First published 2025
Former FDA Commissioner David Kessler examines why weight loss remains so difficult for most people. Three quarters of American adults face weight-related health problems like diabetes and heart disease. Traditional diets fail repeatedly, yet excess weight shortens lives. Kessler argues that new GLP-1 weight loss medications have changed our understanding of how weight works. These drugs target brain circuits responsible for cravings and quiet what he calls "food noise." The medications reveal that ultraprocessed foods create genuine addiction. Losing weight requires treating this addiction, not just changing behavior. Kessler, who has fought his own weight battles, warns that drugs alone carry risks and cannot solve everything. Success demands combining medication with proper nutrition, behavioral changes, and exercise. The book breaks taboos around food addiction and provides strategies for rewiring addictive brain patterns. Kessler offers readers new tools to escape lifelong weight struggles through understanding the brain-body connection.
Genres: addiction, medical, non-fiction, health
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: personal-journey, self-improvement
400 pages · Hardcover · Flatiron Books
Content warnings: addiction