cover image The Addictocarb Diet: Avoid the 9 Highly Addictive Carbs While Eating Anything Else You Want

The Addictocarb Diet: Avoid the 9 Highly Addictive Carbs While Eating Anything Else You Want

Bruce Roseman. BenBella (Perseus, dist.), $24.95 (256p) ISBN 978-1-941631-08-9

When family physician and self-proclaimed food addict Roseman realized he had gone from being a “fat kid to a fat adult,” and one with diabetes to boot, he tried out a number of diets, but without any lasting weight loss until he found his own strategy: cut out “addictocarbs.” This is Roseman’s term for the carbohydrates that cause intense cravings by triggering the addiction center in the brain (bread, pasta, and potatoes are common culprits). Written in a casual, loquacious style, this memoir and nutritional guide takes a practical approach: after looking at food as an addictive substance, Roseman delves into the nitty-gritty of diet rules, health benefits, recipes, and menus. Included is a chapter which chronicles the author’s diabetes diagnosis, and his eventual control of his blood sugar through a regimen of diet and exercise. While Roseman’s more absolutist statements, such as “everybody loves bananas” and the claim that other diets cannot control food cravings, ring false, his book will speak strongly to those people who find themselves recognizing and craving each fast food named throughout, and may help them overcome their food “addiction.” Agent: Matthew Carlini, Vigliano Associates. (July)