The Obesity Code: the bestselling guide to unlocking the secrets of weight loss: 1

Great book. A glossary would be a good addition for the big words (offering a conceptual understanding) , of which there are not too many. It's not really a "diet" , that word infers a lifetime if you look up the derivation of the word. A lot of common sense and offers hope to all those people who've been counting calories for decades, not knowing weight gain is actually hormonal. The fasting aspect is another weapon you can add to your arsenal in the fight against obesity. I did a one page precis which I'll paste here. Hopefully someone will find it helpful. My notes from reading the book The Obesity Code by Jason Fung. https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1925228797/ref=cm_sw_r_apa_i_nHm6EbTSQMBS5 (I don't make anything from this) Weight loss/gain, is hormonal, not based on calorie intake. You can eat more calories than another person and still lose weight. Which is better for you... 100 calories of broccoli? Or 100 calories of Krispy Kreme doughnuts? Kind of destroys that theory... Intermittent fasting 24 to 36 hours....build up to it...gets insulin levels low, the key to weight loss. This is the missing link, the key to resettling your weight at a lower figure. You can eat a perfect diet but still not lose weight because your "set weight" remains the same. Whole foods...brown rice, spelt flour, sour dough/wholemeal breads (easier to digest) Cut right down on wheat/bread/rice/pasta and desserts and pastries...ideally eat none. Apple cyder vinegar regularly before meals... add to your water bottle...drink all day. It reduces insulin spike by over 20% when you eat. Moderate protein, protein causes an insulin response too, especially lean cuts like chicken breast. Avoid processed foods in packages, especially if it has more than around 5 ingredients. Increase fat...dont worry...it will satiate you, you'll have less cravings and be less inclined to eat junk. Low carb fruits and vegetables...berries, plums, cherries, apricots, watermelon, kiwi, strawberry, raspberry, cantaloupe, clementine, blackberry, peach, grapefruit, olives, honeydew, blackberries. Vegetables...grean leafy, peppers, broccoli, mushrooms, asparagus, courgettes, spinach, avocado, green beans, cucumber, radish, aubergine, tomato etc. No fast food! Sucrose is 50% glucose and 50% fructose. Fructose can only be processed by the liver, and excess amounts will directly cause insulin resistance, which causes more insulin to be released (the vicious cycle of type 2 diabetes) Bone broth..home made is better. Skip breakfast...eat in the afternoon...go as long as you can. Organ meats occasionally... Liver and kidney...others if you can stomach it. Soaking in milk first cleans and softens it(the liver). Drinks: coffee with cream or butter or black, herb teas, coconut water, mineral water are good. Don't count calories, no need, the word diet is always used wrongly, to describe a temporary eating plan. But the origin of the word means "a way of life"...something you do forever! Middle English: from Old French diete (noun), dieter (verb), via Latin from Greek diaita ‘a way of life’. Don't snack, very important!!!!! ..eat proper meals... 3 but preferably 2 meals a day. Some people eat once a day but its not necessary to lose weight. You can do without that energy bar, crisps or that fizzy drink! Fat fills you up, creates little or no insulin response, and gives you energy for the day. Eat fruit as a dessert...with Greek yougurt is nice...full fat of course, honey on top in moderation. Honey is the only whole food that will cause a big spike in insulin. High blood sugar does not equal high insulin btw. Don't starve yourself, but eat till you are just satisfied, not lethargic...like after Christmas Dinner. Your brain has to go without some blood to digest a big meal so your thinking will be slow. Fasting will help reset your "set weight"...the weight your body always tries to revert to, hormones will make you eat more, and hormones will control the speed the food travels through the gut. The "set weight" tends to go up every year to the degree you eat foods that cause insulin to be released. This is like a toolbox. The more points you apply the more chance you will have of success. Everything centres around insulin, eating foods that will not cause a big spike, and having long periods without food or drink, to reset your "metabolism"...the average level of your insulin. Exercise is good, it helps nutrients reach your muscles. But it's only 5% of the battle. What you eat/drink and WHEN is the most important thing to lose weight. My notes from reading the book The Obesity Code by Jason Fung. Weight loss/gain, is hormonal, not based on calorie intake. You can eat more calories than another person and still lose weight. Which is better for you... 100 calories of broccoli? Or 100 calories of Krispy Kreme doughnuts? Kind of destroys that theory... Intermittent fasting 24 to 36 hours....build up to it...gets insulin levels low, the key to weight loss. This is the missing link, the key to resettling your weight at a lower figure. You can eat a perfect diet but still not lose weight because your "set weight" remains the same. Whole foods...brown rice, spelt flour, sour dough/wholemeal breads (easier to digest) Cut right down on wheat/bread/rice/pasta and desserts and pastries...ideally eat none. Apple cyder vinegar regularly before meals... add to your water bottle...drink all day. It reduces insulin spike by over 20% when you eat. Moderate protein, protein causes an insulin response too, especially lean cuts like chicken breast. Avoid processed foods in packages, especially if it has more than around 5 ingredients. Increase fat...dont worry...it will satiate you, you'll have less cravings and be less inclined to eat junk. Low carb fruits and vegetables...berries, plums, cherries, apricots, watermelon, kiwi, strawberry, raspberry, cantaloupe, clementine, blackberry, peach, grapefruit, olives, honeydew, blackberries. Vegetables...grean leafy, peppers, broccoli, mushrooms, asparagus, courgettes, spinach, avocado, green beans, cucumber, radish, aubergine, tomato etc. No fast food! Sucrose is 50% glucose and 50% fructose. Fructose can only be processed by the liver, and excess amounts will directly cause insulin resistance, which causes more insulin to be released (the vicious cycle of type 2 diabetes) Bone broth..home made is better. Skip breakfast...eat in the afternoon...go as long as you can. Organ meats occasionally... Liver and kidney...others if you can stomach it. Soaking in milk first cleans and softens it(the liver). Drinks: coffee with cream or butter or black, herb teas, coconut water, mineral water are good. Don't count calories, no need, the word diet is always used wrongly, to describe a temporary eating plan. But the origin of the word means "a way of life"...something you do forever! Middle English: from Old French diete (noun), dieter (verb), via Latin from Greek diaita ‘a way of life’. Don't snack, very important!!!!! ..eat proper meals... 3 but preferably 2 meals a day. Some people eat once a day but its not necessary to lose weight. You can do without that energy bar, crisps or that fizzy drink! Fat fills you up, creates little or no insulin response, and gives you energy for the day. Eat fruit as a dessert...with Greek yougurt is nice...full fat of course, honey on top in moderation. Honey is the only whole food that will cause a big spike in insulin. High blood sugar does not equal high insulin btw. Don't starve yourself, but eat till you are just satisfied, not lethargic...like after Christmas Dinner. Your brain has to go without some blood to digest a big meal so your thinking will be slow. Fasting will help reset your "set weight"...the weight your body always tries to revert to, hormones will make you eat more, and hormones will control the speed the food travels through the gut. The "set weight" tends to go up every year to the degree you eat foods that cause insulin to be released. This is like a toolbox. The more points you apply the more chance you will have of success. Everything centres around insulin, eating foods that will not cause a big spike, and having long periods without food or drink, to reset your "metabolism"...the average level of your insulin. Exercise is good, it helps nutrients reach your muscles. But it's only 5% of the battle. What you eat/drink and WHEN is the most important thing to lose weight.

I bought this 2 1/2 months ago and have been following the guidelines for the past 2 months. I am getting great results, feeling so much more energetic, stopped feeling the hunger pangs I used to get and best of all I get to eat everything I want, but the right foods. Fasting is a really interesting concept I never thought I would ever do but I have done around two 24-hour fasts a week since reading this. I am losing weight as well which is excellent, the real test if whether it stays off, but that will take 1-2 years until I am able to say. I have lost lost of weight on various diets over the years but this appears to promise to be sustainable and has a program to stop the body from attempting homeostasis (ie. to take your back up to your pre-diet weight). It is EASY to follow, and cheap! The science behind it really makes sense too, I completely get it, wish I'd have read this years ago. The basics of the theory is that our weight is controlled by insulin and therefore we should try not to spike our insulin too much and too often. I can only say I feel amazing doing this, I love it. This is what I have been doing: 1. Eating 2 meals a day, a later breakfast and and earlier supper 2. Drinking water/tea/coffee only, no fizzy drinks 3. Not eating refined carbohydrates - sugar, pasta, bread, etc 4. Having 18 hours between meals, eg. supper at 4pm and breakfast at 10am. 5. Making sure I eat enough calories a day, so also eating 90% dark chocolate and nuts as well, which I have grown to love. Please please read this, even if you are not overweight, it will teach you so much about how your body operates that we seem to have forgotten over the years. A real eye opener. This is the best book written by Dr Fung in my opinion, I have read all of this others since reading this. I would also recommend Eat to Live by Dr Fuhrman, which with this book has given me a great grounding in nutrition and health.

Really informative and helpful. Going to put to good use and see how it goes. Brings together and dispels previous research and helpfully outline Big Food hijacking Health organisations and essentially spreading diet fads that were about profits and not health. Some helpful resources and excellent. Ill come back in 6 months to update findings from my own application

I enjoyed this book, it was an eye opener to realise the multiple influences of weight gain and why there is no ‘one size fits all’, I hope to take away some very useful tips on how to manage my own situation and implement lifestyle changes. The reason I gave 4 stars is because it can be a bit repetitive in parts, but I suppose that’s for the purpose of reiterating the point and the supporting evidence, and some parts did go over my head slightly. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who struggles with weight management and yo-yo dieting.

I'm writing this review 18 months after reading the book because after this time I can conclude that it's been life-changing. On the book itself, I'd say it was a fascinating and compelling read. Fung clearly explains quite complicated physiological mechanisms and provides evidence that I found very convincing (with one exception). 18 months on, the bits that have stuck are not the complicated issues but simply: 1 My body, and especially my liver, needs a regular rest from eating and from the constant blood insulin levels that frequent eating produces. 2 I'm probably stuck with whatever level of insulin resistance (and consequent stored fat) that developed through my adult life (I'm over 60) but I can help prevent further damage. 3 I shouldn't feel hungry when I fast intermittently (This was the life changer for me because I found it's true!). 4 Try to avoid discussing your intermittent diet regime with family and friends. They will simply go on and on with the usual uniformed diet rubbish that I used to believe myself. The one exception in terms of evidence, was the value of cider vinegar. I wasn't convinced by Fung's evidence, so I haven't tried it. So, how has the book changed my life? I haven't lost much weight but nor have I really tried to. I have lost about 6 pounds over 18 months but importantly this is against a history of putting on a pound or 2 every year. What I have done is put 'breakfast' back to 7pm or later every day. I only consume water or black coffee/tea up to that time. And the magic part is that I don't feel hungry even when sitting with others who are eating scrumptious meals. So, it doesn't require any willpower! If it did, I couldn't have sustained it. I still feel amazed and empowered every day when I realise that I haven't eaten for 19-21 hours and I don't feel hungry. As Fung points out its easy and its free! In May this this year my diet was put to a pretty tough test. I cycled the North Coast 500 over 9 days. This is a challenging and hilly route, averaging about 57 miles/day. I didn't expect to stick to my fasting regime but over 15,00 miles of training in 11 weeks before the trip (60-85 mile days) I discovered that it was not a problem! I added calorie-free electrolyte replacement to my water bottles and never experienced dips in energy due to low blood sugar. With that now behind me I am as confident as I can be that I won't need or want to change my eating pattern in future. This book gave me a basis for trying something that flew in the face of a received wisdom that had me trapped in a cycle of eating and craving, which seems to be the common experience of almost everyone I know. I would strongly recommend it as a serious contribution to better understanding of the effects of diet on insulin release and the effects of excessive insulin release on long-term health.

If you have any interest in weight loss, fitness, obesity and related subjects, you may have tried to find out the facts. You may have tried to get the right information that will really help you. I did the same. It gets confusing very fast. Every expert seems to contradict every other expert. Fads and fashions come and go. It's REALLY hard to get good information that isn't just someone pushing their own pet theory to make a profit. THIS is the book that will help you. THIS is the book that will actually explain obesity properly, once and for all. The author covers all the theories and diets you've heard about (and may have tried) and explains where they get things right, and where they get things wrong. He backs up everything with a wealth of clear, medical evidence. He explains that obesity is a 'multifactorial' problem -- there are many different factors involved, many pieces in the puzzle. He also explains the REAL solution, which has to do with insulin not calories, and involves what you eat and when. The book is easy to read and understand. Although it's full of good data and excellent science, it's written for laymen and anyone can follow the explanations. This is a truly wonderful book. It's the 'Holy Grail', the one that finally, at long last, dispels all the myths and presents the clear truth about the causes of obesity and how to reverse it. The book is full of good science, good writing, common sense, good reasoning and clear answers. It is very rare to find a book that deals with its subject so comprehensively, yet so clearly and helpfully. This is a magnificent book. If you want to lose weight, or if you know someone who does, THIS is the book you want.

Everything in this book rang so true for me. I've struggled with my weight since I hit puberty and over the years, I've tried all the diets. Sometimes I was pretty successful (5 stone lost, 2 stone lost - you get the picture) but it always crept back on. Now in my 40's I struggle to lose weight without seriously restricting what I eat to under 1000 cals per day which just isn't sustainable as a busy working mum with a FT job and a sideline business of my own. My GP actually recommended this book when I went to see if we could adjust my migraine meds as I felt they were contributing to my inability to lose weight. I've been practicing 18:6 for the last week (with a single 24 hour fast towards the end of the week) and during my eating periods I've avoided sugar and refined carbs as much as possible (but no-one could say I'm being strictly paleo or keto - my carbs are at about 50%, fat 30% and protein 20%) and I've lost an amazing 7.2lb in that week! Plus, I feel amazing and my osteoarthritis symptoms have improved hugely. My skin is glowing and I feel calmer, more centred. I did have one nasty 36 hour migraine in the middle of the week but I toughed it out with codeine and loads of water and it didn't let it pull me off the schedule. For me, not snacking is a revelation - I nibbled constantly on "healthy" ricecakes, fruit, diet sodas. I had no idea this was killing my ability to lose weight! Now I'm eating butter, roast chicken (with the skin on), cheese, sirloin steak and even an Indian takeaway and really enjoying my meals - and I still lost over half a stone! I feel liberated by intermittent fasting and that food doesn't exert the same control it once did. I can't wait to see how much my health and weight will have changed in 6 months time! Update: I'm 25 days in now and have lost 16lb! I feel like Dr Fung has given me back my love of food - it's no longer a constant battle. My macro ratio is now at about 25% carbs, 20% protein and 55% fat - the lower carbs pretty much happened naturally as I seem to want them less now. I'm also regularly doing 24 hour fasts - a minimum of twice a week. I've had takeaways every single weekend whilst doing this (and I don't go for "healthier" options - chips, nan, battered onion rings are on my menu!) and still had incredible weight loss. I can't recommend this book/way of life enough!

This is a very interesting book, but I’m quite surprised that it has such rave reviews because the diet Dr Chung is recommending is not new or even a secret. Dr Chung says as much himself (on page 233 of the paperback version). Basically, his diet can be summarised as follows: 1) Avoid processed carbohydrates and sugar/sweeteners like the plague (this is the most important rule of all – if you do nothing else, do this one thing). 2) Eat plenty of fruit, vegetables, fish, fibre and whole grains (so wholemeal, not white, processed bread, pasta and rice). 3) Eat fat and protein – it’s fine, they won’t make you fat. 4) Choose unprocessed home cooked meals over processed microwave ready meals if you can (to avoid the added salt, sugar etc). 5) Feast (Eat) for 12 hours and Fast (Sleep) for 12 hours. Don’t eat outside of a 12-hour window per 24-hour cycle. Cut it down to 10 hours if you can. 6) Don’t snack – stick to three meals a day (within the 12-hour ‘eating’ window) so your insulin/blood sugar levels have a chance to recover. 7) Don’t worry about eating breakfast – if you’re not hungry first thing, skip it (if you do eat, don’t eat sugary cereals or pastries). 8) Fast a couple of times a week to lower/reset your insulin/blood sugar levels. 9) Get at least 7-9 hours’ sleep at the same time each night to avoid sleep deprivation raising your cortisol (stress) levels. 10) Vinegar (acetic acid) seems to help lower blood sugar/insulin levels (although this is a recent discovery, so there is no long term, only short term, data to support this). 11) Don’t worry about exercise – it only accounts for 5% of weight loss. 12) Don’t beat yourself up too much over your lack of self-control - 70% of the tendency to obesity is inherited – just try and make the most of the 30% you have control over. So it looks like it’s a combination of: -The Paleolithic Diet (whole grains, fish, fruit, vegetables etc) -The Atkins Diet (low carbs/high fat) - Michael Mosely’s 5:2 diet (‘Fasting Diet’) - Professor John Yudkin’s 1972 book ‘Pure, White and Deadly: How Sugar is Killing Us’ Versions of these have been around for a while, in some cases decades, and they keep being rediscovered every few years. (The Low Carb/High Fat diet was ‘invented’ by Dr Banting in 1862 and a version of the Paleolithic Diet dates back to John Harvey Kellogg in the 1890s). The Insulin-Resistance Theory What is new however – and why this book is so interesting - is Dr Chung’s ‘insulin resistance theory’ which is evidence-based using over a hundred years of reliable research and which he goes through and explains in great detail over six parts and 18 chapters. Every assertion he makes has a reference note and there are 32pp of medical references at the back. This adds some credibility to what he is saying. Dr Chung’s insight/argument is that obesity is a hormonal problem, not a calorific one, so cutting down on calories never works because it simply slows down your metabolism. Weight is controlled by the hormone insulin which promotes the absorption of glucose (blood sugar) from the blood into the body to use as energy that keeps us functioning. Most glucose gets used up straight away, but any excess is stored as fat. Obese people have far too much insulin sloshing around in their system all the time, which leads to insulin resistance where the amount of insulin in their bodies is set at a permanently high level like a faulty thermostat. They should therefore aim to keep their glucose/insulin levels low at all times with no high ‘spikes’. Carbohydrates and sugar (in its various forms) increase insulin more than most things that we consume, so cutting down on these two items has the biggest, most immediate, benefit. Most of the book is taken up with a detailed explanation of this and ‘The Solution’ part is only 19pp at the very end. I have to admit there were times when, as I was reading through, I was tempted just to skip to the ‘Solution’ bit and ask ‘So, what’s the big secret then?’, but persevering is worthwhile because his explanations back up his conclusions. Dr Chung isn’t a ‘diet doctor’ as such and his original interest in weight loss came from treating patients with kidney failure. He is a Canadian kidney specialist and he realised that many of his patients’ kidney failure had been caused by type 2 diabetes and that the diabetes had been caused, in turn, by obesity. This was what led him to look closely at all the research on dieting that had been carried out over the last century or so to try and work out what worked, what didn’t and why. He makes it all sound very reasonable, but of course changing how you eat and then sticking to it for most of the time is always the most difficult part!

Best book about obesity, diet and overall health I've read...ever. It introduces scientific concepts in an easy way, such as everyone can understand it (I'm not in the health sector and I had no problem understanding what was being said). Buy it if you can

I'm shocked by how brainwashed we have been, Dr Jason proves that obesity is NOT a caloric imbalance. It's a hormonal imbalance and it's a multifactorial disease. I recommend it!

Zeer goed boek Leuk geschreven en een eye opener

I have heard of Dr Fung from fasting podcasts I listen to, he's certainly an authority on that matter. The book reads easy as it combines science with entertaining historical data. I will purchase the Cancer Code next. Highly recommend this author to anyone who wants to "hack" their insulin sensitivity, get healthier, and rationalize the WHY's of weight loss difficulties.

Já tentei perder peso - e perdi - pelo menos 3 vezes na minha vida. Sempre consegui bons resultados, mas dentro de um ano o peso sempre volta, e com reforços. A culpa sempre fica do lado do obeso, que se esforça MUITO mais que qualquer outra pessoa sem tendência a acumular gordura, mesmo comendo uma fração do que pessoas magras comem. A abordagem do Dr Fung é clara, se baseia em estudos científicos e oferece um novo paradigma pra se entender a obesidade e tratar sua causa original, e não aparente. Deveria ser leitura obrigatória pra professores de academia, nutricionistas e médicos que lidam com pacientes obesos.