Why Women Need Fat: A Book Review

Hooray, butter is not the enemy!!


The last diet book I read was Skinny Bitch. It was about four years ago and for the life of me I can’t remember why I read it. Perhaps I had some crazy notion that I was just one grapefruit away from looking like Kate Moss. I think it was the title I couldn’t resist though. So last week I read Why Women Need Fat for the Blogher Book Club. Who wouldn’t want to read a book called Why Women Need Fat? It has an even more irresistable title and arrived in perfect time to help shape my New Year’s resolution to eat closer to the earth!

Why Women Need Fat written by William D. Lassek, M.D. and Steven J.C. Gaulin, Ph.D., has a subtitle that says it all, How “Healthy” Food Makes Us Gain Excess Weight and the Surprising Solution to Losing It Forever, these guys go in depth to explain why so many women today weigh more than their mothers and grandmothers did. And, how changes in the food industry over the last few decades have contributed to American women’s increasing waistlines.

Why Women Need Fat is a great alternative to the seemingly endless supply of diet books that lead us to believe that we could all look like a runway model if we just gave up a particular food group, say carbs??? Refreshingly, Drs. Lassek and Gaulin preach that there’s no quick fix for losing weight! And, that dieting/starving ourselves is counterproductive to maintaining a long-term healthy body size. And perhaps, more importantly, this book is a great reminder that we are not all meant to look like Heidi Klum. I won’t bore you with all the scientific and well-researched data in this book, but I will say it’s worthwhile read even if you aren’t trying to lose weight. The authors explore myths about the “healthy” fats and talk about approaches to determining your natural weight. Their research supports what we know from those skinny French women – natural food in moderation does not make you fat.

And, now we can officially celebrate that butter is not the enemy and instead go throw away our nasty soybean oils!



Just so you know, I was compensated for this review, however, the opinions expressed here are always my own.