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Mad Diet: Easy Steps to Lose Weight and Cure Depression
Are you depressed or struggling to lose weight? You are not alone. 1 in 4 Western women is taking antidepressants and two thirds of us are obese or overweight. Something is clearly very wrong. Mad Diet® lifts the lid on what is really going on with our food and provides an EASY STEP GUIDE to restoring your mind and waistline.
Suzanne Lockhart is Vice President of a multi-national food science organisation. In a career spanning over 20 years working with government agencies, global food manufacturers, farming groups and grocery retailers, she has insider knowledge of the politics and production of our food.
After being diagnosed with depression in 1989, Suzanne has spent over two decades investigating the impact of a Western diet on physical and mental health. Mad Diet is the result of 25 years of study and her front-line experience as a senior food industry executive.
Suzanne Lockhart is Vice President of a multi-national food science organisation. In a career spanning over 20 years working with government agencies, global food manufacturers, farming groups and grocery retailers, she has insider knowledge of the politics and production of our food.
After being diagnosed with depression in 1989, Suzanne has spent over two decades investigating the impact of a Western diet on physical and mental health. Mad Diet is the result of 25 years of study and her front-line experience as a senior food industry executive.
292 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 24, 2016
126 people are currently reading
91 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
March 27, 2018
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
A frank examination of the food industry / 'Big Pharma', with some wise words about sensible eating.
First thing's first. This book is not another crazy diet plan (huzzah!). Instead, it's an in-depth, accessible exploration of the way we look at food and medication, and why our attitudes need to shift.
The book starts with a horrifying appraisal of mass-farming and food production. There's nothing revelationary here, it's all stuff you're probably aware of already - but it makes for shocking and saddening reading, nonetheless. Basically, the conclusion is that we're being cleverly micro-managed by the food giants into eating what they want us to eat because it's cheap to manufacture...not because it's good for us.
The same applies for the major pharmaceutical companies, whose focus on driving profit comes at the cost of their customers' health. Again, nothing so surprising here, but when collated into the one book, it makes for uncomfortable, anger-inducing reading.
So then, what should we all be eating? Well, unsurprisingly, the author is an advocate of getting back to basics and eating what our grandparents used to eat. Fresh fruit and veg (minus the pesticides and weird treatments to make them stay fresh for longer), good quality, locally sourced meat and fish, and plenty of herbs and spices. Again, it's nothing you won't be aware of already, but it's interesting to read.
I think that very much encapsulates the book's essential nature actually. I don't think the author is trying to reveal new stuff here. Instead, she's trying to get the reader to see sense and to stop trusting the mega food companies / big pharma organisations who only have interest in our wallets. In that respect, she completely succeeds. The book is accessible, engaging, and all the more convincing thanks to her narrative style, which is pure no-nonsense Scot.
There were certain sections that I personally favoured over others - for instance, the information on the different herbs and their health benefits was really interesting. I also found the author's own personal experiences very compelling - and again, it gives the book that strong sense of personality that sets it apart from other similar tomes.
If you're concerned about what you put on your plate and you want to get back to a simpler, healthier way of eating, this is a great book to get you inspired. I'd recommend.
A frank examination of the food industry / 'Big Pharma', with some wise words about sensible eating.
First thing's first. This book is not another crazy diet plan (huzzah!). Instead, it's an in-depth, accessible exploration of the way we look at food and medication, and why our attitudes need to shift.
The book starts with a horrifying appraisal of mass-farming and food production. There's nothing revelationary here, it's all stuff you're probably aware of already - but it makes for shocking and saddening reading, nonetheless. Basically, the conclusion is that we're being cleverly micro-managed by the food giants into eating what they want us to eat because it's cheap to manufacture...not because it's good for us.
The same applies for the major pharmaceutical companies, whose focus on driving profit comes at the cost of their customers' health. Again, nothing so surprising here, but when collated into the one book, it makes for uncomfortable, anger-inducing reading.
So then, what should we all be eating? Well, unsurprisingly, the author is an advocate of getting back to basics and eating what our grandparents used to eat. Fresh fruit and veg (minus the pesticides and weird treatments to make them stay fresh for longer), good quality, locally sourced meat and fish, and plenty of herbs and spices. Again, it's nothing you won't be aware of already, but it's interesting to read.
I think that very much encapsulates the book's essential nature actually. I don't think the author is trying to reveal new stuff here. Instead, she's trying to get the reader to see sense and to stop trusting the mega food companies / big pharma organisations who only have interest in our wallets. In that respect, she completely succeeds. The book is accessible, engaging, and all the more convincing thanks to her narrative style, which is pure no-nonsense Scot.
There were certain sections that I personally favoured over others - for instance, the information on the different herbs and their health benefits was really interesting. I also found the author's own personal experiences very compelling - and again, it gives the book that strong sense of personality that sets it apart from other similar tomes.
If you're concerned about what you put on your plate and you want to get back to a simpler, healthier way of eating, this is a great book to get you inspired. I'd recommend.
February 20, 2018
This is a brilliant book and one that everyone should read. Plenty of us are struggling everyday to lose weight and so many of us are suffering a myriad of different mental health problems with depression being one of the biggest. This book gives a valuable insight into why we are overweight, why we are depressed and how simple and easy diet changes can change both out waist line and our mental heath for the better.
I love this book, I really do! I’ve always felt that diet plays a significant part in both our physical and also mental well being and this book shows us exactly how. The book begins with a brief explanation of how the food we eat is making us both mad and fat. This introduction helps you to connect with the author and I like the simple easy tone that the book takes. The first chapters that follow are really interesting as they explain all about the growth of the food industry since the Second World War and the rise in the use of developed medicines in the modern world. I found this information very valuable as it really gives you a true insight into how things have changed and how powerful some global companies have become. We also learn about the author’s own personal past struggles with her mental health.
The next part of the book, the largest section, explains about all the different things in our current diet which are either helping or harming our health. I found this part of the book the most useful and although I’ve read books on this subject before this particular book goes on to explain more than just why something is good or bad for your health but also explains exactly how that nutrient is affecting your body, often on a cellular level. I found this fascinating and the author’s easy to read style meant I never found it hard to understand anything she says. Towards the end of the book we are given additional ways of supporting ourselves which aren’t diet related and also information on how it’s possible to come off of antidepressants for good.
I really enjoyed reading the whole book and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in improving their mental health. It does however require that people are open to the information the author gives and I’ve read quite a few negative reviews that clearly show that some people aren’t. While the book does advocate coming off of antidepressants in the long term (the author admits to doing this without her doctor’s support which was reckless) this book does not advocate doing this without the support of a GP, and only if the reader is comfortable with the idea and wants to go ahead.
Some other reviews also complain about the way the book talks about the pharmaceutical companies and big food industries as a whole, suggesting it’s scare-mongering. However having read through the book entirely this isn’t the case. About thirty pages at the back of the book are all studies or various other evidence that you can look up for yourself online, in fact the author suggests doing your own research and making your own conclusions from your own research rather than relying only on what’s written in the book.
Although the book on the whole is very interesting and easy to read I did find it strange that the wording is often targeted towards women readers rather than men. This book is likely perhaps to be read by more women than men but I would have preferred a more neutral tone to the book, gender wise. There is also an occasion or two in the book where the author insists that a certain substance such as fish oils should be a supplement that even vegans and vegetarians should take, however as a vegetarian this did annoy me a little as I’m obviously not going to follow that advice! There is one use of the s swear word in this book but nothing else offensive.
Overall, despite my criticisms, I still find this book fascinating to read and keep looking at it over and over again. There are plenty of things I’d never heard of before such as the benefits of iodine and the easy to read style the author takes makes it easy to connect with her. What makes it even more interesting for me, and makes me feel that the comments on ‘big food’ are valid, is the fact that the author has worked in the industry before and seen some of the practices behind the big food companies first hand. This is a brilliant book that really does shed some light on how we are all making ourselves sick and fat with the diet we eat. If depression has other causes then of course it will take more than just simple diet changes to be able to come off of antidepressants, but this book goes a long way to show us how we can all improve our mood and wellbeing, whether fat, mad and even for those that are neither. A book I’d definitely recommend!
-Thanks to Bookbridgr and the publisher for a free copy.
I love this book, I really do! I’ve always felt that diet plays a significant part in both our physical and also mental well being and this book shows us exactly how. The book begins with a brief explanation of how the food we eat is making us both mad and fat. This introduction helps you to connect with the author and I like the simple easy tone that the book takes. The first chapters that follow are really interesting as they explain all about the growth of the food industry since the Second World War and the rise in the use of developed medicines in the modern world. I found this information very valuable as it really gives you a true insight into how things have changed and how powerful some global companies have become. We also learn about the author’s own personal past struggles with her mental health.
The next part of the book, the largest section, explains about all the different things in our current diet which are either helping or harming our health. I found this part of the book the most useful and although I’ve read books on this subject before this particular book goes on to explain more than just why something is good or bad for your health but also explains exactly how that nutrient is affecting your body, often on a cellular level. I found this fascinating and the author’s easy to read style meant I never found it hard to understand anything she says. Towards the end of the book we are given additional ways of supporting ourselves which aren’t diet related and also information on how it’s possible to come off of antidepressants for good.
I really enjoyed reading the whole book and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in improving their mental health. It does however require that people are open to the information the author gives and I’ve read quite a few negative reviews that clearly show that some people aren’t. While the book does advocate coming off of antidepressants in the long term (the author admits to doing this without her doctor’s support which was reckless) this book does not advocate doing this without the support of a GP, and only if the reader is comfortable with the idea and wants to go ahead.
Some other reviews also complain about the way the book talks about the pharmaceutical companies and big food industries as a whole, suggesting it’s scare-mongering. However having read through the book entirely this isn’t the case. About thirty pages at the back of the book are all studies or various other evidence that you can look up for yourself online, in fact the author suggests doing your own research and making your own conclusions from your own research rather than relying only on what’s written in the book.
Although the book on the whole is very interesting and easy to read I did find it strange that the wording is often targeted towards women readers rather than men. This book is likely perhaps to be read by more women than men but I would have preferred a more neutral tone to the book, gender wise. There is also an occasion or two in the book where the author insists that a certain substance such as fish oils should be a supplement that even vegans and vegetarians should take, however as a vegetarian this did annoy me a little as I’m obviously not going to follow that advice! There is one use of the s swear word in this book but nothing else offensive.
Overall, despite my criticisms, I still find this book fascinating to read and keep looking at it over and over again. There are plenty of things I’d never heard of before such as the benefits of iodine and the easy to read style the author takes makes it easy to connect with her. What makes it even more interesting for me, and makes me feel that the comments on ‘big food’ are valid, is the fact that the author has worked in the industry before and seen some of the practices behind the big food companies first hand. This is a brilliant book that really does shed some light on how we are all making ourselves sick and fat with the diet we eat. If depression has other causes then of course it will take more than just simple diet changes to be able to come off of antidepressants, but this book goes a long way to show us how we can all improve our mood and wellbeing, whether fat, mad and even for those that are neither. A book I’d definitely recommend!
-Thanks to Bookbridgr and the publisher for a free copy.
March 14, 2017
What a fantastic book on mind and body
I myself can be called mad and fat , but I want to change all that with the help of this book . Suzanne starts by saying ' eat what your Granny cooked ' and I think that's true . My Mum made everything from scratch everyday , no she never worked but always had good food and we knew what day of the week it was by what we were given to eat . Let's go back to those days and try to do this and maybe save a little money than give it all to company's who want us hooked in what they make by adding God knows what into their convenience food !
I myself can be called mad and fat , but I want to change all that with the help of this book . Suzanne starts by saying ' eat what your Granny cooked ' and I think that's true . My Mum made everything from scratch everyday , no she never worked but always had good food and we knew what day of the week it was by what we were given to eat . Let's go back to those days and try to do this and maybe save a little money than give it all to company's who want us hooked in what they make by adding God knows what into their convenience food !
December 31, 2016
Amazingly insightful!
I've just finished this book and I'm literally going to go right back to the beginning to make notes of the practical easy steps I can make. I loved the layout, loved the easy tips and the whole book resonated with me, confirming my suspicions and giving me some answers too. An absolute must read. Thank you Suzanne Lockhart, perhaps some cookery classes now?!!
I've just finished this book and I'm literally going to go right back to the beginning to make notes of the practical easy steps I can make. I loved the layout, loved the easy tips and the whole book resonated with me, confirming my suspicions and giving me some answers too. An absolute must read. Thank you Suzanne Lockhart, perhaps some cookery classes now?!!
January 17, 2017
Insightful
Really interesting and makes you think about what you eat. Easy to read and helped me make some changes to my diet already x
Really interesting and makes you think about what you eat. Easy to read and helped me make some changes to my diet already x
July 31, 2017
Informative read
Great read with a touch of Scottish humour. Opened my eyes to what we are eating and why and the need to press the reset button on our eating habits
Great read with a touch of Scottish humour. Opened my eyes to what we are eating and why and the need to press the reset button on our eating habits
April 2, 2018
Brilliant
Really good info and references. Really made me think about what I am buying. Great tips on supplements that have made me feel better already.
Really good info and references. Really made me think about what I am buying. Great tips on supplements that have made me feel better already.
August 15, 2020
Didn’t finish but what I read of it was mind blowing
Read
June 6, 2021Eye opening
So many things made sense, definitely worth a read, read in day , a whole new insight to the benefits of macronutrients
So many things made sense, definitely worth a read, read in day , a whole new insight to the benefits of macronutrients
May 18, 2023
Good guidance and tips to make it a “normal” healthy lifestyle. The mega food industry and Supermarkets are a concern. Government and expert BS is another worry.
March 12, 2017
Although I knew a lot of the information already, I have been a bit lazy about cooking from scratch and baking bread recently. I've also put on a bit of weight, so this book was a great motivational kick up the bum to develop better, healthier habits!
September 22, 2016
Brilliant
I have never left a book review before, but this book has inspired me to do so. Firstly, i have long been interested in how what you eat can heal you and have read many books on the subject. This is the first one i have read by someone from the uk. This makes a difference; this makes what she is saying instantly recognisable. Secondly, i have suffered a very mild depression for most of my life, but recently it has become worse. It has given me much comfort to know why and how to make it better without medication. Today i have started the 'big 4". Thank you suzanne for giving me some light.
I have never left a book review before, but this book has inspired me to do so. Firstly, i have long been interested in how what you eat can heal you and have read many books on the subject. This is the first one i have read by someone from the uk. This makes a difference; this makes what she is saying instantly recognisable. Secondly, i have suffered a very mild depression for most of my life, but recently it has become worse. It has given me much comfort to know why and how to make it better without medication. Today i have started the 'big 4". Thank you suzanne for giving me some light.
February 20, 2017
A must read ....
Life changing and makes so much sense, highly recommended for everyone. Easy to understand why so many of us are mad or fat!
Life changing and makes so much sense, highly recommended for everyone. Easy to understand why so many of us are mad or fat!
March 3, 2018
Amazing
This book is perfect for anyone, like me, who wants to educate themselves on the facts behind the food we eat and the drugs we take. It's eye-opening, well researched, interesting and horrifying, and more importantly it's given me the kick up the bum I need to make changes and take control of what I'm putting in my body. Hats off to Suzanne, a brilliant read. Everyone needs to read this and take control!
This book is perfect for anyone, like me, who wants to educate themselves on the facts behind the food we eat and the drugs we take. It's eye-opening, well researched, interesting and horrifying, and more importantly it's given me the kick up the bum I need to make changes and take control of what I'm putting in my body. Hats off to Suzanne, a brilliant read. Everyone needs to read this and take control!
May 16, 2020
A very well written, relatable book that everyone should read. If you’ve ever felt that something isn’t right with your health and you’ve tried all the usual stuff then this book could have the answer. It was eye opening, in a good way, especially regarding the role of micronutrients in our diet and also in bad way as it details the many ways that the big players in food and pharma are negatively impacting our lives. Generally a very informative but enjoyable read.
October 27, 2018
Inspirational!
This book has opened my mind to the reality of food production and all negativity around it. It is so easy to read and I loved the references to granny; reminding me of my grannies and their cooking. I 'm now type 2 diabetic but hope to reverse this. Thank you Suzanne, for giving me the big push I needed!
This book has opened my mind to the reality of food production and all negativity around it. It is so easy to read and I loved the references to granny; reminding me of my grannies and their cooking. I 'm now type 2 diabetic but hope to reverse this. Thank you Suzanne, for giving me the big push I needed!
July 11, 2020
Sound, knowledgeable advice.
Applied Common Sense! Start counting artificial ingredients instead of calories, vitamins and micronutrients instead of Enumbers. Excellent advice, backed up by real research.
Applied Common Sense! Start counting artificial ingredients instead of calories, vitamins and micronutrients instead of Enumbers. Excellent advice, backed up by real research.
September 14, 2016
A amazing ,thought provoking
This is a must read anyone who is or has struggled with their weight or mental health. Highly recommend to all
This is a must read anyone who is or has struggled with their weight or mental health. Highly recommend to all
May 5, 2018
Everybody should read this book
Good advice regarding nutrition . You are what you eat, whether it's food or medication, this book opened my eyes on many facts.
Good advice regarding nutrition . You are what you eat, whether it's food or medication, this book opened my eyes on many facts.
October 1, 2018
mad Diet book
I really enjoyed all the a fabulous hints while reading Mad Diet
Now going on to google to learn Reiki
Would have loved some actual recipes
I really enjoyed all the a fabulous hints while reading Mad Diet
Now going on to google to learn Reiki
Would have loved some actual recipes
January 2, 2019
Fantastic Read
A mind blowing read that leaves you so positive of your health in the future. I will be buying this book for everyone!
A mind blowing read that leaves you so positive of your health in the future. I will be buying this book for everyone!
November 11, 2019
Seriously fantastic. If I could recommend you one book this would be it! Total game changer
April 14, 2017
Great read
A lot of information I either knew, or suspected, but this book pulled it all together in such a clear way. I'll be recommending it to my mad and fat friends.
A lot of information I either knew, or suspected, but this book pulled it all together in such a clear way. I'll be recommending it to my mad and fat friends.
Read
December 2, 2018Definitely worth reading
Well worth reading. Sensible fact based opinion. This may or may not change your lifestyle but it will make you think.
Well worth reading. Sensible fact based opinion. This may or may not change your lifestyle but it will make you think.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews