Customer Reviews

The Potbelly Syndrome: How Common Germs Cause Obesity, Diabetes, And Heart Disease

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This book, by a layman who has put in years of intense research to try to find a solution to his own serious health problems, claims that potbellies, and perhaps most cases of obesity, are due to ongoing inflammation, something most doctors ignore or even deny. Although this is clearly not a proven theory, there is plenty of evidence presented that infectious diseases, often in chronic form that the standard tests fail to identify, are also the cause of heart disease and diabetes. Physicians are reluctant to accept that standard tests might not be foolproof and even more reluctant to accept that the same type of bacteria and viruses present in healthy people could cause a variety of diseases in sick people, even though almost all healthy people eventually die of the same diseases such as cancer, heart disease, or stroke (see PS below).

The obesity culprit appears to be cortisol, produced by the adrenal glands, and the evidence that excess cortisol is (basically) to blame was well supported. For those of us who assumed we had underfunctioning adrenal glands, this is an interesting reversal. Today's prevention and treatment approaches are clearly inadequate as no one ever seems to be cured (it's called ageing but you simply can't go on blaming everything on this!). Also worth reading is Alan Cantwell's "Four Women Against Cancer" which explains how CWD bacteria - they can live without having a cell wall and therefore act more like a virus - cause cancer and how, since this bacteria is inside the cancer cells, tests don't find them and anti-microbial treatments (both natural and synthetic antibiotics, antifungals, antiprotozoals, and antivirals) do not cure cancer. The Potbelly Syndrome seems to be about a similar underlying basis for other incurable health problems.

Farris recommends specific steps but most are lifestyle changes many of us have already adopted: reducing and avoiding stressors, including mental/emotional, noise, TV and substances (caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, sugar) as well as adding music, exercise and happy relationships to your life. I doubt these have worked for many of us who have been early adopters of most of these recommendations, over the last decade and more. This includes the author, who has atrial fibrillations and congestive heart failure and states clearly that he remains obese and requires frequent and expensive medical treatments, none of which have improved his situation, much less cured him. The author also recommends various nutritional supplements but, again, the trouble is that natural supplements just don't get rid of chronic infections - it is fairy tale thinking and those claiming otherwise are stealing credit from the body's own ability to recover from most inflammations; they are usually the same alternative health practitioners who don't hesitate to accuse us of "not really wanting to get better" when they are unable to heal our chronic illnesses.

On his website, the author writes "Even if a doctor believes that chronic, low-level infections cause obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, there are no easy, safe, effective, and proven treatments for him or her to prescribe." All the recommendations in his book certainly haven't helped the author, who believes that if only doctors would give him months or even years of (low-dose) antibiotics and other drugs that would kill his main infections, and thus reduce cortisol production in the body, he could get better. I wonder, since the negative consequences of antibiotics are now well-known: research indicates that long-term antibiotic use is counterproductive. Hence I have docked one star.

It is so distressing for me that the book does not really provide a solution that I'm almost sorry it's been published. I pondered whether to dock another star because of this, but the book does have much value because it shows how modern medicine always puts the cart before the horse. Illness causes obesity, not the other way around. Dieting doesn't work yet doctors still recommend it ("because it absolves them of blame when patients die from diabetes or heart disease"). Healthy people don't need to be told to exercise and don't need to use will power to do so; healthy bodies naturally seek movement, play and sports.

P.S. There are a few other books on this point: "The Heart Attack Germ" by Dvonch (see my review there), "The Inflammation Cure" by Meggs and Svec, "The Inflammation Syndrome" by Challem (dietary remedies only, in this one), "Stopping Inflammation" by Appleton (food again, particularly sugar, dairy and wheat as the bad guys), "Inflammation Nation" by Chilton (good and bad fats), and The Anti-Inflammation Zone by Sears (nutrition again) all appeared in 2003/4/5 - and all discuss the role of inflammation in the major diseases of our time, and some of the things that one can do to limit infections. All those books are also fairly easy to read but, as I know too well after more than a decade of careful nutrition, none really has a complete solution for the problem - nor can I find anything more recent that might have offered newer/better advice even though there's more and more evidence to back up the book's claims - in 2009 one report suggests that high blood pressure could be caused by a common virus, known as CMV, affecting between 60 and 99 per cent of adults worldwide and that it is also linked to stroke, kidney disease and even cancer.

I suspect one of the reasons is that they are looking at fairly conventional solutions. I'd recommend looking instead at a well-researched book called "Outsmart Your Cancer" - anything that can HEAL cancer is also a general healer and should be able to help much else in the body, at "Trick and Treat" by Groves which turns modern eating advice on its head, backed up by plenty of evidence, and at "Never Fear Cancer Again" by Raymond Francis, a brilliant distillation of what is truly needed for health. All 3 books should be on the "top 10" of any list of books on health. Also the supplement Papaya 35, a super concentrate with fermented pawpaw.

This information-packed book explains the many effects of a naturally occurring stress hormone called cortisol. When the brain needs glucose (blood sugar), cortisol takes glucose from the cells of the muscles and liver, routing it to the brain. The inability of these cells to respond is called "insulin resistance". People with insulin resistance (e.g., those with Type 2 diabetes) must eat more food to obtain the required glucose. The surplus glucose is converted to abdominal fat. When this cycle happens frequently, the result is a potbelly.
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Cortisol is one of three important natural products of the adrenal glands. Cortisol is always present in the bloodstream, so even small changes in stress result in corresponding changes in cortisol levels. Chronic infections can also stimulate the production of cortisol to levels high enough to cause insulin resistance, obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes - four conditions associated with the "potbelly syndrome", a term coined by the authors.
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Corticosteroid medications used to treat inflammations and autoimmune diseases introduce more cortisol into the bloodstream, resulting in increased appetite and weight gain. These drugs also lead to various forms of serious heart disease and high blood pressure because they tip the healthy cortisol balance. Thyroid deficiencies may be blamed for health problems that are really the result of excess cortisol.
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This book recommends specific steps to treat chronic hypercortisolism. It provides dozens of useful references and is well footnoted. The title chosen is unfortunate, because the important words "obesity", "diabetes", and "heart disease" don't turn up in a keyword search because they are buried in the subtitle. It is unlikely that someone with these health problems will search on the keyword "potbelly".
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I am an autoimmune disease specialist and endorse the findings presented in this book. My research has found a clear link between so-called autoimmune diseases and infection, but today's prevention and treatment approaches are inadequate. Patients must take charge of their health and become informed about the prescribed painkillers that do not address the root cause of the illness. These drugs merely treat symptoms and often have toxic side effects.
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This book is a great start to understanding three of the most important health problems today and how to deal with them. Armed with this knowledge, a patient is better equipped to work with the doctor as a team player to conquer chronic illness.

Whoa! I thought that I was healthy, Russell Farris and Per Marin will change how you look at your world. At least I can say that. This book is a wake-up call for people who can't seem to figure out why they are depressed, overweight, or constantly craving that sugary donut. This book has changed my thinking more that any other so called "diet" book out there. The relationship between how we deal with stressors (sugar, caffeine, catastrophic thinking, etc) is much more important than ANY other single thing we do for our health. You will never lose weight if you don't change your lifestyle to include more relaxation techniques. Period, end of story! Thanks Mr. Farris, and Dr. Marin!!!!!

This book does an interesting job of describing the problem, but don't buy this book thinking that it will tell you how to lose weight. As the author says on page 124, "There is no safe, effective, and proven way to lose weight. . . . I believe that most cases of abdominal obesity, and perhaps most cases of any kind of obesity, can be traced back to chronic infections. If this is correct, then the best way to fight obesity will be to fight chronic infections. This is, needless to say, an unproven theory." The author holds out the hope that in the future, sophisticated medical treatment will be available. For now, the author recommends reducing stressors: avoid alcohol, caffeine, nicotine, air travel, television, etc. The author also recommends some changes that are easier said than done: marry the right person, live within your means, trust God, and so on. And if you have depression, get that cured somehow. None of this advice has actually made my potbelly any smaller.

This book is a radical departure from the usual approach to the mounting problem of obesity and the disorders that seem to always accompany it. Rather than the same old refrain about exercising more and eating less, it explores a different theory and approach to treating obesity, heart problems and diabetes. This is one of the few health related books that I have read that does not put all of the blame for weight problems on the overweight person. The author cites a multitude of references to support his theories, and some very good explanations regarding how our bodies actually function. There are some good practical suggestions on ways to reduce stress, and beleive me that you will see the need to do so after reading this book! I would recommend this book for anyone who has tried years of dieting with no lasting result. You owe it to yourself to dig deeper as to the possible cause of your weight and to seek alternative treatment. This book will encourage you to seek answers to your health problems and become more pro-active with your health care providers.

This was the best book I have read that described the many causes that can create multiple problems during the aging process. I have been to so many physicians (and most of them claiming to be experts in their field), who have failed me and fallen short of my expectations. Once I read The Potbelly Syndrome it opened my eyes up to what I needed to ask for in order to have my physicians order the appropriate tests. This book also confirmed for me that I was not crazy, and my symptoms are real and can be treated. After reading The Potbelly Syndrome, I am now able to speak to my physicians with more knowledge and they treat me with more respect. The Potbelly Syndrome was well written and easy to read. It was also enjoyable which is not what I have found with other educational books regarding illnesses and medicine. I would highly recommend this book to everyone who wants to stay healthy and feel great. We need more books like this!

I may not have found this book if I had not entered "apple shape" in my search. Thankfully, it popped up, and I'm tickled pink, since I've found many profound ideas here. My biggest shock was on coffee, which I always defend 'cause it's a natural product of the earth. And it is, but its purpose is, according to these authors, not exactly what I preached. You'll have to read it for yourself, that way you'll buy this book and read it through.

The authors reverse causes to effects, they turn things sideways, and they keep you reading. The one (I think it's Farris), is a droll comedian in his writing. He had me practically in stitches.

Several friends need this wisdom, so I probably will have to buy it for them, since they get medical news only on TV shows.

If this was on Oprah, I missed it. If it wasn't, I believe it should have been.

This book describes the relationship between infection and cortisol and their effect on our health; heart health and metabolic syndrome in particular.

Chief of the infections discussed is that induced by Chlamydophila Pneumoniae (distinct from the well known Chlamydia). According to the author, this bacteria is "not a rare parasite, it is one of the most common germs on the planet". The author claims that this germ is one of the major sources of inflammation and heart disease.

The author presents an original and provocative theme throughout the book; namely, feed back loops. Here is an example:

Germs trigger acute phase response - leads to inflammation - leads to release of cortisol - leads to success of some germs that do well with cortisol - leads to another acute phase response.

Another example is the claim that hypercortisolism and atherosclerosis "cause each other". A six step loop process is described in support of the claim.

The book is original, well written, highly readable and provocative. I would recommend it to anyone interested in heart health, metabolic syndrome and cortisol.

In this book abdominal obesity, high blood pressure, and high blood sugar were unified under a new clinical entity: the potbelly syndrome (PBS). A subtle hypercortisolism caused by chronic infections was considered to be the main etiological factor. The ideas are innovative and interesting.

First and foremost, this book made me think. It opened up perspectives I would never of stumbled upon otherwise. If insulin resistance does precede obesity, that drastically changes research perspectives and treatment options.

The evidence that infectious disease is at the heart of obesity, heart disease -- is fascinating, but IMO, still quite weak.

The evidence that excess cortisol is (basically) to blame for everything was well supported. Even things we know are beneficial, such as low-sugar eating, may be beneficial because they decrease hypoglycemia episodes (associated with cortisol production).

Being skeptical, I'm going to have to go back through all the literature with this new explanation in mind.

The facts on obesity, appestat, were very interesting as well.