Low-Fat Lies Review

Is fat our enemy, or are carbohydrates our arch-foe? Which should we be fighting, in our battle against obesity? Brown University professors Mary Flynn, Ph.D. and Kevin Vigilante, M.D. say it's neither; food should not be an enemy at all. We should embrace the "universal human propensity to celebrate and enjoy food" by adopting the Mediterranean diet. Their idea (more like an "undiet") holds that if we eat a variety of good nutrient-dense foods (instead of the usual American variety of bad calorie-dense foods), we will lose weight and enjoy proven health benefits without feeling deprived.

The message of Low Fat Lies is a good one. Americans are overcome at every meal by fear, guilt and confusion. Vigilante (the book is written in his voice, with references to Flynn) tells us to ignore all those complex rules, and simply copy what works. The traditional cuisine of Southern France, Italy, Spain and Greece—replete with fruits, vegetables, beans, grains and olive oil—bestows longer life and better health on inhabitants of these areas, and the authors explain why.

The book is structured in three parts. The first covers eleven chapters, exposing the fallacies and dangers of both low-fat and low-carbohydrate diets. Why, the authors ask, has American obesity soared while these two diets were heavily promoted? Unfortunately, this is the weakest part of the book. Vigilante's tone and word choices make him sound like the fad zealots he criticizes in this section. A side-bar on "Ronald McDonald, The Killer Clown," for instance, is rather shrill; Vigilante would have done better to lay out his data clearly, and leave us to make the horrified conclusions. Part I is also structured poorly. Its eleven chapters could have been consolidated into seven or eight tighter, focused chapters, to build the authors' case more directly. We're disappointed that two top-level researchers felt the need to sensationalize their views in what seems to be an effort to be less drily academic and more readable. It only serves to undermine their authority.

That said, readers willing to put up with a little randomness will find a wealth of interesting information in Low Fat Lies. The authors' explanations of oxidation, arterial plaque and triglycerides are very clear and useful. They've also described how a smaller type of LDL cholesterol (type B) —associated with high carbohydrate diets and elevated triglycerides—has recently been found to be more dangerous than larger LDL particles. Data and conclusions from a Lyon (France) 1998 study of heart patients comparing the American Heart Association's diet with one of equal fat calories from monounsaturates (olive and canola oils) were also intriguing. I appreciated the authors' recommendations for cholesterol and triglyceride-levels, in a clear table on page 79; it nicely summarizes the discussion of these issues. A good index of studies cited is included, with context references by page and by phrase, making it possible for readers to review any of the original data from which the authors draw their points.

The second part of the book is excellent. Comprising just three chapters, it explains the research that supports the Mediterranean diet, then goes on to deliver a paean to olive oil and to red wine. The third part is generally quite good also. I especially liked this section's emphasis on building a sustainable, positive relationship with food, and its suggestions for adopting the Mediterranean diet. Mary Flynn includes three dozen extremely simple recipes here—many with just 3-5 ingredients—to encourage even the most inexperienced cook to eat Mediterranean. A short and sensible chapter on exercise recommends walking, rather than thankless exhortations to fit gym workouts into our busy schedules. The section concludes with an equal number of rather complex Mediterranean recipes from restaurants nationwide, a nice touch for experienced and adventurous cooks but one that may be daunting to amateurs.

GoodFoodBooks gives this book top marks for its valuable theme. But we've knocked off a star and a half for the loose structure and sensationalism of the first section. (Doctors Flynn and Vigilante: we'd love to see a second edition that addresses these shortcomings!) Now that you're forewarned, we recommend you read this book in any event, since almost all Americans could benefit from the sane, sustainable, non-depriving diet it describes. Get out that bottle of olive oil, slow down, and enjoy your food.

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Review © 2002 Cynthia Harriman.
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