schatzker says. 

 

 

Not so fast, Gary Taubes, attacking “Big Sugar.”

 

Schatzker then notes that, while there has been less research, synthetic fats may cause a similar problem. And, they’re even more sneaky. Lots of people use NutraSweet instead of Stevia in tea, coffee, etc. Nobody uses the now-discredited Olestra instead of either lard or Crisco in a pie crust made at home, and nobody uses that or other fake fats instead of canola oil in cornbread or frying.

 

For the idea that if, we eat naturally, our diets will be in tune with our needs, he cites the custom of many poor women of eating dirt. In reality, he says, unconsciously, they’re looking to ingest iron and other minerals.

 

He also, starting with pellagra due to niacin deficiency in the old South and old Italy, may illustrate another problem. The US ultimate fortified white flour. Italy did not. Is the niacin, and other B vitamins, fueling a “sugar overburn”?

 

 

Americans eat one-quarter the world’s fake fats he says. And, an added issue is that, unlike with sugar, there’s no taste buds for “fat,” though there is the mouthfeel issue.

 

Fake fats imitate all of real fat properties worse than artificial sweeteners imitate sugar, so there’s more of them, often blended. Simplesse. Splendid. CrystaLean. Lorelite. Avicel. Methocell. Creamfibre 7000. But, they’re not named that on food boxes. 

 

You, and I need to look for “milk protein” or “whey protein concentrate.” Or “citrus fiber.” No, really.

 

Other additives like gums, modified starches and maltrodextrin are probably also increasing this mismatch.

 

So WHY do we eat more food if we’re eating dietetic food to replace that? Schatzker goes into evolutionary biology plus behavioral psychology. We unconsciously think we’re “missing” calories. And, we’re unsure when we’re going to get more. So, we load up.

 

Solution? While not mentioning him by name, it would seem to come from Michael Pollan. Eat less-refined or wholly unrefined foods. That includes non-factory meats, with their own vitamin, antibiotic and hormonal supplementations.