This book aims to fill the gap between unscientific comments about the hazards and benefits of high-fat or low-fat diets and weight control found in magazines and technical and medical reports about lipid biochemistry and obesity. It aims to explain in simple language the biology of feeding and fasting, fattening and slimming in wild animals as well as people. Topics include where fat comes from and how animals and plants handle them, their natural roles in migration, mating breeding and living in unpredictable habitats such as deserts and arctic regions, and their contributions to our cookery, paints and medicines. The physiological mechanisms of digesting, transporting and utilising energy stores are discussed, along with the contribution of fatty tissue to body insulation and the protection of delicate organs. Archaeological, anthropological and physiological evidence is assembled to explore how, when and why people have become fat, and how evolutionary forces have determined the modern diversity of body shape and size. The book ends with a brief account of the contribution of dietary fats and obesity to health in the modern world.
By:
Caroline M. Pond (The Open University Milton Keynes) Imprint: Cambridge University Press Country of Publication: United Kingdom Dimensions:
Height: 236mm,
Width: 159mm,
Spine: 28mm
Weight: 670g ISBN:9780521583213 ISBN 10: 0521583217 Pages: 344 Publication Date:12 October 1998 Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format:Hardback Publisher's Status: Active
Reviews for The Fats of Life
'The Fats of Life' is a most entertaining read - so much so that, once started, I found it hard to put down.' Per Bjorntorp, Obesity Matters