The Secret Life of Fat: The Groundbreaking Science on Why Weight Loss is So Difficult

by Sylvia Tara

About the Book: The Secret Life of Fat: The Groundbreaking Science on Why Weight Loss Is So Difficult We lose it. We gain it. We hate it. We hide it. We shame it. We suck it in and we even suck it out. Fat is an international obsession, a dirty word and our least understood body part. A groundbreaking combination of historical, cultural and cutting-edge scientific research, The Secret Life of Fat reveals everything we need to understand fat-how it influences our appetite and willpower, how it defends itself when attacked and why it grows back so quickly. Find out how our genetics and hormones determine how much fat we have and where exactly it will show. Fascinating and surprising in equal measure, this book will give you a powerful new understanding of fat...

Genres: Nonfiction, Health, Science, Nutrition, Food, Audiobook, Fitness

248 pages, Paperback

First published December 27, 2016

About the author

Sylvia Tara holds a PhD in biochemistry from the University of California at San Diego and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. She was a consultant with McKinsey & Company and has worked at the world’s largest biotechnology companies. Tara lives in the Los Angeles area.

Reviews

[Bree Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sylvia Tara takes us on a fascinating journey to look at the genetics and history of fat. She explains thoroughly and clearly the history of how fat went from just blobs on the body to a dynamic organ that is responsible for many different processes along the way. She also tackles the reasons why different bodies respond differently to fat loss techniques -- and the different factors that go into it, such as age, gender, and previous attempts at weight loss.

For the vast majority of this book, I raved about it. I loved Tara's take on the history of fat and what little control we have over how our bodies react to different attempts to change our predisposition. By the time I had finished the second section of the book, I was recommending it to others and had come to a great epiphany about why calorie counting didn't matter and we how we should just eat healthy foods in moderation and exercise daily. I was excited to see what Tara would recommend in the last section for how to work around your genetics and what options she suggested.

Mostly, she suggests that people watch their calories and exercise. Exercise has shown to be the biggest predictor of long term success. This was pretty much what I was expecting. But, then Tara goes to to explain how she finally lost her last 10 pounds.

To my VAST disappointment, after preaching the ENTIRE book about how there's little we can do to outpace our genetics and how unhealthy our habits can become in the pursuit of fat loss, Tara's weight loss techniques are nothing less than drastic. She describes how she had to use intermittent fasting (with a 7 hour feeding window), exercised 2-3 hours daily, and dropped her calories to under 1000 daily. After explaining earlier in the book about dropping calories under 1400 leaves our organs with little to work with, this seemed to go against everything she had written about in the book. In fact, if I needed a primer on how to exacerbate or create an eating disorder, her chapter on herself would be excellent.

So, all in all, the first 2/3 of the book gets 5 stars and the terrible advice and story at the end get 1. If you want to read the book, I recommend stopping short of the final section of the book.

[DeB · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommended.

Sylvia Tara, PhD. Dec. 14 W.W. Norton and Co.

In a world which bombards us with its "the right way" in what to eat, how to eat, how much to weigh, how to measure Body Mass Index, the newest and best theory of being our best skinny
selves - and confusingly, screams headlines about what is wrong about them all - Sylvia Tara, PhD, has brought us a sensible and RIVETING fount of information which is genuinely useful. "FAT" is not a four letter word; it actually is a functioning and extremely important organ in our body.

The Secret Life of Fat told a highly readable story complete with case studies and fascinating research, about a subject which is really in its beginning stages of discovery. A virus might make you fat; some bacteria might do so too. Fat allows for proper brain development in babies; the maintenance of myelin in the brains of everyone, keeping neural pathways intact, requires fat. Fat is found in stem cells. It can safeguard your health in many ways, including being overweight if you have the right genes.

But weight issues have plagued us in modern times, and Sylvia Tara approaches those with the latest research and common sense. I loved her personal story, which led to this book: Why did she gain weight and carry fat while eating so much less food than her peers? I am inspired to utilize my new knowledge, trash the latest fads and develop a unique plan which will be "my right way" to lose my kind of fat!

Highly recommended.


Publishing date December 27, 2016. Per publisher request, review will not be made public before December 14, 2016. (Two weeks prior to pub. date.) Advance copy by W. W. Norton and Co., NetGalley

[The Pfaeffle Journal (Diane) · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Sylvia Tara's book the The Secret Life of Fat, she discusses what some researchers have discovered about fat, she does an excellent job of describing in layperson terms how fat interacts with the body. By the end of the book, I understood that fat was very complex and it was able to effect our lives in many ways because of how it affects are bodies.

What disappointed me about the book was the way it ended, as a diet book. The author tells how she lost the 30 pounds she gained about having her third child. I think I would have enjoyed the book more if she had stuck to the science side as she did an excellent job of explaining how fat affects our bodies. I still think the book is worth reading, and recommend it because you do learn about fat and I found that fascinating.

This review was originally posted on The Pfaeffle Journal

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not really sure what to rate this book. I enjoyed the factual parts of the book- learning about the different disorders, how fat can affect other organs, the history of fat and how it's viewed by society, etc. But I did not like the last part of the book-I was a little disturbed by the author's weight loss techniques of fasting and eating less than 1000 calories a day, especially after claiming earlier in the book that you can't out-eat genetics and that obsessive behaviors to control fat can become problematic. So, the first 2 sections of the book are really good, but then the 3rd section is terrible.

[Sasha Lauren · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book. I was excited that a book was written about fat, an important endocrine organ. Some good points were made alongside some significantly misleading information.

On page 31, there is a story about an obese girl named Layla who had liposuction done - this was portrayed as a good thing, which it is not. A member of her medical team pronounced that Layla had an endocrine defect after the liposuction without taking into account that the act of subcutaneous fat removal itself creates more visceral fat and changes metabolism.

The kind of information in this article -- https://www.patientsafetyaction.org/w... -- would have been useful in order to save quality of life, and lives of those who are considering adipose removal, whether medically recommended or not. It's time for the medical community to catch up to science and the overwhelming negative outcomes for people who trust their doctors to remove fat cells, thus upsetting the metabolic, hormonal, and greater interconnected physiological apple cart.

There was a concern mentioned throughout the book about how to be able to eat snacks and sweets without worry of getting fat; this narrative was off track for me.

On page 140, it is mentioned that, "Even small changes in hormone distribution can have dramatically different effects on our fat." I agree with this. Therefore, this book about fat missed a prime opportunity to explain how fat removal, or destruction of fat cells by cooling, chemical, or laser methods, are harmful in the long-term and make well people worse.

On page 167, the author writes, "Remember the liposuction patients in chapter 5, who regained fat in the belly after having it sucked out of the buttocks? Patients who exercised regularly didn't gain back this visceral fat." In the Hernandez study from UC Denver, the women had adipose tissue removed from more than just their buttocks and the remaining fat cells, (including visceral fat cells), DO get larger after fat cells are removed -- regardless of diet and exercise. This doesn't mean that one ought to give up healthy diet and exercise, but the truth is, liposuction creates negative long-term health and contour changes.

Since 2012, I have studied the negative long-term effects of adipose removal via surgery, or the burning or freezing of fat cells via the non-surgical methods. Fat regulates hormones. When some of those cells are removed, the hormonal make-up of the body is changed. This is detrimental to the organism. A book entitled, "The Secret Life of Fat," ought to have gotten this right rather than misleading people.

On page 202-203, stem cells are mentioned. If one harvests stem cells by doing liposuction, it is a "Borrowing from Peter to pay Paul," scenario at best. Death, disability, disfigurement, and iatrogenically caused disease processes are all by-products of liposuction. Any kind of liposuction. Again, in studying this topic since 2012, I have witnessed criminal cover-ups in lawsuits against "top" board certified plastic surgeons who have destroyed the bodies, healthy, and lives of people doing adipose removal, which is an innately bad procedure based on the biology of fat.

"The Secret Life of Fat," talked more about how to be able to eat sweets - which aren't even good for a body - than getting the crucial scientific information correct.

******************************

Here is some quick information about liposuction:

Liposuction is often a part of breast reduction, breast reconstruction, stem cell harvesting, abdominoplasty, mommy makeovers, fat transfer for face lifts, etc.

In Clinical Anesthesiology, October 4, 2012, Michael Vlessides wrote the article, “As Liposuction Deaths Mount, Study Exposes Cracks in Safety.” He said, “A quarter-century after the nation’s plastic surgeons received what amounted to carte blanche to perform liposuction, a new analysis suggests that the procedure is no safer than it was back then. Making matters worse, the researchers said, the surgery has been oversimplified in the popular media... Throw into the mix an ample supply of seemingly unscrupulous physicians and state regulators who do not appear ready to crack down on them, and the result is a recipe for national disaster.”

The America Society of Anesthesiologists said that “California’s liposuction regulations do not prevent patient deaths,” and “The regulations specify requirement by volume of fat removed. These are too high: patients die with even lower volumes.”

The death rate of liposuction is greater than other surgical procedures, and it causes other long-term harm. The procedure is financially driven and those performing do not disclose the true risks involved. Many people are coerced into having liposuction through false imagery and strong advertising. Plastic surgeons and their boards put out propaganda and misleading short-term results re: liposuction.

The Health Technology Advisory Committee, a non-partisan group formed to study liposuction harm, said:

“Death and disfigurement due to liposuction should be a matter for serious public concern."

“Since liposuction is an elective, pay-out-of-pocket procedure, data is not collected as to how many procedures are performed, the complexity of procedures, or the resultant complications.”

“Clear, important statistics on fatalities and complications from private offices or surgeon-owned surgery centers may be withheld.”

“The increasing number of liposuction procedures has led to a growing number of iatrogenic fat tissue deformities, in addition to those of traumatic and disease-related nature.”

Chris Centeno, M.D. says: "...harvesting fat is a violent affair... you need to first use a scalpel… the whole goal is disrupting large amounts of normal tissue. In fact, the stem cells live around the blood vessels, so you have to chew up as many blood vessels in the fat as possible to get a good stem cell yield. This involves placing a small wand like device under the skin and into the fat and moving it back and forth (through much resistance) to break apart large sections of tissue and break up large swaths of tissue with suction, sucking the broken tissue and blood vessels into a syringe. You haven’t seen invasive until you’ve seen a lipo-suction!"

[Douglas Lord · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secret? My own fat is pretty public. This book is freaking transformative as it makes the case for a changed view of fat. First-time author and biochemistry PhD Tara clearly illustrates something that a lot of people don’t yet know—fat is an organ of your body, exactly like the liver, the lungs, and (O be still my heart) the pancreas. It has functions and does important stuff such as acting as a “reserve of energy,” managing energy stores, enabling transmission of brain signals, and facilitating labor. Fat operates differently for every blessed person—and thankfully so. In short: 1) fat is not merely blubber, and 2) without it, you’d die. While this isn’t as readable as Mary Roach (e.g., Bonk, Stiff), it’s a helluva lot less clinical than a textbook, walking that fine line between readable and scientific—mostly by relying on anecdotes and reportage of stories of those with problems, e.g., the girl who couldn’t metabolize fat and nearly starved to death, or the Turkish dude with mutated leptin genes who received injections and was able to begin puberty at age 22. There’s also discussion of a virus (Ad-36) that correlates to humans accumulating more fat. This is not a get-me-thin book; indeed it helps to debunk that cultural stereotype and inject science into the frustration and despair that many people feel about weight, appetite, appearance, and health. VERDICT A challenging, fascinating, sometimes disturbing primer on fat that succeeds on the scientific and the cultural front. Bravo.

Find reviews of books for men at Books for Dudes, Books for Dudes, the online reader's advisory column for men from Library Journal. Copyright Library Journal.

[Marcy Graybill · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the first part of the book, Dr. Tara discusses the research into Fat and the need for Fat, and the good and the bad Fat, etc. She gives case studies and brings people's stories in, which are interesting to read about. She talks about how "diets" don't work, you have to find your own way to weight loss. She says willpower, food logs, and extreme exercising is the only way to lose weight.
Then she gives her personal "Diet." She lives off of 1000 calories a day, eating only between 10am and 3pm, while exercising at least an hour a day. I say if it takes that much effort to lose the weight forget it. She says that in the evenings all she talks about and thinks about is food. I can't imagine that's a healthy way to live. Not mentally or physically. Being fat is bad for you, but, I'll just stay fat and be able to think about something other than food.

[CatReader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sylvia Tara has a PhD in biochemistry and has worked in the biotech consulting sector; in her 2016 book The Secret Life of Fat, she intersperses medical case studies, medical research as of 2016 (this part is already quite out of date in 2024!), and personal anecdotes of herself and other people who've struggled to reach their goal weight.

I found this to be a quick and informative read, though outdated in some parts (see further reading below for some more updated texts). I also sympathized with the personal anecdotes of people who've had extreme difficulty in losing weight, as someone who comes from a family where virtually everyone struggles with weight.

Further reading:
Ultra-Processed People: The Science Behind Food That Isn't Food by Chris van Tulleken, MD, PhD (2023) - about the emerging evidence that ultra-processed foods are driving obesity
Magic Pill: The Extraordinary Benefits and Disturbing Risks of the New Weight-Loss Drugs by Johann Hari (2024) - about Ozempic and other now-ubiquitous weight loss drus
The Obesity Code: Unlocking the Secrets of Weight Loss by Jason Fung (2016) - about intermittent fasting
The Elephant in the Room: One Fat Man's Quest to Get Smaller in a Growing America by Tommy Tomlinson (2019)

My statistics:
Book 181 for 2024
Book 1784 cumulatively

[Kelsey Rich · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am a registered dietitian. The studies that she discussed were interesting, however, I really disliked how the study results were translated into real life. This book is just full of diet culture and weight bias. Will not be recommending to my clients.

[Meghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had my doubts after reading the prologue, because it seemed like the author had a preexisting tough relationship with fat that would skew the book toward an obsession with weight loss. Fortunately, the first two-thirds of the book was a well-researched, objective and fascinating exploration of the nature of fat in the body, ranging from how it benefits us to how it fights to stick with us. The case studies and stories of scientific breakthroughs were totally interesting to me, and explanations of the science were very, shall we say, digestible. I learned a lot.

The last third of the book is still good, even if it feels more general. I wish there had been more discussion about the effect of different types of diet on fat in the body, but I suppose that could have made this book twice as long. The takeaway that everyone's body fat is unique and people have to develop their own management system is great, and I particularly appreciated the science behind self-control and fasting. The diet that the author went on at the end of her book to manage her own fat was super interesting, albeit slightly horrifying to me given the extent of her caloric restriction. However, that's my spin on the values of food and fat, and she points out that that's personal too. As a slightly chubby 34 year-old woman, I feel like this book has given me a lot to think about as I move forward in weight control, age, and life.

Also of note, for me: I am getting way, way better at making my way through nonfiction.

UPDATE! After reading this book I started researching fasting, which had nothing but rave reviews as a healthy and effective practice... until I started hearing from women who have tried it. It doesn't appear that there's much scientific study behind how fasting affects the different genders, which may be why it wasn't covered in this book, but a lot of women athletes have anecdotally described how intermittent fasting really screwed up their hormones, moods, skin, and other aspects of their health, in ways that don't seem to affect men. Given that the author talked about all these issues in other parts of the book at great length, I'm surprised it didn't come up even as something to think about.

[Eve · Rating 4 out of 5]

This doesn't have the same depth of analysis as Kolata's Rethinking Thin: The New Science of Weight Loss--And the Myths and Realities of Dieting, but it is an interesting updated look at the science of fat and weight loss. The author, while noting that ideal weight is skewed by media-created body images, nonetheless unabashedly provides advice and instruction on fighting fat, and describes her own battle with weight.

[Marsha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not your usual book about fat!

Sylvia Tara introduces cutting edge research in the science of fat, weight gain and weight loss in an engaging way, using a highly readable anecdotal style, illustrating her various points with real life examples, including herself. She gets into genetics, good and bad fat, how bacteria and viruses can affect fat gain, why women have a tougher time losing weight -- and so much more.

Tara doesn't just tell the reader about all these things, she gives strategies to overcome.

Much of what she writes wasn't new, but she's pulled it all together in a useful and compassionate way, demonstrating why an eating plan that works brilliantly for one person could be disastrous for someone else.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the review e-copy of this book.

[Aneeza · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is an excellent read for those who want to understand fat and what works to lose it. Sylvia Tara continues to amaze the readers by bringing forth researches that prove how essential fat is for our survival. Fat is an endocrine organ and is not only influenced by hormones but produces them as well. Despite being a doctor and knowing most of the information provided in this book, I was still surprised by the new finding related to fat. The only disappointment for me was the last half of the book where Sylvia recounts her weight loss methods that contradict the rest of her book.

[Charlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

I typically give low ratings to any book that remotely resembles a self -help book. However, despite the fact that this author made her own journey a semi-focus of this book, it was just so well done, I have to give it 5 stars. Excellent scientific discussion of fat and weight. This is how all authors should talk about fat, diets, weight, eating, biochemistry that differs from one body to another, etc.
A+.

[Bijal Choksi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Awful- ending was about using will power to control fat. Really? So much other current research out there about controlling fat without such deprivation. Disappointment.

[Shaun · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal. Absolutely phenomenal.

Kudos to Tara for simply explaining "fat" in all its complexity.

Most of us love to eat it, hate to store it on our bodies though we actually need a healthy amount of it, and struggle to lose it.

In the Secret Life of Fat readers learn why fat is way more than the stuff of muffin tops and jelly thighs. Way more. In fact, fat functions as a organ, releasing hormones and impacting our body systems and behavior. Too much is bad for us, but so is too little. And get this. Once it's there, it will fight to stick around. Furthermore, how, why, where, and when we store it or lose it is a little more complicated than the good old "calories in vs. calories out" model.

Holding a PhD in biochemistry, Tara's credentials are notable, but what I really appreciated about the book were her straightforward explanations and the book's overall organization, both of which make the information easy to understand.

Most importantly, I think her book explains why we are losing the battle of the bulge while providing a basis for a strategy change.

I read a lot on this topic, so some of the information was not new, yet the way she pulls it all together led to some huge light bulb moments on my part. A worthwhile read for all, but particularly for health/wellness professionals.

[Jafar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fat is not just a useless and passive blubber where your body stores the excess calories. Tara calls it an organ and shows how it sends and receives signals and controls many aspects of bodily functions and development. This is not a how-to-lose-weight book, but she has a chapter in the end about her own struggle with losing weight.

[Larisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a diet book! Hallelujah! The author has a PhD in biochemistry and a strong personal interest in the subject and so has devoted years of her life researching the topic. The first few chapters cover exactly what fat is and its complex role in the body. More than simply an inert means of energy storage, fat is presented as an organ that is deeply intertwined with the endocrine system with roles in hormone regulation, reproduction, the immune system and more. The first half of the book expounds upon the virtues of fat.

Of course, that's when it's functioning properly, located in the "right" places (subcutaneous, as opposed to visceral or circulating in the blood stream gunking up the liver and pancreas), and within a manageable range of body mass. The second part of the book discusses the downside of fat. This includes its role in insulin resistance, diabetes, and heart disease. It also covers the most frustrating data of all, why fat is so very difficult to lose and its persistence in returning once it is lost. Deeply depressing stuff. Factors discussed include genetics, gender, age, hormones, individual microbiomes, viruses, sleep, and others.

The most interesting aspect to me was the hormonal changes that occur after an obese person manages to lose the weight. Basically, unless you're prepared for this to be a possibly life-long battle, ya **cked. The body kicks out hormones that increase appetite, decreases hormones that signal fullness, eagerly shunts calories to fat, and basically pulls out every dirty trick to get back to that higher fat place. And studies show this may be permanent. Of course, it is possible to lose the fat and keep it off. It's just unfairly difficult

The final part of the book discusses tactics for losing fat. Liposuction is NOT great because when fat returns, it has a tendency to settle in less healthy areas, i.e. as visceral fat, which has more of an impact on the function of your internal organs. Exercise, of course, is strongly encouraged. Women tend to burn more fat during intense exercise - yay! But they also secrete more ghrelin, a hormone that makes you feel hungry, afterward - boo! Diet is discussed - yawn - and the importance of tracking calories and some kind accountability and reward system. This was the least interesting part of the book, and I especially disliked the author's discussion of her own fat loss tactics. The whole book advocates educating people in order to know what they're up against, and maybe that will help inform the reader of their own personal tactics to try. However, the author's account of her own diet, exercise, and fasting sounds horrible, and her means of justifying it consist of comparisons to the tactics of movie stars and super models. That earns a major side-eye from me.

So I loved it, except for chapter 12. It's refreshing to read books about this subject that aren't fixated on only a few aspects of the problem and/or trying to sell me anything. I learned some stuff. Now I'm interested in learning more, and luckily for the nerd that I am, the reference section is extensive.

[Elena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sylvia Tara writes well, at times intriguingly, page-turningly even on such a topic. I am certainly not an expert but from my point of view this work is closer to a deep research and further from simply note taking/paraphrasing exercise. The topic in itself is of an interest to me but on top of that I found many fascinating (for unsuspecting me) pieces of knowledge: animal models of disease, explanation of why finding a gene is such a difficult endeavor, observations about menstrual cycles of ballet dancers, microbiome as a new field of research (fecal transplants..., the fact that certain bacteria increase absorption of food and, therefore, people with the same caloric intake but different bacteria composition can gain weight differently), energy-burning brown fat cells activated by exercise, etc. I liked this book much more than my recent read on the same topic (The Obesity Code: Unlocking the Secrets of Weight Loss by Jason Fung). Will follow the author (hopefully she writes more).

[Tam · Rating 3 out of 5]

My roommate bought a tool to measure body fat last week (I think it is called skin caliper or sth like that), which makes me a little bit interested. After reading this book, I was able to learn the working of fat in the body and, while I don't try to lose fat, got a lot more aware of health issues even among thin people or among older ones.

I think the advice in the end is this: It's hard to lose fat, incredibly so, because bodies are built that way. In the past it must have been a decided advantage but in this modern world of cheaply available food in developed countries, well... People without obesity wouldn't understand the real pain and incredible difficulties dealing with trying to lose weight and thus should not judge others. In the end, losing fat can be done, but only with extreme persistence. Exercise, carefully monitor food, and the key, be persistent, for years if not decades.

Now the message is simple but you wouldn't appreciate it unless you actually read the book. Not exactly well written, I'd say (just judging the title), but the book is direct and concise, and surprisingly better than expected.

[Mskychick · Rating 3 out of 5]

The more I think on and digest this information, the more some of it seems suspect. There's a little throwaway section on how putting hot food in plastic containers can make one fat. Also a section advocating use of growth hormones and sex hormones to control weight.
This is not good medical practice!!

Also, the upshot I got from this book is that if you have "problem" fat and you want to be thin, you're going to have to vigilantly starve yourself for years and be unhappy. That does not seem like a way to live.

Quote:
If you have a microbiome potentially tilted toward wt gain:
Change your diet to contain more plant fiber that is challenging to digest- fruits & veggies
As your diet evolves, so do your bacteria.
Also, prebiotics reduce food intake and incr satiety in healthy subjects.
Eating at least 16 grams of prebiotics, in foods such as bananas, artichokes, and legumes, daily for 2 weeks promotes satiety and reduces eating.
Oligofructose, found in onions, oats, & leeks, also effects a modest decr in visceral fat & decr hunger.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent book but not as life changing as I thought it would be. Much of it was stuff I already knew, like brown fat and how the microbiome contributes, but some of it was new and exciting. The first half of the book was very interesting and engaging, but I got very bored in the second half and occasionally dreaded reading to an extent. I can't pinpoint what the change was but it just felt long at that point and it's a very short book.

[Emilia M · Rating 1 out of 5]

Tons of research about why diets don't work and yet they encourage you to try like there is nothing else that matters in life.

[Aida]

The first 2/3 of this book contain a LOT of valuable information about research, how fat works in the body, the history of some parts of obesity medicine, and more. The last third is a cluster fuck TBH. PS—feel encouraged to fully skip the chapter where the author talks about her own diet plan ☠️ YIKES. That last third also suffers from a lot of gender assumptions and biases bleeding right through the writing, and some of the very things she was critiquing earlier on in the book show up with a vengeance. That last third also doesn’t contextualize these issues well outside of a frame of weight loss and anti-fat rhetoric, 🥲 such a disappointing wrapup for a book that was so powerful for the first 2/3.

[Corvus · Rating 1 out of 5]

I swear I have the worst luck with goodreads giveaways. I tend to win the worst books out of those I apply to win. I don't think I am a very harsh reviewer, most of my reviews are above 3 or 4 stars. But, I am a critical reviewer. This book says, "Advanced Reading Copy" on it though I suspect that is irrelevant to my review.

Normally, this topic is not something I am incredibly interested as a riots-not-diets type of person who has had eating issues throughout my life that I worked hard to overcome. I often just ignore fat. Then I became a thyroid cancer survivor who had to keep my weight at or below a stupidly specific range for medication to suppress further cancer growth. I read the blurb and thought, hey, science around human fat that isn't couched in body-shaming rhetoric could be interesting.

It started off strong with the author's personal experience and critiques, then delved into some basic biology of fat that is overall accessible (though some readers may get lost a little.) There were some really interesting case studies and I found myself easily settling into the book. It was well written and held my attention.

Then we got into the part- and I don't know WHY I am surprised about this anymore when biologists write things- that discussed nonhuman animal abuse. I am calling it animal abuse because that is what it is when you torture and kill someone else with no benefit to them (and often little/no benefit to humans,) though the author would refer to it as "animal models of diet and obesity."

This book is offensive at a greater level than other pop-science books that bring in discussions of nonhuman animal abuse for scientific interest because the author repeatedly harps both on how hard it was on the scientists, while completely ignoring how torturous it was for animals. She dryly mentions how animals perish from extreme suffering deliberately caused by these scientists then jumps to their glee in their results. Let us rejoice that we have created one animal that is constantly ravenous and tortured to the point that she will eat herself to death and then let's inject another and watch her be unable to eat at all so that she slowly starves to death. Oh and then we had to do stuff like this thousands of times, POOR US such tedious work.

But, wait, it gets worse. So, we're going back and forth between a human case study and celebrating these sadistic researchers' abuse and killing of thousands of animals over a period of years for the sake of discovery and you're probably thinking as the reader- well this researcher is going to cure this woman, right? Nope. I finally sit through reading this snuff piece and in the end we come to realize that the conclusion and treatment were arrived at by human doctors and scientists who could have come up with these conclusions on their own. Nonhuman animal abusers for the sake of translational research (which according to meta-analyses results in actual applicable treatments for humans a tiny fraction of a percent of the time) always steamroll human researchers and doctors with their crap and take credit for their work. The girl's life was saved by the human doctors and human researchers doing consensual human research.

Did you think I was done? Nope. The author then goes on to tell us that, after the girl is treated and able to not be as hungry, she has now lost weight and is "attractive" and "married." Because, you know, fat women can't possibly be attractive or get married. You may think I am nit-picking those two words after being so pissed about having just sat through animal torture-porn and maybe you are right. But, any book claiming to demystify fatness and dismantle society's negative view's about it cannot simultaneously equate attractiveness and ability to find a mate with thinness.

Before I gave up, I gave it one last try and read some of the reviews, only to find that the author goes on to advocate really dangerous dietary practices like starving oneself after arguing in the introduction that one can't out-eat genetics and that society's obsession with thinness is unhealthy.

I normally finish and keep books, even if I dislike them, or give them to someone else. I threw this directly into the recycling bin after giving up on it.

[Dana Busby · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my former bosses, who is a physician, was talking about this book on Facebook a while back and I was intrigued enough to check out from the library. I’m pretty slow with non-fiction, and it’s a tough sell for me; I have to be pretty motivated to A) Actually procure the book and B) actually read it. This book was totally worth the read, and the least demoralizing book about weight that I have ever read. And come to think of it, I have read a fair number of books about weight. They all generally make be feel like a lazy glutton. The Secret Life of Fat helped me to categorize myself who likely has legitimate reasons why I am the weight I am. She also acknowledged the fact that, yes, it is going to be hard for me to be at a textbook healthy weight. -But it’s not impossible. I loved the interesting scientific explanations about why some people seem to be able to eat whatever they want but always stay slim. The best part was how she harnessed all the knowledge about WHY in the end to build up to the by-in that if I make some pretty challenging changes, I could really feel better about myself and live longer in the process. Over the past week I have been implementing some the main dietary change she recommends: intermittent fasting. I am no longer eating breakfast before work. I know eat a yogurt at work at about 9:00-9:30 in order to extend the fast from dinner to breakfast. This is supposed to help stimulate the production of the good hormones that do things like increase insulin sensitivity and tell your body to burn fat. I’m not expecting huge changes over night, but the support she gave for making this change was compelling enough that I am willing to give it a serious try. -The thing to know about the state that causes the production of these hormones and fat burning is that it is a bit uncomfortable; I am pretty hungry. However, Tara even has support for why that is a good thing. Being hungry is not a bad thing. I am absolutely not literally starving. If I never let myself feel hungry for any extended amount of time, I will likely always be overweight. However, I would like to change that, so here’s to getting used to a few hunger pangs!

[Virve Fredman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tämä oli todella mielenkiintoinen kirja siitä, mitä kaikkia tehtäviä rasvalla on kehossa ja kaiken sen oppiminen sai minut ehdottomasti arvostamaan kehoni rasvavarastoja enemmän – mikä on mielestäni todella positiivinen asia ja tekisi monelle hyvää nykyisessä "läskiä pelkäävässä" yhteiskunnassa.

Kirja käsitteli aihetta todella monipuolisesti ja oli mielestäni vetävää luettavaa. Suosittelen tätä kirjaa oikeastaan kaikille, jotka haluavat parantaa suhdettaan omaan kehoonsa ja sen kurveihin.

[Anita · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book contains lots of science about fat with stories about people that make it very interesting to read. It is easily understood with special terms defined and explained. I found it an engaging read, even a sort of page-turner. We learn a lot about types of body fat, what fat does for us, and how fat tends to protect itself. With the science in mind we get ideas of how we might make our own plan for dealing with excess fat. The book shows us how this can be a monumental task leading to a better understanding of the problem much as we have learned to look at the problem of diabetes. We may be able to look at ourselves and others who are overweight less negatively as a result of reading this book and understanding more about what actually can lead to the condition.

The book gives a lot of information. It does not offer us a diet plan. The author does share specifically what she does, but tells us that we are all different in what we need. We can take the information and use what meets our own needs.

[Eric Bjerke · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the most interesting books I have ever read, and potentially life-changing, even if--like me--you are someone who has mostly not had to be overly concerned about managing weight. If YOU ARE someone who has a history of weight struggles, or are beginning to be concerned about your health in regards to managing a healthy weight, well, it is invaluable. Here is a quote:

"For anyone trying to manage fat, I wish you not only the required strength and determination, but also the necessary open-mindedness to understand your fat. There are multifaceted reasons why you may be thinner or heavier than your peers, and gluttony, the usual suspect, is just one of them. Having read this book, you know that genetics, bacteria, gender, age, heritage, hormones, and dieting history are factors that work for you or against you when you attempt to change your weight"

A shout out to Sara Ferguson for the recommendation!

[Samanvay Sinha · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a random pick at the airport as it claimed to explain one baffling thing which has always made me feel that life is a little unfair. I have always felt that I am one of those unlucky ones who put on weight even if I eat excess air and when the author echoed the feeling I thought I must read it and it has been an excellent pick. Before this book my conventional wisdom compelled me to look at fat as an outcome of simple mathematical equation i.e. calories intake minus calories burnt. If you take care of this equation then we are told that things will be fine but it is not that simple as we all can testify. The outcome of the equation is a actually dependent on many more variables and the book explains the same. More radically it describes as an organ which is beneficial in many aspects.

Do read it if you need a fresh perspective in your effort to loose weight. Others can read it and feel how lucky they are 😀