I give up. For a month now I have been intending to write a post about the information-packed book The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite by Dr. David Kessler, a former FDA commissioner. This book is a brilliantly written explanation of how overeating is biologically and culturally driven—not a character flaw. Kessler reviews an incredible range of research detailing how the food industry, our evolving lifestyle, and marketing influences have, in combination, altered our biological self-regulatory mechanisms and how increasing numbers of people of all ages are being “set up” for a lifetime of overeating and an obsessive relationship with food.
It’s great stuff. And each time I sit down to write about one portion of it, I feel like I’m leaving something out. You deserve the full meal deal.
Knowledge is power and there is a lot of knowledge in this book. The more we know about how food influences us, the more we are able to make conscious choices about how and what we eat. As Kessler points out, awareness of the factors that drive us to overeat and to crave foods that are high in sugar, fat, and salt is the first essential step in breaking the cycle and creating a new relationship with food.
Knowledge also helps us let go of inaccurate and unhelpful guilt and self blame. The truth is, there are important reasons that Americans weigh more and eat more than ever.
How to make time to digest all this helpful information when you’re already very busy? Here’s what I did. I listened to the unabridged version on CD while I was driving. This is a listen (and a read) that I highly recommend.
Take good care,
Melissa
