Book 33: Master Your Metabolism

Yes, another Jillian Michaels book: Master Your Metabolism. In this one she discusses the effects of foods, drugs, chemicals, and lifestyle on our bodies.



She suggests reducing starchy vegetables, dried fruits, tropical fruits (not my bananas!), excess soy (tofu and miso are fine, but soy milk has too many isoflavones, which make natural DHEA levels drop), excess alcohol, full-fat dairy and fatty meats, canned foods, and caffeine.

Totally avoid hydrogenated fats, refined grains, HFCS, artificial sweeteners, artificial coloring and preservatives, and gluatmates (including MSG).

Also, she recommends buying as much organic food as possible, since it generally contains far lower concentrations of chemicals. Avoid using plastic as much as possible (though she sorts out which kinds are more dangerous), especially in the microwave. Don't use harsh chemicals to clean your house or tend your lawn.

A lot of this is sort of commonsense, but she puts it all together in terms of good health and ability to stay healthy and be lean and look good. Also, we don't often think of these toxins in terms of their cumulative effect, but just think that a small dose of one isn't known to be harmful. Every day, we're taking in multiple doses of chemicals in foods, water, the air, and through our skin, and it adds up.

Some of her criticisms of major food providers (including meat producers and pharmaceutical companies) are pretty harsh (though they are true!). I will be surprised if they don't go after her like the National Cattlemen's Beef Association tried to take down Oprah in 1996.

Michaels has really done her research here -- it appears that you will find the proper scientific reasoning behind all her recommendations, with appropriate citations to the references and studies she relies on (I didn't actually check any of her sources).