The body is the most fascinating machine ever created, and nobody talks about it in ways that are as illuminating and compelling as Dr. Michael Roizen and Dr. Mehmet Oz do. In YOU: The Owner's Manual they showed us how bodies work in general, and in In YOU: On a Diet, they explained how bodies lose weight and stay fit; both books have sold in the millions. Now, in In YOU: Staying Young, the doctors are going to talk to you about what happens as your body ages. As with their previous books, they've conducted tireless research and will introduce fascinating and crucial information in an unforgettable way.
Most people think of the aging of our bodies the same way we think of the aging of our cars: The older we get, it's inevitable that we're going to break down-it could be in just a few ways or it could be in dozens of ways. Most of us hold this notion that once we reach 40 or so, we begin the slow and steady decline of our minds, our eyes, our ears, our joints, our arteries, our libido, and every other system that affects the quality of life (and how long we live it) .
But according to Dr. Roizen and Dr. Oz, that's a mistake.
Aging isn't a decline of our systems. It's actually very purposeful. The very systems and biological processes that age us are actually designed to help us when we're a little bit younger. So what's our role as part of the aging population? To learn how those systems work, so we can reprogram them to work the way they did when we were younger. Your goal should be: Die young at any age. That means you live a high quality of life (with everything from working joints to working genitals) until the day you die. Because the doctors' real goal isn't just to make you live longer; it's to allow you to maintain vibrancy throughout your entire life.
The authors will tantalize readers with completely novel concepts---they're not just going to tell you that all you have to do is eat well and sleep lots. They'll explain how our bodies have evolved to ensure 50 years of high quality life, but those same mechanisms can be counterproductive as you age (it's the concept of biologic necessity, rather than just an accident; a biological process that helps you cope better when young unfortunately does opposite as you age). They'll do this by using the metaphor of a city to explain how the body works. Just like your body ages, a city does, too-especially if decisions are made that negatively impact the health of the city, or if too many resources and investments are used in the wrong areas and too few resources are used in the right areas. A once vibrant body can deteriorate if you don't take care of it. But if you revitalize, maintain, and implement new ideas, you'll keep your body at its finest. This allows you to live gracefully and passionately with a fundamentally older infrastructure.
Some examples you'll see throughout the book: Your arteries are like roadways that can be clogged, blocked, or worn down after years of abuse. Your brain is like the energy grid that supplies power to the entire city-and can be knocked out here and there if you let neurological branches fall on your power lines (keys, anyone?). Your skin, in many ways, is like a city's parks and green space-contributing to the overall sense of beauty and vibrancy. Your fat? Yep, landfill.
But really, the ultimate goal isn't just to keep your biological city from turning into a ghost town-to keep you from dying. The goal is to make your body top the "best city to live in" list. It's to make it vibrant, hip, to give it lots of resources and manage them well, and, perhaps most of all, to give it the ability to reinvent itself in the face of changing times.
The book will be full of signature YOU methods to convey the story, including YOU Tests, YOU Tips, and visual and verbal metaphors to bring the science alive; it will be heavily illustrated in the same playful, irreverent style as the previous books. Each section of the book will introduce a theory for why we age, with a quick intro into the science that will be followed by chapters of the health issues that primarily fall under each specific theory of aging.
As always, the doctors' passion for spreading awareness and promoting good health will shine through and make this a funny, educational, essential book.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 276 of 300 people found the following review helpful:
By B. V. Michael
I was waiting for this book for a very long time and was keeping an eye on everything related to it. I am pleased with the depth, scope, wit and overall value of this book. It takes you on a journey through all those important organs, substances and processes in the body that eventually make or break successful weight loss. I am glad that although the book is written in a light and entertaining style, it is serious, detailed, well researched and effective. After all, these are the most important things in a weight loss program. If you are a man and must slim down in the fastest and easiest way, I strongly advise you to pair it with the simple, individualized, yet stunning "your scientific diet for men". I agree that you: on a diet is more than just a diet and this makes it even more valuable and recommended read. The two doctors are well known and trusted experts and this is reflected in the book. I liked the questionnaires, busted myths and witty things that make the book hard to put down from start to finish. I think that the 2 week long reboot program is ok in terms of difficulty and needed time and I hope to direct my body in even more positive direction. Overall, I am very satisfied with the result from the obviously long, hard and dedicated work of two big names nowadays and it is one of the few books that I highly recommend.
125 of 132 people found the following review helpful:
By Richard Stoyeck
Let's face it. If you are reading a book like this, then in your world you have an issue with weight control. If this is true, and has been true a while, than this is probably not a sudden issue. It is one that has been ongoing for years, perhaps decades. YOU NEED HELP, and this book is going to give it to you, but help is not just a list of do's and don't. Each of us probably already probably knows what the do's and don't are. Some of us may know them better than the doctors who wrote this book. You'll like this book for the following reasons.
1) It's COMPARTMENTALIZED into FOUR main parts
The first part deals is "What a Waist"- It deals with how your body should be working smarter, not harder. There is one sentence that tells you the tone of this book, "No matter how hard you try not to eat, some hidden force deep inside is always prying your mouth back open, making it impossible for willpower to win." What this is telling you is that the authors, Drs. Roizen and Oz are sympathetic to those that suffer from this malady, and don't kid yourself, it is an addiction.
2) Part II - The Biology of Fat
This section includes the "Science of Appetite", "How food travels through your body", "Inflammation", and "How you can burn fat faster", among others. I was particularly impressed with the author's understanding of fat. Very few writers on dieting understand that fat itself takes on a life of its own. Fat is, as the scientists like to point out, metabolically active. What this means is that it does not just exist as an extra 20, or 30 pounds on your belly. It becomes totally involved with all your life processes, and biology. It changes everything that goes on in your body, and you need to know this.
3) Part III - deals with the Science of the Mind
You will learn about the connection between your feelings and your food, as well as what the doctors refer to as the "Psychology of Failed Fat". You might be aware that there are good fats, and bad fats. Not everything is black and white.
4) Part IV - is the "Oz-Roizen version of a diet combined with an ACTIVITY plan. I have highlighted activity because in the end the difference between taking it off, and keeping it on involves your activity levels. I liked the use of the word activity as opposed to exercise because, as human beings we are programmed via evolution for activity. We are not programmed for exercise and therein lay a world of difference.
You are aware, there are literally hundreds and perhaps several thousand books on dieting on the market today. Every year, a new guru comes along with a different slant on an old topic, and winds up making a fortune for himself, or herself, and causes the rest of us to yo-yo 20, or more pounds, before we move on to the next guru.
It is my belief after covering this book from cover to cover that you just might be able to KEEP IT OFF THIS TIME. These two doctors are not experts on this topic. They do however have great expertise in this topic and there is a difference. Dr. Oz is a nationally prominent heart surgeon, while Dr. Roizen is Professor of anesthesiology and internal medicine at the Cleveland Clinic. There is no way that either of these two men could be experts in dieting, the way others are who spent their lives in the field.
This is not meant to bring discredit to them. We must acknowledge that the so-called true experts in the field have FAILED to prevent a SURGE in obesity levels in the United States over the last four decades. This obesity epidemic happened at the same time, and in spite of the fact that we developed tens of thousands of pages of research reports giving us a 100 times the information we previously had on dieting, weight, nutrition, and so forth. The problem we all face persists in spite of all our efforts to lessen, or eliminate it.
You could argue that in the final analysis, we are ON OUR OWN, when it comes to trying to attain the IDEAL LOOK, and proper WEIGHT for our bodies. Reading this highly encouraging, informative, and SYMPATHETIC book by two wonderful doctors is a fabulous way for you to start your own education, and lifetime battle against obesity. This disease robs us of our health, outlook, self-esteem, and perhaps just the desire to feel good about ourselves. Good luck and I know that with work, and desire, you can attain your goals. They are within your reach. Just keep trying, one more thing, never, ever give in.
