The No-Grain Diet: Conquer Carbohydrate Addiction and Stay Slim for the Rest of Your Life (Hardcover)

by Joseph Mercola (Author), Alison Rose Levy (Author) "After more than three decades of consuming less fat and more carbohydrates, the average American is gaining weight at an alarming rate..." (more)
Key Phrases: grain addiction, personal fuel mix, quiche dough, No-Grain Diet, Booster Food Plan, Green Drink (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Impressively modern in design, The No-Grain Diet brings a realistic viewpoint to the problems of weight loss in a genuine effort to improve the health of an ever-growing number of obese Americans. Offering a variety of "food plans," along with a set of techniques aimed at controlling emotional eating and cravings for "bad" foods, Dr. Joseph Mercola clearly understands how to motivate us--in one section, he suggests that rather than "living by the scale," we measure our success in relation to the fit of our favorite pair of slightly-too-snug jeans. Many recipes are included, most of which are free of the boring flavor substitutes so common in diet books.

The diet itself combines several familiar concepts. The "no grain" model emphasizes organic vegetables and quality protein, with limited fruits and absolutely no simple carbs. Mercola's idea of "quality protein" is somewhat startling--he is deeply concerned about toxins, and urges grass-fed beef over potentially mercury-filled fish. His main point is frequently reinforced: refined grains of any type are basically deadly and eating them should be viewed as an unhealthy addiction.

Here, the book veers off in a new direction: rather than gently nudging our habits in a new direction, he suggests we break what he insists is an addictive cycle with a method called "EFT," or "Emotional Freedom Technique." As a way to avoid surrendering to desires, his system of tapping acupressure points and repeating affirmations is used to overcome them. While repeat dieters will understand the necessity of examining emotional ties to food, Mercola's voice becomes a tad strident, and possibly downright offensive to those with a different opinion on what constitutes an addiction. --Jill Lightner

From Publishers Weekly
"Don't be surprised if you never again want to eat starches, sweets, and grains!" Osteopathic physician Mercola stands on the shoulders of Atkins (and gives a nod to Gary Taubes, author of the New York Times Magazine cover article many believe blew the lid off high-carb, low-fat diets forever) to make big claims in this guide for overweight readers. Mercola's diet, which he's honed for over a decade at his Illinois wellness center, offers "near miraculous results," and will allow its followers to "permanently conquer food cravings," he says. The secret to lasting weight loss, according to Mercola, is to cut out starches, sweets and grains entirely. (Dieters on the maintenance program are allowed "healthy" grains-buckwheat, quinoa, etc.) But though Mercola offers three different eating plans (The Booster, The Core and The Advanced Food plan) and plenty of no-grain recipes, his program goes beyond mere dieting: Mercola is a proponent of the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), a kind of "psychological acupressure" that he says is "the equivalent of AA for grain addiction." Developed by Gary Craig, EFT involves tapping on pressure points in the face and upper body while repeating a healing, key phrase, such as "Even though I want to have pizza, I deeply and completely accept myself." Mercola's course for weight loss is an intensive one, with rigorous rules and plenty of additional components-lifestyle changes, supplements and self-affirmations-that take a lot more energy than calorie counting. But that's the whole point, Mercola says, because cutting back on calories or carbs alone leads to temporary weight loss at best. For those willing to dedicate themselves to such a program, Mercola's guide may offer real results, and the case studies he includes should certainly help with motivation.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 311 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Adult (April 24, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0525947337
• ISBN-13: 978-0525947332
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (55 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #31,084 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

195 of 203 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Diet for an ... Compulsive America, May 25, 2003

By	K.S. (Tucson, Az United States) - See all my reviews

As a regular visitor to Dr. Mercola's website for some time, I eagerly awaited the arrival of his book. While Dr. Mercola's big-picture objective -- weaning the average American off of poisonous food, poisoning medical doctors, and a poisoned environment -- is noble, his small-picture book renders an easy, common-sense diet too complex to follow.

In Mercola's defense, neither the writer, Levy, nor Dutton editors did much to clarify and communicate his vision. The writing is stilted and humorless, the organization an afterthought. Readers will balk at the confusion between Phases and Food Plans. Inconsistencies abound: Foods allowed on one page are nowhere to be found on another. For example, oranges are allowed on the 8-meal Booster Start-up plan on page 68; yet, inexplicably, the same list (lots of duplication in this book) eliminates oranges on page 106. Without explanation, the plan itself is reduced to six meals on page 136.

With better editing and organization, and fewer contradictory menus, the entire tome could have been reduced to half its size, with twice the clarity. It's a prime example of how too much information -- right down to how to cut one's bacon! -- can spoil a vital health education.

If you can find a way to get past the book's choking design flaws, please do: The good doctor's prescription for real health is both impassioned and well-documented, eclipsing all other "diets" out there, past or present.

118 of 122 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Good info; time-consuming diet plan, May 17, 2003

By A Customer

Dr. Mercola gives his readers worthwhile health explanations and advice but his diet plan is too restrictive and time-consuming to easily follow. Instead, I recommend Going Against the Grain: How Reducing and Avoiding Grains Can Revitalize Your Health by Melissa Diane Smith. It is easier to understand and its diets and recipes are simple, tasty and a breeze to follow. I'm an avid reader of health books and both of these books cover important information for health maintenance. But Ms. Smith's book, Going Against the Grain, deals with a much broader range of health problems associated with grains and is the book I believe people would prefer.

147 of 155 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eat More Variety, Be Healthy & Lose Weight, April 24, 2003

By	K. Johnson (US/Asia) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

In "No grain Diet" Dr. Mercola provides a three-step program for losing weight and keeping it off. His experience is based upon research and his work as an Osteopathic physician. He's also the Director of the Optimal Wellness Center in the Chicago area. In other words, he's got the resumé.

Dr. Mercola is one of a growing number of physicians that conclude that the current USDA nutritional food pyramid is not conducive to our bodies' needs nor optimal health. In fact, it's flat-out not healthy. To Mercola, significant or excessive amount of carbohydrates are the major causes of weight gain, a number of diseases, illnesses, and disorders. However, this is not an exclusively anti-carbo diet or regimen, but simply a reduction. And, for the good, this is not an absolute no-grain diet. After some time on this program people can introduce grains back into their diet. What's new here is that Dr. Mercola is also not a proponent of the high protein diet programs that have become so prevalent in recent years.

There are three phases of this eating and living method. Three-day, fifty-day, and the long-term maintenance plan. Achieving the optimal weight and being healthy is the goal of this diet program.

You can learn a lot about foods and what they do to us. This seems to be more balanced and healthy than a lot of other programs out there today.