Slim by Design

September 22, 2014
Forget willpowerâlosing weight and living a healthier lifestyle can be as simple as rethinking your environment. So posits eating behavior expert Wansink (Mindless Eating), who cites research stating that 80% of the calories we consume are consumed or purchased within five miles of where we liveâwhat he terms the "food radius." Wansink concisely breaks down this comprehensive eating zone into five parts (home, restaurant, supermarket, office and school), and offers tiny, "mindless" tweaks for each that will lead to decreased caloric intake and increased consumption of higher-quality foods. "We're all mindless eaters," he says. "Each of us makes more than 200 nearly subconscious food choices every day." Wansink provides a 100-point scorecard for every section of the food radius discussed, from the kitchen, to grocery shopping, to at-your-desk food choices, to outside-the-home dining approaches and school lunches. He even provides tips on encouraging others â such as local restaurant owners, employers, and school administratorsâ to practice improved mindless eating as well. Backed by 25 years of research and buoyed by its simplicity and no-cost implementation, Wansink's book may well be the healthy lifestyle Holy Grail for which many are searching.

Starred review from September 15, 2014

This book is a revelation! Based on proven psychology, it outlines the simple, easy, low-cost things that can be done to fat-proof your home, company break room, grocery store, favorite restaurants, and school cafeteria. Merely rearranging your cupboards so that the shredded wheat is easier to reach than the Cap'n Crunch; stashing your chips in the cupboard and putting a bowl of fruit on the kitchen table; and changing the location of vending machines to a little-used hallway can save you up to several hundred calories per day, which will result in lost weight, and, more important, gently nudge you to revise your habits for the better. Wansink, director of Cornell University's famous Food and Brand Laboratory, has coordinated hundreds of studies that show that merely taking the bad choices away (banish the pop machine, don't stock chocolate milk) doesn't work. People will simply take their business to places where they can get the stuff they want. The key is to make them see the good stuff sooner, more attractively, and in greater quantity. Even better, the author provides information on how readers can get the school, office, and restaurant to make these changes--and often make more money that way. VERDICT Every plant or office manager, school lunch supervisor, restaurateur, and parent should have this book.--Susan B. Hagloch, formerly with Tuscarawas Cty. P.L., New Philadelphia, OH

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