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The Low-Carb Fraud

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The Low-Carb Fraud

By: T. Colin Campbell
Narrated by: Don Hagen
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About this listen

By now, the low-carb diet's refrain is a familiar one: "Bread is bad for you. Fat doesn't matter. Carbs are the real reason you can't lose weight."

The low-carb universe Dr. Atkins brought into being continues to expand. Low-carb diets, from South Beach to The Zone and beyond, are still the go-to method for weight loss for millions. These diets' marketing may differ, but they all share two crucial components: the condemnation of "carbs" and an emphasis on meat and fat for calories. Even the latest diet trend, the Paleo diet, is—despite its increased focus on some wholefoods—just another variation on the same carbohydrate fears.

In The Low-Carb Fraud, longtime leader in the nutritional science field T. Colin Campbell outlines where and how the low-carb proponents get it wrong: Where the belief came from that carbohydrates are bad and why it persists despite all the evidence to the contrary. The foods we misleadingly refer to as "carbs" aren't all created equal, and treating them that way has major consequences for our nutritional well-being.

If you're considering a low-carb diet, listen to this book first. It will change the way you think about what you eat—and how you should be eating to lose weight and optimize your health, now and for the long term.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2014 T. Colin Campbell (P)2014 Blackstone Audio, Inc. Diets, Nutrition & Healthy Eating Fitness, Diet & Nutrition Weight Loss & Weight Control
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There are dangers to uncritically diving into and adhering to popular diets. Having been a fairly strict adherent to the high fat low carb diet and at first benefitting from it but then experiencing some down sides, I found this expose very useful, easy to listen to and authoritative. Nothing startlingly new but a good reminder to keep checking and be open to dietary information.

Shake up the Diet

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As a student of lifestyle medicine it’s so good to finally have a proper debunking of the harmful low carb so-called ‘evidence’. Well done Dr Campbell. Much needed. Honest, fair and hopefully will save many lives.

Essential reading

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Everyone should read/listen to this book. Your future health depends on what you can learn here.
Awesome information ! Wow!

Thought food for everyone!

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Campbell continues his life mission to demystify the field of nutrition science, illustrating again how vested interests distort what should be a clear and simple message. This is a short and easy to listen to book but there were still several 'aha' moments as to how popular, commercial diets continue to be pedalled under the banner of science.

Short but insightful

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Finally the nutritional science I was never taught at Medical School and which has taken me 20 years to find since graduating!
Now I can finally really help my patients! Thank you T Colin Campbell & Co.

Nutrition 101

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This book really should be called "The War on Gary Taubes". Rather than being a scientific look at whether carbs are good for humans or not, this book is more focused on debunking Taubes' conclusions. It feels more like an essay than a book.
That in itself is not necessarily a bad thing but when Campbell casually asserted that the reason the low fat diets of the 90s didn't stop the obesity epidemic is because people never really followed it, I had to stop reading. No evidence whatsoever is given for this bald claim and it sounds am awful lot like blaming the patient for the profession's mistakes.
Bonus points for the narrator - he does a good job with what he's got.
Disclaimer: I am neither pro or anti carb, just interested in the science.

The War On Taubes?

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Where to start. The short of it is the majority of the book is attacking others including other researchers. The author only sights their own research on rural people of China to compare low carb in Western People. I only wish the author was a bit more open minded in seeing the similarities of his research in whole food based eating which is what low carb eating is based on also. I wouldn’t have wasted my time if I knew 75% of the book was attacking others.

Wow, attack of others

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What would have made The Low-Carb Fraud better?

I was expecting some cogent discussion on the pitfalls of low-carb diets (which the book does contain in small parts).

However, the book primarily focuses on Campbell's insecurities and displeasure with the low-carb diet which runs counter to the principles in "The China Study" (of which he is the author) and his advocacy of the Whole Foods Plant Based (WFPB) diet.

Basically, the book is mostly just him saying, "My diet is better than yours!"

What could T. Colin Campbell have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Less complaining and expressions of discontent and more rational discussion on the alleged drawbacks of low-carb diets.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

The narrator was fine, if a little monotone in his narration.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Low-Carb Fraud?

Campbell's childish, obviously unhappy and insecure tone which unfortunately makes up a significant proportion of the book.

My diet is better than yours!

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