Diet Cults, Matt Fitzgerald
Diet Cults, Matt Fitzgerald
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Diet Cults
The Surprising Fallacy at the Core of Nutrition Fads and a Guide to Healthy Eating for the Rest of Us

Author: Matt Fitzgerald

Narrator: Stephen R. Thorne

Unabridged: 9 hr 23 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/15/2014

Synopsis

From the national bestselling author of Racing Weight, Matt Fitzgerald exposes the irrationality, half-truths, and downright impossibility of a "single right way" to eat and reveals how to develop rational, healthy eating habits.From "the Four-Hour Body" to "Atkins," there are diet cults to match seemingly any mood and personality type. Everywhere we turn, someone is preaching the "one true way" to eat for maximum health. Paleo Diet advocates tell us that all foods less than twelve thousand years old are the enemy. Low-carb gurus demonize carbs, and then there are the low-fat prophets. But they agree on one thing: there is only one true way to eat for maximum health. The first clue that this is a fallacy is the sheer variety of diets advocated. Indeed, while all of these competing views claim to be backed by science, a good look at actual nutritional science suggests it is impossible to identify a single best way to eat. Fitzgerald advocates an agnostic, rational approach to eating habits based on one's own habits, lifestyle, and genetics and body type. Many professional athletes already practice this "Good Enough" diet, and now we can too—and ditch the brainwashing of these diet cults for good.

About Matt Fitzgerald

Matt Fitzgerald is an acclaimed endurance-sports and nutrition writer and certified sports nutritionist. His book Iron War was long-listed for the 2012 William Hill Sports Book of the Year, and he is the author of the bestseller Racing Weight. Fitzgerald is a columnist on Competitor.com and Active.com and has contributed to Bicycling, Men’s Health, Triathlete, Men’s Journal, Outside, Runner’s World, Shape, and Women’s Health. He has ghostwritten for such sports celebrities as Dean Karnazes and Kara Goucher.

About Stephen R. Thorne

Stephen R. Thorne, winner of multiple AudioFile Earphones Awards for narration, is a professional actor and member of the resident acting company at Providence’s esteemed Trinity Repertory Company, where he has played Hamlet, Henry V, and Tom Joad.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Jess on December 11, 2014

I gave it 4 stars because it was a lot of fun to read, not because I thought it was particularly insightful or well researched. In fact, I disagree with a lot of what Fitzgerald writes here and feel he missed a big piece of the diet puzzle. I am an all or nothing person and terrible at moderating. I......more

Goodreads review by Emily Kestrel on October 11, 2015

I agree with the author's premise--that there is no one "perfect" diet that works for everyone, and that most of the rules and restrictions of popular diets are unnecessary, and sometimes silly. I also think that the "agnostic healthy eating" guidelines he provides in the last chapter seem sensible.......more

Goodreads review by John on August 22, 2019

Diet Cults surveys the scientific literature on many trendy diets like raw food, Atkins, South Beach, Zone, Paleo, Vegan, Superfoods, gluten-free, as well as protein supplements and shows that almost all have no scientific merit. To take the case of gluten-free, most people don't even know what glut......more

Goodreads review by Sve on January 14, 2023

I enjoyed this book that discusses the history of various diet fads and 'forbidden foods' to come to the common sense conclusion that one doesn't need the latest diet to eat in a balanced and healthy way.......more

Goodreads review by Sarah Obsesses over Books & Cookies on July 14, 2018

I wasn't expecting to read this and definitely wasn't expecting to finish it but I did. I've never heard of Matt Fitzgerald but I guess he's a big sports writer and long distance racer and stuff. He seems to have thoroughly researched this book. You get a sample of each kind of diet craze and why pe......more

Quotes

“Noting that there’s no single approach that works for everyone, but that each approach has effective elements (though some are only effective in the short term), Fitzgerald identifies what works and what doesn’t within each of the major weight-loss programs…Noting that motivation is a key component, he focuses on common sense: eat lots of fruit and vegetables, avoid processed foods, incorporate healthy oils, eat high-quality meat and seafood, and, of course, exercise.” Publishers Weekly

“[Fitzgerald’s] eating guidelines are basic: eat mostly from a list of essential and recommended foods—vegetables, fruits, nuts, healthy meats and fish, whole grains, and dairy—and eat less refined grains, processed meats, sweets, and fried and processed foods…The conversational writing is enjoyable and the content informative.” Library Journal

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