Publishers Weekly
07/04/2022
“Fad diets aren’t a product of ignorance, lazy or wishful thinking, or purposeful mendacity” but “a product of deep and enduring cultural and psychological processes and needs” according to this sharp study from nutritional anthropologist Chrzan (Food Health) and psychologist Cargill (Food Cults). The authors contend that all fad diets—which they define as “a novelty diet that makes big promises and often has little scientific evidence supporting it”—are similar in that they’re a response to a “set of concerns or anxieties,” which makes them exceptionally easy to fall for. Chrzan and Cargill dig into Paleo eating (with its “firm belief that the problem is located within the cultural food system”), the Atkins diet (which “shifted the discourse about how and why people gain weight and how best to lose it”), and food addictions (a growing concern for people, despite not being recognized as a mental disorder by the American Psychiatric Association). The authors are especially sharp in their examination of “clean eating,” which they note has no agreed-upon definition despite its ubiquity, and in pointing out that fad diets are so pervasive in America specifically thanks to a “cultural goal of conquering and mastering nature, self, and destiny.” Students and scholars of psychology and nutrition will want to check out this smart and comprehensive survey. (Aug.)
Gastronomica
Chrzan and Cargill effectively use their conceptual apparatus to clearly demonstrate how diets capitalize on broad social anxieties.
Ken Albala
Two leading food scholars tackle the phenomenon of fad diets and our susceptibility to sign on to them. Akin to religious experience, the diet promises transformation, social fulfillment, and ultimately happiness and redemption. Even after repeated failures, we return to the quick and easy diet - which marketers in the industry know all too well. Chrzan and Cargill dissect our urge to control our bodies through food intake, a perennially and vitally important topic.
Choice
A terrific book... Highly recommended.
What's Nonfiction
A very helpful read for anyone who finds themselves stuck in the loop of fad diets.
Fabio Parasecoli
This enlightening and informative book explores not only how fad diets work but also why they are so wildly successful, as they provide templates for the expression of individual and social anxieties in contemporary American food culture and beyond.
Atlantic
Rather than guiding readers to weight loss or body acceptance, Chrzan and Cargill hope to turn the popular notion of “good” and “bad” foods inside out.
Amy Bentley
In the face of overwhelming evidence that diets don’t work, why do Americans continue to follow one fad diet after another? Chrzan and Cargill persuasively explain that it’s not because they promote weight loss or guarantee health, but because they make cultural sense and fulfill crucial psychological needs.
