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Eat Fat, Follow Evolution's Other Rules For Total Health And Well-Being

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There are plenty of motivational self-help style books on the market these days; I have even read a few. Upon starting this course I was nearing my thirtieth birthday, made some major life changes, and in need of some motivation. I have found that some self-help/positive lifestyle type books are trying to sell you something, and may not have any scientifically backed informational content. I am looking for a lifestyle change, not just a one-trick fix-all that’s too good to be true. Luckily, enrolling in this course came at the perfect time and forced me to kick-start my life on my new path to wellness. Book Choice This particular book, Go Wild: Eat Fat, Be Social, and Follow Evolution’s Other Rules for Total Health and Well-Being, holds within …show more content…

Authors, John Ratey, M.D. and Richard Manning, explain to the reader how the more civilized a society is, the more sick they become. The way we eat, sleep, socialize, and move our bodies is, in the authors’ opinion, contradictory to how we should be living. Food for Thought Civilized societies no longer need to hunt and gather to provide for their families; instead they can just swing through any drive-thru restaurant in their car, stuff their faces with an abundance of preservatives and refined sugars from the comfort of their La-Z-Boy recliner. Ratey and Manning argue that our propensity as a society to consume over-processed carbohydrate dense foods is leading to an increased incidence of disease (Ratey, J. and Manning, R., 2014, p 75). They even go as far as calling Glucose a toxin; which sounds absurd, but is actually quite true considering our abuse of it. Yes, what we eat turns to sugar, but the things we are eating are overloaded with sugar, causing glucose toxicity; which can be very severe and difficult to diagnose. Go Wild introduced the …show more content…

It was strange to discover that some scholars argue that sleep is frivolous and is trying to find ways to eliminate it altogether while maintaining an optimal level of functioning and efficiency. However, Ratey and Manning believe sleep, and good sleep at that, makes us more productive and efficient beings. The topic is not so much about sleep itself as it is how we sleep. Studies show that married people and people who sleep with animals live longer lives; the importance pointing to the feeling of safety in numbers. Light is also a major factor the effects sleep. Blue light wavelengths and other sources of artificial light have led to disruptions of our circadian rhythm. People are now able to work all hours of the night, which increases the risk for cancers, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes to name a few (Ratey and Manning, 2014, p 149). Go Wild suggests that “if we remove the artificial meddling of industrialism like electric lights, our systems will self-correct” (Ratey and Manning, 2014, p 150). Sleep deprivation in any form has the potential to be very dangerous, whether it be driving while drowsy or prolonged circadian rhythm disturbances. Luckily, our bodies are smart and efficient enough to correct the issue on its own when given the proper

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