Book Review: Grain Brain: The Surprising Truth about Wheat, Carbs, and Sugar–Your Brain’s Silent Killers
Authors: David Perlmutter, M.D. and Kristin Loberg
290 pages, Little, Brown, and Company, $16.27
For decades, media, nutritionists, and doctors alike have encouraged the public to eat a low-fat, high-carb diet in order to live a long and healthy life. I’m sure you notice while food shopping advertisements for diet drinks or low- and no-fat foods that try to encourage you to purchase with the thought of weight –loss in mind. What is striking is that obesity is on the rise despite these products which are supposedly designed for weight-maintenance. Dr. Perlmutter exposes the truth behind these products and shows just how detrimental they can be for your health.
Grain Brain is broken into three parts: (1) “The Whole Grain Truth”, (2) “Grain Brain Rehab”, and (3) “Say Good-bye to Grain Brain”. In the first part, Dr. Perlmutter discusses the science behind gluten and other carbohydrates, their effect on the brain, and how you can reverse those effects. Your brain may become foggy reading about A PoE ԑ4, omega-6-rich oils or bifidobacterium, among other foreign concepts to the common reader, Dr. Perlmutter goes into rich detail defining the unfamiliar terms, cites scientific studies and cases from his own patients, and refers back to our ancestral beginnings to support his claim, which is that we should be on a high-fat, low-carb diet. Grain Brain is not just an informational book but one you can actually apply to your daily life; Dr. Perlmutter provides you with the tools you will need to make this lifestyle change. In Part II and III, he describes the impact removing gluten and other carbohydrates from your diet will have on your life and a plan to implement your lifestyle change.
You may be skeptical and probably even doubt your ability to make this change – you might live off bread or pasta – but fear not, Dr. Perlmutter provides a meal plan and delicious recipes in this book and on his website that will help you initially. At first, it may be difficult to end your carb-eating habit, but Grain Brain has a four week plan that will help you remove unnecessary carbohydrates from your diet and those unwanted cravings from your life. However, this lifestyle change does not happen by merely having a complete overhaul of your diet; he encourages you to exercise for at least 20 minutes a day – no, not hardcore weightlifting or cardio, but a walk around your neighborhood or even choosing to use the stairs over taking the elevator.
If you are tired of suffering or maybe just tired of that stubborn belly fat, Grain Brain is the book for you. Changing your diet, and your lifestyle, may help you to alleviate your daily pain, anxiety, or sleep deprivation; it may be the thing you need to do to live a longer, healthier, and happier life. We spend so much time renovating our homes or maintaining our automobiles, but never enough time maintaining our own bodies and our brains, the most important organ in the body. Now is the time to make a habit of taking care of you! Grain Brain is the perfect place to start this lifestyle change.