I’ve been a fan of Dr. Mark Hyman’s for years. I first read his book, The Blood Sugar Solution, when I was undergoing my studies to become a certified holistic health coach through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition back in 2012. I haven’t read his newest book yet, but I just finished reading The Blood Sugar Solution 10-Day Detox Diet and wanted to share it with you since I know it will resonate with you as well.
In case you’re not familiar with Dr. Mark Hyman, he is a practicing family physician, a nine-time #1 New York Times bestselling author and the Director the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine. I’m a huge fan of his holistic approach (called functional medicine) because he recognizes that everything in the body is connected and in order to address the root cause of disease, he focuses on treating the whole system, not just the symptoms.
I love reading about nutrition (obviously) and since I often struggle with unstable blood sugar this book caught my interest. I instantly fell in love with this book and Dr. Hyman’s approach to food and health so I couldn’t be more excited to share it with you! If you’ve been looking for a systematic way to create a healthier body and lifestyle (while losing weight in the process) I really think you’ll enjoy this book.
Here are some of the highlights:
- We don’t gain weight because of just overeating and/or exercising too little. It comes down to what we are eating because different foods impact our insulin levels different and insulin is what makes us hungry and causes us to store fat (particularly in the abdomen).
- Dr. Hyman’s dietary plan isn’t focused on weight loss, but weight loss is an automatic side effect because “what makes you sick also makes you fat and what makes you fat makes you sick. … Health is a state of balance, and disease is a state of imbalance. When you begin to put on weight, especially lethal belly fat, your biology shifts out of balance, veering into the unstable and unhealthy territory of disease – which in turn makes you fatter.”
- Sugar is more powerfully addictive than alcohol, cocaine, or even heroin. And, artificial sweeteners may be even more addictive than regular sugar.
- Dr. Hyman’s approach to detoxing involves removing toxic, addictive foods, and replacing them with specific hormone-balancing, brain-healing foods and lifestyle habits.
- Not only does he give you a specific step-by-step meal plan along with supplement suggestions, but the plan requires a nightly detox bath, practicing relaxation techniques, adequate sleep, and time for journaling to track your progress. (love his holistic approach!)
Okay, I know I’m gushing a bit here, but it is honestly refreshing to read a health/diet book that is so aligned with everything I believe in and isn’t preaching that “a calorie is a calorie” or “losing weight is as simple as calories in, calories out.”
The thing that really blew me away is that when I was reviewing his meal plan, I realized he recommends everything I eat and his recipes are surprisingly similar to those I feature here on my blog!
Specifically, his plan focuses on removing grains, sugar, dairy, artificial/processed foods, and instead focusing on anti-inflammatory foods that are rich in omega-3 fats like wild salmon, chia seeds, hemp seeds, and walnuts, as well as turmeric, berries, dark green leafy vegetables, avocados, and organic meat! Sound familiar? 
The only slight difference in our approaches is that I do eat legumes and for his 10-day detox, he recommends removing legumes as the carbohydrates can be aggravating to some folks, but he does say participants can experiment with adding them back in (if desired) after the detox.
If you love the recipes I share here and are looking for a more structured approach to creating a healthier life overall, I really think you’ll enjoy The Blood Sugar Solution 10-Day Detox Diet.
And, if you do embark on his program and find the book helpful, please leave a comment and let us know what you learned and what positive changes you’ve experienced as a result!
Wishing you health and happiness,
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