Then, as now, there was no decisive test of his idea-no perfect way to make the case that sugar kills. Yudkin, one of the United Kingdom’s most prominent nutritionists at the time, believed that one had caused the other. Sugar’s rapid rise to prominence in the Western diet, starting in the mid-19th century, had coincided with a sudden outbreak of heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. This book has inspired and scared me into changing the way I think about food and what is 'moderate.' We'll see what happens.“I hope that when you have read this book I shall have convinced you that sugar is really dangerous,” wrote John Yudkin in his foghorn-sounding treatise on nutrition from 1972, Pure, White and Deadly. If you really want to blow your mind, skip to the end for the discussion on cancer, where Taubes discusses the cutting-edge research showing that some cancer cells die when deprived of insulin. He argues that all of these diseases seem to stem from insulin resistance, and that sugar intake is what ultimately causes or is a critical factor in insulin resistance. Fine, but nobody is going to think that proves cigarettes are healthy or good.įinally, the book focuses on metabolic syndrome and the suite of diseases that are associated with it. But that doesn't mean their diet is 'Good.' As analogy, Taubes likens this to that uncle who smoked 2 packs a day and never got lung cancer. For instance, we all know that person who eats a 'balanced' diet and doesn't gain weight. The book also makes numerous analogies to smoking and cigarettes. The book focuses heavily on diabetes and the research surrounding it. Is fat really bad for us? If a calorie really just a calorie, or does nutrition revolve around more than total intake? Is the science supporting nutritional advice sound? Does the FDA know what it's talking about? Is moderation really possible, and if so, how is it defined? These are just some of the questions the book addresses. Its thesis is that sugar is an addictive drug, not food.

The book also takes aim at every single 'bedrock' principle you think you know about nutrition. The book is full-frontal assault on sugar and the sugar industry.

This book should be required reading for all.

The case against sugar