Doctor Gets Inflamed About Obesity

Dr. Nicholas Perricone believes inflammation is behind obesity

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!