Weight Management Book

Entering the 21st Century America finds itself with a new problem, an obesity epidemic. The cause of this epidemic is multifaceted: personal choices, quality of food, hormone-disrupting chemicals polluting the environment, stress, and a lack of activity. The result of the epidemic is poorly functioning thyroid, stress intolerance, fatigue, depression, fibromyalgia, cognitive decline, diabetes, many forms of cancer, and heart disease.

Navigating the pitfalls of life, staying out of the greedy clutches of Big Pharma, and remaining healthy requires considerable expertise. The problem is that our bodies came without an owner's manual. We are left on our own, working by trial and error, to eat in a way that boosts our energy. All too often we get it wrong, and the very food that is vital for survival turns into excess fat that sends us on a path headed for disease.

The Leptin Diet, by Byron J. Richards, is far more than a diet; it is a way of life. It is the first book on health that explains the owner's manual as to how your body functions, why you crave various foods, and how to get more energy by eating less food. Central to understanding your needs is learning about the powerful hormone leptin, the "king of hormones."

Byron Richards is our nation's foremost nutritional expert on leptin. He has appeared on hundreds of radio programs around the country. He has been interviewed on Fox News Live, CBS syndicated news, and written about in the Wall Street Journal. He has the uncanny ability to translate complicated science into simple everyday language. As a clinician with over twenty years experience on the front lines of clinical nutrition, he also has his eye on the practical. He explains your symptoms and behavior so well you are almost certain he has been living at your house. His writing style is refreshing, seeking to appease no one, he simply tells it like it is. Especially provocative is his disdain for snacking. Richards explains how snacking disrupts the hormone leptin and causes major energetic problems, including overeating at subsequent meals. His advice runs contrary to almost every diet pundit on earth, yet it is obviously rooted in the most basic common sense.

He lays out the case for his Five Rules that comprise The Leptin Diet with flawless logic and an easy to understand presentation of how food works in your body. He then ties in the findings of over 11,000 scientific studies relating to leptin. Key references are provided in an appendix. The Leptin Diet will open your eyes and show you a clear path to health that is easy to follow.

Richards was the first nutritionist to write about leptin. In 2002, he and his wife Mary wrote the first book on leptin called Mastering Leptin. This was the first time leptin had ever been explained to the general public as well as to the entire professional field of alternative health. Prior to his writing, leptin research was conducted for the purpose of developing drugs, which to this day do not work. Richards went through all of this research, unraveling the complexity of leptin function and translating the key parts of the information into dietary principles. Not only did he introduce the Five Rules of The Leptin Diet, he was the first to explain the precise mechanisms behind how leptin problems cause cancer, fibromyalgia, thyroid problems, heart disease, and of course - obesity. When Mastering Leptin was written, it was from the perspective of new discovery. It was the first time a diet had ever been founded on solid cutting-edge science.

Many thousands of readers have benefited by reading Mastering Leptin and implementing his dietary guidelines. The gratifying stories of weight management and improved heath, including the frequent reversal of Type II Diabetes, are the norm. Along with great success came countless questions as to the nuances of leptin. Could the Five Rules be tweaked in some way and yet still maintain the principles of the Leptin Diet?

Richards analyzed all of these questions, looking for common threads. He also continued his work as a clinician, keeping his fingers on the pulse of "the real world." He realized that what the general public now needed was a "how to" manual. Most of the questions asked were simply because people did not understand the underlying principles of how their bodies work. How does leptin work in response to your common day-to-day experiences? What happens to leptin under stress? Is a craving good or bad? Why is your mind always on food? Why can't you lose the weight around your midsection? What does menopause have to do with it? Why did pregnancy change your metabolism? Is the risk for obesity inherited? These, and many other questions, are answered in The Leptin Diet.

Richards starts at the beginning by explaining how leptin aids the survival of the human race. Indeed, leptin enables us to withstand starvation. Without leptin, we would have all perished long ago. He then goes on to explain how leptin is in charge of the hormonal management team. We learn how the "hormone switches" that are thrown as we eat are every bit as important, if not more important, than the number of calories eaten. And most importantly, we learn how leptin problems are the primary cause of obesity and heart disease. Amazingly, it becomes clear how to eat less food and have more energy.

Going through life without an owner's manual is like paddling a canoe upstream. Sure, it can be done, but it's not the easiest way to do it. The Leptin Diet is not a fad diet. It is a way of eating based on the science of leptin. It is easy to eat this way for the rest of your life, no deprivation is involved. Once you tame leptin, your abnormal cravings for food disappear and you regain control over your life and health. The Leptin Diet offers a true path to escape the obesity epidemic.