Ian Smith - The Take-Control Diet: A Life Plan for Thinking People

CONTENTS

To Ma, Dana, Noy, and Trist.
You know what makes me, and you know why I love.
Forever.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

There are many people who played a major role in helping me bring this book to you: My brother, Dana, who is not only my twin, but my greatest friend in the world, whom I love eternally and who has given me endless ideas about this book and the meaning of life. My mother, Rena, who is as beautiful today as she was that day I first noticed her beauty during a surprise visit she made to my school when I was in fifth grade. You have been and always will be my hero. My cousin, Darius (Fred), who has given me advice and support along the way and who is truly my second brother and great supporter. You were here for me, and I am so grateful. Noy, thanks for making me so happy by bringing so much deserved joy to my mothers life. Trist, my true love, who has supported, coached, scolded, and enlightened me. How could I have made it without you being there during those long hours? I will always love you. My editor supreme from Random House, Mary Bahr, who has been with me on this project from the very beginning. Mary, you are a writers dream, and I knew this from the first day we met. My deceased grandmother, who, though not here physically, has been with me spiritually at times when I wondered if this project was too much to bear. I miss you so much. My friends Cards (Jonathan Cardi) and Ron Mitchellyou guys are the true definition of friends, and I shake my head sometimes at how lucky I am that weve had one another for all these years. Leon Carter, much-heralded sports editor of the New York Daily News, has been a great sounding board, strong friend, and fearless confidant. Lee, thanks for walking up and introducing yourself at the National Association of Black Journalists Conference so many years ago. Elisa Zied is the smart and capable nutritionist who helped me put together these menus and count those caloriesher expertise and pitching in to help were an important part of this book. Thanks to Jane Freiman, a superb editor of the New York Daily News, who gave me my first chance to write a column in a major newspaper. Walter Isaacson, former editor of Time magazine, gave me my first column in a major news magazine, the most professional and highest quality of journalism in print media. Jim Kelly, the new editor of Time, and Philip Elmer-Dewitt, an assistant managing editor and head of the science section, have supported my endeavors without reservation and made me feel at home at the magazine. Thanks to all of my colleagues who have informed me through all the years and all of my teachers from kindergarten to medical school who have armed me with the knowledge that I share with others. My patients have been instrumental in sharing their stories, taking my advice, and proving that by taking control, you can get your life back. Art Norman, NBC 5 anchorman in Chicago, and his wonderful wife, Ondi, gave me my first start in broadcasting and have supported all of the crazy decisions that Ive made over the yearsI love you guys! The super-talented Paula Walker Madison (now president and general manager at KNBC-TV in Los Angeles), Diane Doctor, and Dennis Swanson from WNBC-TV in New York City, thanks for allowing me to be a journalist, a job I love with all of my heart, and to continue my important career as a physician. Im grateful to fellow Harvard man Jeff Zucker who brought me on the Today show and introduced me to the grand stage of network television. Last, but certainly not least, thanks to my family not mentioned above who have tolerated me all of these years and made me who I am: Pops (Robert Cherry Sr.), in memoriam the three sisters from little Princess Anne, MarylandGrandma, Aunt Chris, Aunt Helenand Aunt Dora Bee, Uncle Bob, Uncle Johnny, Aunt Bettie, Lynn, Aunt Helen Gray, Billy, Uncle Fred, Mr. Brown, Mr. Moseley, Robby, Damian Sr., Oosh (Richard Allen West), little William, Lisa, Walkiris (Keedy), little Damian, Danteyou all are forever in my heart and thoughts!

PREFACE

There were many reasons why I decided to write this book. As you read through it, many of them become alarmingly clear through my carefully chosen words and anecdotes. However, the first reason that prompted me is personal. In many of the medical columns that Ive written for Time magazine and the New York Daily News and the stories Ive reported for WNBC-TV in New York City, NBCs Today show, and NBCs Weekend Nightly News, Ive spoken fervently about the growing rate of overweight and obesity in our country. Not only is it debilitating our country, but its truly stealing the lives of Americans and others throughout the world. I have openly and fearlessly criticized gimmick diet books that put helpless and desperate people at risk for serious bodily injury, even death, rather than making use of accepted scientific information.

So when Mary Bahr, an editor at Random House, asked me if I wanted to write something for Random House, I jumped at the chance. For years Ive wanted to write health and medical books as well as novels, and out of the blue an editor I had never met was offering me a chance to fulfill a dream and a personal mission. We met promptly, and after our first meeting we had two great book ideas that we thought would do a great service to people. The first, published last year, is called Dr. Ian Smiths Guide to Medical Websites, and its purpose is to give Americans a guide that rates ten of the best medical websites for each disease category. Its intention is to help direct people to useful medical information on the Internet and steer them away from those sites that dont have the most current or accurate information.

This book, however, works from a central philosophy of helping you learn about your mind, body, nutrition, and exercise. This knowledge allows you to take control of your life. If youre looking for a book thats offering guarantees about the amount of weight youll lose in a specified amount of time, then my book is not for you. If you want a magic bullet that will take off those extra pounds, I respectfully suggest you look elsewhere. The only guarantee I make is that this book is the real deal. It respects your sense of integrity and aims to give you a plan not for two months or two years, but one that will change the quality of your life forever.

The take-control diet will challenge you both physically and mentallysomething that the journey to success often does. Your part of the contract is being prepared to take and believe in the challenge. If you dont really want to lose the weight and improve the quality of your life, the words on these pages will be hollow and meaningless. However, if you want to make positive changes in your life, youll have to dig in to what my ever astute brother, Dana, calls those hidden spaces that we all have inside of us. These spaces are special reserves of confidence, self-respect, energy, and determination that exist in all of us. If you can tap into them, youll be well on your way to taking control of lifes endless challenges. The golden fuel hidden in these spaces will allow you to turn your life around in the face of failure and criticism and say to yourself, I can do this, because I believe!

It was my aim in writing this book to bring you the latest in scientific research about weight management, a healthy diet, and exercise in an understandable and easy-to-follow manner. Im concerned about how you manage your weight, because it can have such a tremendous impact on your risk for numerous diseases, self-esteem, and ability to fulfill lifes dreams. Please take this work in the following pages not as a bible of information, but as a well-thought-out guide that will empower you to