Helpful Score: 3
Sugar Busters! was first independently published in New Orleans and sold an amazing 100,000 copies by word of mouth. Its advice may be hard to swallow for most Americans, as it advocates squelching your sweet tooth in order to lose weight. Those who follow the diet, however, swear by it, and no wonder: excess sugar consumption has been linked to depression, impaired immune function, and, of course, weight gain, as the body can almost effortlessly convert sugar to fat. Because sugar comes in so many different forms and hides out in unexpected places (carrots, beets, and white bread, among others) the authors list what foods are safe and which ones should be avoided and include a two-week menu plan for getting started. They also tempt the taste buds with recipes for unheard-of "diet" dishes such as Eggs Sardou and Filet Mignon with Bleu Cheese.
This book will be too basic for anyone with a solid knowledge of nutrition, but for those who are overdoing the sweet stuff and want some handholding and help with shedding excess weight, Sugar Busters! can do nothing but help.
This book will be too basic for anyone with a solid knowledge of nutrition, but for those who are overdoing the sweet stuff and want some handholding and help with shedding excess weight, Sugar Busters! can do nothing but help.
Helpful Score: 2
Ever heard of a fat caveman? Today's dieters should follow their ancestors' lead, proclaim the authors of this update to their bestselling original. For hundreds of thousands of years, the human diet consisted of unrefined foods that were high in fiber, low in sugar and low on the glycemic index. Eating similarly now-avoiding white flour, white potatoes, white rice, sugar, soft drinks and highly processed foods in general (the "basic principles" of a diet that's been "field-tested by the human digestive system throughout the eons")-will help people lose weight and keep it off, the authors argue. Their reasoning is sound (high blood sugar triggers the release of insulin, the "fat-storage hormone" and the "CEO of metabolism"; the less the body lives in fat storage mode, the better), and the lifestyle they propose is simple (though it goes beyond just chucking the 5-lb bag of Domino into the trash). Try eating six small meals a day, don't eat after 8 p.m.; read the labels of all breads and cereals to find the hidden sugars and stock your refrigerator with vegetables and lean meats, the authors say. In chapters that are straightforward and focused, the authors consider childhood obesity and diabetes, discuss artificial sweeteners and alcohol, offer recipes from restaurants around the country and answer FAQs from Sugar Busters everywhere. For those with the willpower to cut out the convenience foods, this will be a helpful guide to eating better.
Helpful Score: 2
It's such a famous book, I don't know what can I say else. It was written by 3 M.D.s. It contains recipes and 14-day meal plan. It was my first book that helped me to regain my health after years of consuming too much sugar (including fruit!) and feeling awful every day.
Helpful Score: 1
This has some good information about why sugar is so bad but it doesn't really cover any tremendously new material from what has already been said in every other low-carb book. The diet itself is very flexible -- almost too flexible -- with few rules except don't eat sugar and refined carbs. I tend to need a more structured diet than what this book offers. It's interesting to see it from a New Orleans viewpoint, however, which is where the authors are from.
