Lose Weight and Love It!: Family Favorites on a Diet

Arlene Gryfe is a Toronto-based professional nutritionist and home
economist.

In North America, many adults, especially women, are attempting to lose weight. The proliferation of books on this topic has done little to alleviate the problem of overweight. How then do these authors approach the task?

Harvey and Chambers have backgrounds in nutrition and training as dieticians. In their book, they do not propose a diet regime which may result only in temporary weight loss. Instead, they help the reader to understand the kind of situations which may have led to the weight gain, and then offer advice. Unlike some diet books, which give detailed meal plans to be eaten on certain days, this book provides a variety of recipes, and the reader is encouraged to compile his or her own menus in keeping with family eating patterns, personal dietary preferences, and seasonal availability.

The would-be dieter, however, is not simply cast adrift in a sea of recipes (100). Much assistance is provided in the first 30 pages. Food groups are listed for both a 1200- and 1500-calorie level. A sample 1200 calorie menu is suggested with ideas on how to divide the total daily food groups into three meals and a snack. This is meant mainly as a guideline, and space is provided for personalized planning.

The book is spiral-bound for easy use. An index is included, but varied typefaces and sizes make itdifficult to use. Aside from this and a few spelling errors, the book is very useful.