Softcover

ISBN 10: 0060932724 ISBN 13: 9780060932725

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks, 2000

Dieters everywhere have the same complaint: they're hungry all the time. Now this revolutionary book, based on sound scientific principles, can help you lose weight safely, effectively, and permanently without those gnawing pangs of hunger.

The Volumetrics Weight-Control Plan introduces the concept of "energy density" -- concentration of calories in each portion of food. Here you'll learn how to avoid high energy -- dense foods, and how such different nutritional factors as fat, fiber, protein, and water affect energy density and satiety. You'll discover which foods, eaten under which circumstances, allow you to consume fewer calories and still be satisfied. And you'll get to know the hidden calorie traps, seemingly innocuous foods that can sneak unwanted calories into your body. Finally, the authors offer 60 sensible, tasty and easy recipes, plus an integrated program of exercise and behavior management that can be sustained over a lifetime.

Review:

Do you overeat because you don't feel satisfied or full? Volumetrics is based on "the science of satiety"--what researchers have learned about the food choices that make people feel full. The authors teach you how to eat low-calorie-dense, high-volume foods so that you feel like you've eaten plenty, even though you've eaten fewer calories. You'll lose weight without feeling hungry or deprived.

Here's an example of how volume affects eating. Raisins are dried grapes. But 100 calories of raisins fill only one-quarter cup, while 100 calories of fresh, whole grapes fill one and two-thirds cups. You'll feel satisfied after one and two-thirds cups of grapes, but if you're eating raisins, you're likely to keep filling your mouth. The point is not to stop eating raisins (or chocolate, cheese, or other high-calorie, low-volume foods), but to realize that you're likely to take in many more calories before your body tells you you're full. If you're trying to manage your weight, eating more low-density foods (lower-calorie foods that have a lot of volume) will make you feel full while you drop pounds.

Barbara Rolls, a respected and well-published food-nutrition researcher at Pennsylvania State University, and food writer Robert Barnett explain energy density and how to use this concept to lose weight. They include the scientific evidence about how low-density (low-calorie, high-volume) foods make you feel satisfied, the best (and worst) foods for a satisfying, lower-calorie diet, a menu plan, an exercise plan, and environmental influences on eating. You also learn which foods are easiest to overeat. This is not a fad diet--it is logical and scientifically based, yet easy to understand and put into action. --Joan Price

About the Author:

Barbara Rolls, Ph.D., is professor of nutritional sciences and the Helen A. Guthrie Chair of Nutritional Sciences at Pennsylvania State University, where she heads the Laboratory for the Study of Human Ingestive Behavior. A veteran nutrition researcher and past president of both the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior and the Obesity Society, Dr. Rolls has been honored throughout her career with numerous awards, including Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and honorary membership in the American Dietetic Association. In 2010 she received the Obesity Society's highest honor, the George A. Bray Founders Award, and was elected to the American Society for Nutrition's Fellows Class of 2011. She is the author of more than 250 research articles and six books, including The Volumetrics Weight Control Plan and The Volumetrics Eating Plan. She lives in State College, Pennsylvania.

Mindy Hermann, R.D., is a writer who specializes in collaborative projects on cooking, food, and nutrition with researchers, health professionals, and chefs. The Ultimate Volumetrics Diet is her tenth book. She lives in Mount Kisco, New York.

Barbara Rolls, Ph.D, holds the endowed Guthrie Chair of Nutrition at Penn State, has been president of the North American Association for the Study of Obesity and the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior, and has served on the advisory council of the National Institutes of Health's Institute of Diabetes and Digestion and Kidney Diseases. She is the author of three professional books on food and nutrition and more than 170 academic articles.

Coauthor Robert A. Barnett is an award-winning journalist who specializes in food and nutrition. He is the author of Tonics (HarperPerennial, 1997), coauthor of The Guilt-Free Comfort Food Cookbook (Thomas Nelson, 1996), and editor of The American Health Food Book (Dutton, 1991).