THE THIN GAME: Dieting Seams and Dietary Sense

Obesity may be the nation's leading health hazard, Bayrd maintains, and this no-nonsense guide to successful weight loss and maintenance casts a wary eye at the seams, fads, and diet books that eat up millions of dollars a year. Written with back-up support from Mayo Clinic consultants, it evaluates wonder drugs, dubious dietary plans like Ayds candies, vitamin therapies and health food principles, the value of exercise and non-meat proteins, and Jean Mayer's deadly trinity--salt, sugar, and high-cholesterol counts. Also, why diets a la Atkins or Stillman or Linn don't keep the weight off and why only ""fat"" doctors--as opposed to their patients--seem to profit from their practice. They recommend several dietary programs which take into account human needs (such as menu variety) and nutritional ones as well, and they outline numerous behavior modification techniques (such as eating even snacks off a plate) intended to encourage safer eating habits. Taken in conjunction with the Consumer Guide editors' Rating the Exercises (p. 363), this size fits all.