Losing Weight Permanently with the Bull's-Eye Food Guide, by Schoonen JC. Boulder, CO: Bull Publishing Company; 2004. 407 pp.
Losing Weight Permanently with the Bull's-Eye Food Guide is a refreshing approach to weight management. As a leading nutrition expert in obesity research, Josephine Connolly Schoonen, MS, RD, offers a comprehensive plan for weight loss and optimal health. In contrast to unhealthy, quick-weight-loss diets, this book promotes long-term lifestyle changes through personalized eating and exercise strategies.
The book is based on the Bull's-Eye Food Guide, an innovative alternative to the Food Guide Pyramid. The target-shaped graphic is divided into 6 triangle-shaped food groups: the vegetable group, the fruit group, the protein group, the fat group, the milk and yogurt group, and the grain and starch group. Each food group is further divided into the inner green "Go Foods" circle, the middle yellow "OK Foods" circle, and the outer red "Stop and Think Foods" circle. Foods are classified into 1 of the 3 rings on the basis of the amount of health-promoting nutrients contained in them. In addition to the 6 food groups, water is placed as an essential nutrient in the center of the Bull's Eye. Readers are encouraged to make the majority of their food choices from the nutrient-rich, inner green circle, but they should recognize that foods from the outer yellow and red circles can also be incorporated into a healthy diet.
Once readers become familiar with the Bull's-Eye Food Guide graphic and a lengthy section on the underlying nutrition science, they are instructed to select a calorie level on the basis of their height and weight and choose an eating style (lower-carb, moderate-carb, and high-carb) on the basis of their level of insulin resistance. An individual's level of insulin resistance is determined by several factors, including blood glucose, triglyceride, and high-density lipoprotein levels, blood pressure, family medical history, physical activity levels, and location of excess weight. Ultimately, the calorie level combined with an eating style dictates the number of servings or "swaps" from the 6 different food groups that should be consumed each day. Swap lists for each food group are provided at the end of the book and are similar to the American Diabetic Association's Exchange Lists.
In addition to the Bull's-Eye Food Guide, individuals are provided with supplementary tools and suggestions for recognizing the relationship between food, physical hunger, and emotional hunger. These include the Hunger-Fullness Scale, Goal Ladders, Food-Mood Dominoes, Mindful Eating, Meditation, Journaling and Positive Affirmations, Maintenance Breaks, and Guided Imagery. The author has also included a brief section on physical activity, and individualized menus and recipes for each calorie level and eating style.
As a weight-loss book, the book should be commended for its creative, user-friendly graphic and long-term approach to weight management and healthy eating. The menus and recipes are healthy and realistic to use. In addition, the section on physical activity provides the reader with useful tips for developing an exercise regimen. Overall, the author seems genuinely passionate about the well-being and success of her readers, or "fellow travelers," and provides her audience with a wealth of knowledge and tools.
While the wealth of nutrition background is certainly beneficial, it may be difficult for the layperson to comprehend. In addition, the text tends to repeat information, and may be difficult to follow at times. Too much information might overwhelm and discourage some readers from trying the diet. Additional editing and tables might simplify the diet plan and create a more reader-friendly text. The quality of the text's illustrations, especially the Bull's Eye, could also be improved.
Overall, Losing Weight Permanently with the Bull's-Eye Food Guide is based on a great concept. While the layperson would benefit from a dietitian's guidance when implementing this plan, the book's Bull's Eye, menus, recipes, and tools are valuable resources for the nutrition professional.
Allison Marshall, MS, RD, CDN
Dietetic Internship Director, Department of Nutrition and Food Science, Hunter College, CUNY, New York, NY