The Perricone Weight-loss Diet: A Simple 3-part Program To Lose The Fat, The Wrinkles, And The Years [Hardcover]

Nicholas Perricone (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 20, 2005

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Nicholas Perricone– respected physician, award-winning research scientist, and trusted expert on health and beauty–comes the biggest breakthrough in weight loss since Atkins.

Millions of women and men have restored youthful radiance, smoothness, and suppleness to their skin through Dr. Nicholas Perricone’s advice, care, and transformative eating plan–and all with the welcome yet unexpected benefit of losing excess weight along with the wrinkles! Building on this discovery, Dr. Perricone breaks new ground with his trademark anti-inflammatory program based on the foods, supplements, and lifestyle changes with the proven ability to accelerate fat loss by increasing metabolism and building and maintaining muscle mass.

Consider this staggering fact: As we age, we can expect to gain ten pounds of fat and lose five pounds of muscle each decade. In three easy steps, Dr. Perricone shows how to fight this weight gain and rebuild muscle mass, and avoid the haggard, aging, and drawn appearance that results from other weight-loss programs.

Inside The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet discover

• the rejuvenating and slimming secrets of the anti-inflammatory diet
• which foods, supplements, and lifestyle changes enable us to lose fat while maintaining muscle
• how to control hormones such as insulin and cortisol to lose weight
• how to maintain youthful, firm, and radiantly toned skin on the face and body during weight loss

As an added bonus, as you follow Dr. Perricone’s program you’ll sleep better, have more energy and less stress, and experience greater mental clarity without the food cravings. Lose the weight, the wrinkles, and the years!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In The Perricone Weight-loss Diet, the father of the Inflammation Theory of Aging reveals the role of internal micro-inflammations, caused mainly by additive-packed foods and a sedentary lifestyle, not only in accelerated aging, but also in unwanted weight gain. The good news he shares is: it is possible to slow down the clock, clear the skin, and shed the pounds by following a diet of whole foods and natural supplements, and by progressively adopting an "anti-inflammatory lifestyle", including quality sleep and stress-reducing activities (pet lovers will especially appreciate the passage on the healing power of pets.)

If Dr. Perricone’s division of high- versus low-glycemic index foods, and healthy (Omega-3-rich) versus unhealthy fats, doesn't especially sound like breakout news, he has to be credited for his uniquely convincing way of (re-) laying out these dietary principles, and for incorporating them into a global plan to achieve better health and weight loss. "Treat yourself well and the weight will come off," he suggests. And this anti-alarmist, anti-paternalistic, and confident delivery (he doesn't fear complimenting competitor Tammi Flynn on her sensible Three-Apple-a-Day Plan), paired with his stellar success record in the health field (The Perricone Prescription; The Perricone Promise), forces your attention.

Readers will dive effortlessly into the easy-flowing chapters, from "Breaking the Inflammation-Fat Connection" to "The 10 Top Food Groups for Permanent Weight Loss" (headed up with mouthwatering wild Alaskan salmon), to Perricone's signature threefold plan, which he promises will show dramatic results in as little as 14 days. Complete with a full 14-day meal plan, detailed nutritional information for each recipe, a seafood safety guide, and a supplement and organic food retailer guide, The Perricone Weight-loss Diet will naturally find its place on the eye-level shelf of your home library.-- Nathalie Farage

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Dr. Perricone doles out some advice to help you meet your weight-loss goals. Watch our Amazon exclusive video in high or low bandwidth.

Review

Advance praise for The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet

“This significant book shows that Dr. Perricone’s anti-inflammatory program is a powerful tool we have to fight excess weight gain. The anti-inflammatory foods and supplements introduced in this book enable us to fight metabolic syndrome, whose complications lead to obesity and diabetes. Utilizing a wide range of groundbreaking scientific discoveries, Dr. Perricone demonstrates once again that he is at the forefront in finding solutions to difficult problems. Highly recommended!”
–Harry G. Preuss M.D., M.A.C.N., C.N.S., professor of physiology, medicine, and pathology, Georgetown University Medical Center, and author of Maitake Magic

“The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet delivers a solid program that will melt away the pounds–while maintaining toned skin and healthy muscle mass. Dr. Perricone proves once again that chronic, subclinical inflammation is not only responsible for accelerated aging, wrinkles, and a host of degenerative diseases, it is at the basis of our current obesity epidemic. If you need to lose weight, this is the book!
–Oz Garcia, M.S., Ph.D., author of Look and Feel Fabulous Forever: The World’s Best Supplements, Anti-Aging Techniques, and High-Tech Health Secrets


“Unless we are morbidly obese, we don’t often think of excess weight as anything more than a cosmetic problem. However, in this extraordinary new book, Dr. Perricone proves otherwise. The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet unlocks the secret link between inflammation and unwanted weight gain. By implementing simple, effective strategies, both men and women can shed significant weight–without hunger or deprivation. A brilliant program that keeps its promise.”
–Vincent C. Giampapa, M.D., F.A.C.S., co-founder, American Academy for Anti-Aging Medicine, and author of Breaking the Aging Code : Maximizing Your DNA Function for Optimal Health and Longevity

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1 edition (September 20, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345485939
• ISBN-13: 978-0345485939
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (102 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #66,899 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Nicholas Perricone, MD, FACN, is a board certified clinical and research dermatologist. He completed his internship in Pediatrics at Yale Medical School and his Dermatology Residency at Ford Medical Center. Dr. Perricone is regarded as the father of the Inflammation Theory of Ageing. He is the author of the New York Times bestseller The Wrinkle Cure which reached # 1 on both the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times bestseller lists in 2002 with sales of one million copies. Dr. Perricone is certified by the American Board of Dermatology, is a Fellow of the New York Academy of Sciences and a Fellow of the American College of Nutrition. He is the recipient of the 2002 Eli Whitney Award, awarded annually to an outstanding individual for significant contribution to science.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

246 of 256 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An invaluable, approachable resource to any diet, August 23, 2006

By 

T. Levine (Fair Oaks, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Perricone Weight-loss Diet: A Simple 3-part Program To Lose The Fat, The Wrinkles, And The Years (Hardcover)

INTRODUCTION:

Over the last 2 months, I have lost over 40 pounds in fat. I have gone from 220 lbs to 180 lbs. In addition, I am walking 90 minutes a day or jogging 4 miles a day along with a variety of other activities. Essentially, I've changed my lifestyle, both in terms of diet, supplementation, and exercise. A large part of this weight loss and lifestyle change I attribute to many of the strategies I adopted by watching Dr. Perricone's PBS special, followed up with, of course, completely absorbing the information contained in Dr. Perricone's book, "The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet".

BOOK SUMMARY:

Dr. Perricone starts in PART i by making his case to you the reader, for the "Inflammation-Fat Connection", laying down basic principles that establish micro-inflammation as the root cause of the problem, and obesity simply a side-effect to this problem, along with various other aging ailments. He establishes that his strategy to deal with weight loss, is by dealing with micro-inflammation, the root cause, through diet, exercise (and other lifestyle changes), and supplementation. By attacking micro-inflammation, you not only achieve success with the battle of obesity, you also achieve success on a variety of other aging fronts. Essentially, Dr. Perricone presents this argument as an anti-aging program, focusing on weight loss as the emphasis for this book.

In PART II, the core of Dr. Perricone's book, he presents his 3 step program: Food, Supplements, and Lifestyle. In Step One, 10 specific food groups are presented to focus on, and these groups will surprise you. This is not a rehashing of the government food triangle by any stretch. The foods range from wild Alaskan Salmon, to Avocado and Acai, to Spices, Red Chile Peppers, and Yogurt. Each section provides a description of the food "supergroup", the factors that contribute to weight loss, the top choices, and the runner-up choices. In Step Two, Dr. Perricone provides his top 12 nutritional supplements that contribute to the reduction of micro-inflammation, the reduction of insulin resistance, the balancing of blood glucose, etc. Each section lists and describes each supplement, along with tips, and dosage recommendations. Step Three, describes the lifestyle changes to be implemented, including the benefits of exercise, fact sheets, safety tips, etc.

Part iii is called "THE PLAN", and this is where Dr. Perricone provides his 14 day weight loss diet. This section attempts to bring together the information from Part 1 and Part 2 with a sample program for weight loss. Various tips, suggestions, and reminders introduce the plan, followed with a rigid 14 day regimin, an ecclectic recipe section, a thorough Appendix that covers dieting questions, a complete Resource Guide, References, and Index.

PROS:

1. EXPERTISE
This is not an ordinary dieting book. Dr. Perricone is a leading researcher on the subject of anti-aging, and his theories, approaches, and research represents the cutting edge of modern thought on the subject. Every claim he makes, is backed by thoroughly researched scientific data. His reference section speaks volumes. Not one claim is made in this book, without completely documented case studies from reputable resources and noted scientific peer journals. If you are interested or curious on the subject of aging, when Dr. Perricone speaks, you should listen.

2. APPROACHABLE
This book is completely approachable. Dr. Perricone gives you 10 food groups, and 12 supplements to learn. That's basically it. The solution is elegant in design. You read the section on the food or supplement you're interested in, and learn not only what it is, but WHY it is important to your weight loss goals, what it does to your body physiologically, and what studies prove its positive properties.

3. COMPLIMENTARY
This book compliments all approaches to weight loss. It is not really just a diet. Moreso, it is a strategy. Dr. Perricone takes weight loss from a different point of view. Tackle the inflammation problem, and the weight will come off. Various foods, supplements, and lifestyle changes approach this objective in a synergistic fashion. This means that each positive thing you do, compliments all of the other positive things you are doing with your body. Each anti-inflammatory, each antioxidant, each metabolic or thermogenic enhancement in your diet or lifestyle, works with all the other changes you are making to yourself. So, Dr. Perricone is not reinventing the wheel. He is simply presenting some basic food and lifestyle change recommendations, with modern science to back up his reasons why these changes are good for you. You can implement this strategy on its own, or, use it in conjunction with other diets or programs that appeal to you. Dr. Perricone is simply teaching you, the reader, 10 foods, 12 supplements, and an anti-inflammatory lifestyle that you can focus on in order to make your body the youngest and healthiest it can be.

CONS:

1. RIGID DIET
To be honest, I actually think the first two parts of this book are amazing, but the diet is seriously lacking in approachability, usability, and flexibility. I was surprised that Dr. Perricone, who clearly spent a tremendous amount of time organizing his data for the first two parts, sort of dropped the ball on the last part. The diet is really nothing more than a 14 day sample menu.

2. NOT USER FRIENDLY:
The recipes are fabulous, and the food suggestions are useful in seeing how one person might incorporate the Food and Supplement suggestions, but the diet isn't really very user-friendly. You can choose to follow the rigid 14 day plan if you wish, however, most of us don't work like that in terms of going to the store, making choices, cooking food, eating it, and in some way, continuing on with our lives. Most of us don't have the time or energy to spend making plans to follow a rigid 14 day menu. I would have preferred more in Part 3, of what we got from Part 1 and 2 of this book.

3. MISSING DIETING BASICS IN PART 3:
in PART 3, I would have liked to have seen Dr. Perricone focus on more dieting strategy in this section, perhaps going back to dieting basics such as portion control, food balance, calorie controls, etc. The 14 day diet works great as a SAMPLE, but not as a template. In this, the book leaves me wanting more.

MY TIPS:

Here is a list of some things that I think you'll find useful, that I can provide as someone who has actually used and implemented many of the resources from "The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet":

1. It's true that Dr. Perricone sells his own supplements, but he never suggests in this book that you are required, or need, to go through him for your needs. Every supplement is available from your local health food or vitamin store.

2. Don't "dive in" tommorow and make massive changes to your diet and lifestyle. Take it one step at a time, changing perhaps one or two things a day. Overdoing it is a mistake. Start with a basic vitamin, adopt and emphasize one or two food groups in your daily diet. When I started, for example, I began to use vitamins, and 2 or 3 antioxidants, along with creating a dinner menu that focused on barley, beans, veggies, and salad. After a few days, I introduced more foods, and more supplements, so as not to overwhelm my body or my psyche. Taking a "one change a day" approach seemed to work very well for me.

3. Learn the reasons "WHY" modern anti-aging scientific research points to the benefits of each food or supplement Don't just learn what each one is. Dr. Perricone gives you substantive reasons for changing your diet with 10 specific food groups, and supplementing with 12 specific products.

4. This is not a magic bullet. This is a book that you add to your library of knowledge. Detractors will tell you that Dr. Perricone is simply re-hashing the glycemic index, or overstating that you should "eat naturally". For those that say Dr. Perricone's information is "nothing new", I'd just simply point out that of course it isn't. This is not a fad diet. Dr. Perricone is providing meaningful backbone to an anti-aging growing body of science. He is providing us with an approachable guide to some specific, easily accessible items in the grocery store and at the health food store, that can make a deep impact on our lives. It is backed by countless research studies, peer journals, and good, hard science, with a thorough, well documented reference section that points any researcher to the already established body of knowledge out there in the scientific community. No, this is not a new, innovative way to lose weight. Instead, Dr. Perricone is organizing this information in an approachable format. Use this information with your other resources. Don't think of it as a dieters bible. Think of it as a textbook in your ongoing studies of your own body.

SUMMARY:
Like I said in the beginning, I've lost over 40 pounds in 2 months. I've made many changes, of course, to my lifestyle, that accounts for this weight loss. But every night, while eating dinner, I am perusing through "The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet", learning something new about the things I'm doing to my body, that are positive, and why I am becoming leaner and younger each day. Every clove of raw garlic I eat, every ALA and Astaxanthin supplement I take, is making a difference, 60 days later. There is a glow to my skin, an improvement in my daily living, a decrease in my waist line. Dr. Perricone is not the only reason why I've lost this weight, but what I give him is Kudus for providing me with strategy, reasons, and backbone to making life-long anti-aging changes which have clearly made a direct impact on my life.

I highly recommend that you pick up a copy of this book, and make it an integral part of your home library.

106 of 109 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Doctor Gets Inflamed About Obesity, January 9, 2006

By 

Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Man "Jimmy Moore" (Spartanburg, SC) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Perricone Weight-loss Diet: A Simple 3-part Program To Lose The Fat, The Wrinkles, And The Years (Hardcover)

Although I have lost nearly 200 pounds following a low-carb weight loss program that worked for me, I still remain an active student of health, nutrition and dieting. Regardless of what your weight is, it is imperative that you keep educating yourself about healthy lifestyle choices and learn what it takes to keep your body working as God intended by referencing the truly imaginative innovators and researchers of our day.

One such person in the year 2006 is Dr. Nicholas Perricone. Although he is a board-certified dermatologist, he stumbled upon something in his research of complexion problems that even startled him. He found that there was invisible, undetectable layer of inflammation occuring beneath the surface of our skin that was causing our bodies to literally fall apart. One of the results of this inflammation, Dr. Perricone quickly found, was the body's inability to get rid of stored fat.

That's the underlying basis for The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet. Although his previous books on wrinkles and complexion problems have been instant bestsellers, Dr. Perricone wanted to devote one book solely to the topic of weight loss to help the tens of millions of people who carry around excessive amounts of weight.

For fans of Dr. Perricone, some of the concepts in this book will be familiar to you. But whether you have read his books before or if this is your first time, I have no doubt that you will be able to apply The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet principles to your own life.

Ever since I lost my weight by livin' la vida low-carb, I am always apprehensive about any new diet book that I pick up. Actually, I wasn't sure what I would read in Dr. Perricone's book. But imagine my surprise when I noticed much of his weight loss advice matched up perfectly with what I was already doing as part of my low-carb lifestyle:

1. Eat more good fats, especially ones found in fish.
2. Increase your intake of Omega-3 fatty acids.
3. Stay away from sugar, starch and white flour.
4. Consume berries.
5. Cook with extra virgin olive oil and coconut oil.
6. Add fiber to your diet with seeds and nuts.
7. Protein-up your body to keep your hunger satisfied.
8. Exercise 30-45 minutes per day.
9. Drink 8-10 glasses of water daily.
10. Eat sugar-free chocolate made with real cocoa butter.

But the more I read through The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet, I realized that there were areas of my diet that could stand to change and this book convicted me of my need to make a few subtle changes.

For example, Dr. Perricone encourages people to eat more fish, specifically Wild Alaskan Salmon. This is a naturally low-carb food and would be an excellent frequent addition to my healthy low-carb lifestyle. He also urges readers to use stevia or erithyrtol more in place of sugar and other sugar alternatives. Dr. Perricone is adamantly against using aspartame.

There was something else that intrigued me in this book. The concept of eating your protein first, then your fiber, and finally your sugar -- in that order! I had never thought about this before now, but you can actually slow the rate that your body begins absorbing and using the sugars in the foods you eat if you load up on the protein and fiber first.

I hope Dr. Perricone or somebody will conduct a study on the effect of this food order on the body. The experiment could compare the results of weight loss efforts of people participants eating the exact same meals except one group eats the protein first, another group eats the fiber first and the last group eats the sugar first. Which one would lose the most weight? I'd love to know the answer to that question, but I suppose Dr. Perricone would be opposed to people eating the sugar first since it increases inflammation and causes the blood sugar to quickly rise. That's an important lesson The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet teaches you.

Let me warn you -- this book can get technical in some places, but Dr. Perricone attempts to break it down step-by-step to keep it from going completely over your head. He gently explains various terms and provides real-life examples of people he has helped lose weight using his 14-Day diet plan.

There are many supplements that Dr. Perricone believes people should be taking to give them the essential vitamins and minerals that their bodies need to function at their best. He calls these "superstar supplements" and also suggests ten categories of "supergroup foods" to minimize inflammation so you will be on the road to weight loss success.

The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet is a unique theory in the battle of the bulge and should be in the collection of anyone and everyone who wishes to keep their weight under control for life. If you apply the Perricone principles, which are surprisingly compatible for people doing low-carb, then you will be able to lose weight, keep it off, look and feel younger than you ever thought possible, and exude with energy beyond your wildest dreams.

A 2-week meal plan and delicious recipes are located in the back of the book to get you started on the right foot. There's little wonder why The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet has followed it predecessors to the top of the bestseller charts.

It is scientifically-proven to work and Dr. Perricone believes it can help anyone. Even YOU!

102 of 106 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best diet book out there!, May 22, 2006

By 

Patience (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Perricone Weight-loss Diet: A Simple 3-part Program To Lose The Fat, The Wrinkles, And The Years (Hardcover)

After giving birth to twins, I struggled for 2 years to loose the extra 15 pounds I had gained during pregnancy. I tried many diets including the south beach, which made me loose 10 lbs at first then made me gain 15 lbs around the 3rd phase. And the first 2 weeks of the south beach are very difficult, I felt deprived and constipated all the time.
Dr Perricone diet is the only diet that not only helped me loose the weight but also helped me keep it. As Dr Perricone says, it's not a diet, it's a lifestyle. and I have adopted that lifestyle. I have more energy now than I ever did before and I can exercise 5-6 times/week and I run lot faster and longer now than I did before. And most importantly, I love the food! The 2 week diet recipes are very delicious! My whole family loved the food. while I was on the 2 week diet, my husband kept asking me if I was really dieting because my plate was always full. I did not feel deprived at all! The recipes were so delicious, I even bought the book "stop the clock cooking"!
The only downside about this diet is that it involves a lot of cooking but how can you get good, wholesome food unless you cook it yourself? I cooked on weekends and froze a lot.It's lot easier now, I don't have to follow the diet line by line anymore. I know what to eat and what not to eat and I can prepare a meal really fast.
My only problem was the supplements. They are very pricey and since I wasn't overweight, I was wondering if I really had to spend all that money on supplements. I decided to buy only some of them, the ones I thought will be most beneficial for me. Of course it included fish oil, Glutamine and a few antioxidants.
And one more thing, my skin is also glowing now. Everybody tells me I have beautiful skin. I did not have wrinkles before and I hope I won't have them soon...

Thank you Dr. Perricone for coming up with this healthy, healthy diet everybody should be following.