In June 2015, I read a review of a book with an intentionally provocative title: The Big Fat Surprise: Why Butter, Meat, and Cheese Belong in a Healthy Diet. (#CommissionEarned)
I downloaded and listened to the audio version, and while it didn’t cause me to immediately change my eating habits, it was my first step toward a different way of thinking about diet.
I was still a year away from “Peak Lee,” when I reached 265 lbs. in Summer 2016.
I was going to focus on exercise as the way to get healthy, and I thought a reasonable amount of weight loss would be the natural result.
But it was jarring to learn how deficient the scientific basis was for the dietary recommendations we had been given by government for nearly 40 years, as author Nina Teicholz detailed how the diet-heart hypothesis became dominant, and our entire food system shifted to reduce fat consumption, which necessarily led to an increase in carbohydrates.
She made a strong case that the rise in prevalence of obesity and overweight status was not because people were failing to follow dietary guidelines. The guidelines were contributing to the problem.
You should get the book to read or hear for yourself, but this video of a TEDx speech by Ms. Teicholz is a good primer.
For a more extended version, check out this speech she gave last year to the Cato Institute.