Rethinking Thin: The New Science of Weight Loss---and the Myths and Realities of Dieting [Paperback] Review

Gina Kolata's "Rethinking Thin" deserves a place on the best-seller list.It is a comprehensive and highly readable examination of why most diets fail. Her thesis is rooted in science and research dating back as far as the 1940s. Many of her findings will be no surprise to people who have struggled with their weight. Kolata's bottom line: genetics play a far bigger role in weight than will power, exercise, or food choices.

The book begins with details of a University of Pennsylvania study. A group of obese volunteers are divided into two groups (one using the Atkins diet, the other a low calorie diet) and agree to have their progress monitored very closely over a two year period. Most lose some weight (typically 10% of their body weight) before hunger takes over and they find themselves backsliding.

The chapters about this U Penn study alternate with others in which Kolata examines the science of why it's so hard to lose weight and keep it off. The short version: once a body begins to lose weight, it switches into a kind of starvation mode. It wishes to hold onto the fat it has and tricks the person into thinking they're hungrier than they actually are. These two things combined make it an uphill battle. Kolata cites a University of Minnesota study in which normal sized men suddenly ate half their usual calories. They lost weight, but soon began behaving bizarrely. They became obsessed with eating, consuming up to five times their usual amount of food. Others showed strange mood swings. This goes a long way in explaining why the weight comes back for those who have the obesity gene.

This book highlights studies that many people ignore. For instance, an eight year, $20 million study done by researchers at Johns Hopkins which attempted to stave off the obesity crisis in children. The reserachers deliberately selected high risk schools, where children were getting two meals a day. The program adjusted the fat content in food the children were being served (by about 10%), introduced more daily exercise, and educated the children about nutrition. These measures were not enough to lead to any weight loss.

Anyone who has ever lost weight knows why: it takes a lot of effort to lose even a little bit of weight. Light exercise does very little (although it may have other health benefits) and hunger is a very difficult thing to ignore. Kolata pushes for a more tolerant society, that accepts that weight loss is very difficult to maintain, and asks for an end to the inaccurate idea that weight loss is totally within everyone's control. Genetics are different, she concludes, and some people will have an easier time losing weight than others.

There really is no reason why these findings need be controversial. And, yet, they will be. The same day I finished the book, two national magazines came out with cover stories about women losing over 100 lbs each. These types of pieces are very popular --profiles of shiny happy weight loss success stories. The fact that most of these people will put the weight back on is never addressed. The fact that they are starving and miserable is glossed over in comments like "nothing tastes as good as it feels to be thin." Everyone loves a luck and pluck success story.

This is why "Rethinking Thin" is so important. Instead of putting a shiny gloss on hard facts, it gets to the bottom of things. It doesn't address every facet of this issue (it badly lacks a chapter on those rare successes at weight loss) but I highly recommend it. Definitely one of the best books I've read this year.

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