I borrowed this book from the library after watching a PBS Special with Dr. Daniel Amen, a Psychiatrist, who purports to show you how to lose weight and keep it off for life. This is a very readable book and it may in fact have the answers to weight loss over time. But it is actually a book on brain health. Dr. Amen believes that a healthy brain can create a healthy (i.e. thin/slim) body.
There are a few things that destroy your brain such as excessive alcohol, sugar, smoking and drugs. Some diseases like dementia and depression destroy brain cells as well. He doesn't make it clear though which comes first, the disease or the deterioration of brain cells. He does say that alcohol/sugar/smoking/drugs can accelerate dementia and mental illness.
He makes a very good point that I had not considered prior to this. It is basically if your body is unhealthy, then your brain is also unhealthy. The two work in tandem. With an unhealthy brain you cannot make good decisions. You may not do what is best for you because you may unable to find and examine alternatives and use logic and wisdom and knowledge together to assess situations. Some parts of your brain may be working at a sub-prime level.
The good news is that if you eat a low calorie fruit and vegetable rich diet, exercise aerobically for half an hour a day and keep a positive attitude, your brain can become healthier. This book is motivating.
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