cover image THE TEEN WEIGHT-LOSS SOLUTION: The Safe and Effective Path to Health and Self-Confidence

THE TEEN WEIGHT-LOSS SOLUTION: The Safe and Effective Path to Health and Self-Confidence

Erika Schwartz, . . Morrow, $24.95 (262pp) ISBN 978-0-06-073932-4

Schwartz, a physician who specializes in women's health, takes a holistic approach to the physical ailments that plague adolescent girls. In a perfunctory five-page nod to boys at the book's end ("Boys Are Teens, Too"), Schwartz claims boys aren't the victims of peer pressure or intimidation as often as are girls—an assertion that could annoy boy experts such as William Pollack (Real Boys ) or Michael Gurian (A Fine Young Man ). That said, Schwartz does cover her territory well when it comes to mothers and daughters, investigating the ways hormones affect girls physically and emotionally. For problems like bloating, mood swings, acne, weight gain, irregular periods and depression, she prescribes natural progesterone, certain supplements (calcium, folate, etc.), exercise, nutrition and lifestyle changes. Schwartz comes down hard on birth control pills (which may have undesirable side effects) and Prozac—both, she says, are often over-prescribed by doctors. In fact, Schwartz explains, many doctors are unfamiliar with natural progesterone and don't know how to administer it, though it's clearly helped hundreds of girls in Schwartz's own practice. This is an eye-opening book for parents who want to help their teenage daughters explore natural methods of safely managing the weight gain, acne and hormonal changes common to female adolescence. Illus. Agent, Deborah Schneider. (On sale Aug. 17)