Why We Get Sick: The Hidden Epidemic at the Root of Most Chronic Disease―and How to Fight It
Benjamin Bikman
A scientist reveals the groundbreaking evidence linking many major diseases, including cancer, diabetes, and Alzheimer's disease, to a common root cause—insulin resistance—and shares an easy, effective plan to reverse and prevent it. We are sick. Around the world, we struggle with diseases that were once considered rare. more
280 pages, Kindle Edition
First published BenBella Books
4.13
Rating
4226
Ratings
450
Reviews
Benjamin Bikman
3 books 54 followers
Community reviews
The first important thing to note is that Ben Bikman based his book on a lot of reliable research and studies - not on his own whims and fancies. The second thing is that he is not trying to sell you any supplements or expensive consultation programmes. You can also be fairly sure that he’s not being funded by any of the big industries. What’s more - he is an expert on insulin resistance, being a biomedical professor who had earlier on stumbled upon the fact that insulin seems to be the one common factor in almost every chronic disease that we are facing today. I am convinced that this book has the potential to change the health and lives of countless people if they would just follow the simple suggestions that he has towards the end of the book,Why we get sick is immensely well-written and easy to understand. more
Summary:The author provides a robust explanation of insulin resistance and how it impacts our health in various ways as you would expect from a researcher in this field. The information paints a morbid picture of many of our leading killers and how they are connected to insulin resistance. There's interesting information on genetics, hormones and reproductive health, but things get weird when you get to the lifestyle area. The author moves into a strange place of kind of pushing keto, but not really. Re-framing it to be low carb. more
Insulin was long regarded as the hormone only diabetics should care about - this book takes a more holistic approach of insulin's effect on the brain, the muscles and the cells in general. It's a very technical and very theoretical book - recommendations and "solutions" are only at the very end. It presents the problem in great detail before attempting to give advice. I loved the explanations of why muscle mass is not only an aesthetics consideration (it regulates glucose metabolism without insulin involvement), the practical difference between aerobic cardio vs anaerobic resistance training (the latter is better, but only if you're willing to do it), the timing of meals regarding hormone levels (fast for longer periods for the body to rest and become insulin sensitive again) and the effect of synchronous macro digestions to mimic real food ratios (fats + protein are often found together, but rarely contain high carb levels as well). He mentions the effects of salt (some people are sensitive, other can consume it freely), that carbs shouldn't be drunk (since the fibers are usually missing, which would dampen the insulin spike) and that blood pressure should go down once insulin levels are in order. more
Bikman writes about an important topic: insulin resistance (IR). Everyone should become familiar with this topic, and I learned a lot from this book. Bikman is a good writer. He presents things in an organized way that flows easily. Relevance and connections are made with the appropriate amount of cross referencing and repetition when needed. more
I read this book about insulin resistance last summer; I revisited it this week to harvest quotes and main points for my journal. I ended up reading each page again. Ben Bikman is right up there with Dr. Jason Fung as one of my favorites. I will listen to *any* podcast that the winsome Dr. more
One of the best non-fiction books I have ever read. It is mind-bogglingly eye opening and could change the life of anyone who reads it. I write this as I go to read it for the second time a mere two months later because it is so good. . more
As a medical professional, I feel this is an important work and have recommended to my colleagues. Although there is (somewhat unavoidable) repetition, I am happy to overlook this for the expansive, insightful and practical coverage of such a crucial topic. I must admit to feeling somewhat frustrated to read reviews that attempt to pigeonhole the text as ‘just another keto book’ and trot out ‘blue zones’ to discredit the themes being addressed. Unfortunately, this belies an ignorance of scientific method and the very reasons we have reached this point as a society due to misinterpretation and/or misrepresentation of epidemiological data. more
I can't believe I've read this 3 times. I've learned something different each time. Still 4 stars. ***************************************I read this one a while ago and I have since binge watched this author on most of the podcasts he was a guest on. I think I like him more now, as well as his message. more
This book was eye-opening. I learned a lot about insulin resistance, glucose and the power intermittent fasting. Game changer for those who need help losing weight, have autoimmune diseases or other health conditions. . more
because we eat sugar, refined carbs, and we don't exercise. more
Awesome Book. Got insulin resistance(over 80% of all american adults do). Want to reverse it. You should definitely read this book. IR causes or contributes to every chronic disease. more
This book was fascinating, as I hadn't realized insulin resistance could have such an impact on the health of people. The author focused his point on peer-reviewed research and his own experience as a leading expert in his field. This read well, as it didn't feel like I was reading a medical journal and the message the author was writing about is one people need to know more about. more
Not what I was expecting, but incredibly fascinating. I was expecting to learn about germs and viruses and how they get into the body, but instead learned all about insulin. This books used many credible research studies to show the relationship between your bodies ability to use insulin (either being resistant or sensitive to it) and MANY common illnesses and diseases. . more
It wasn’t a total eye-opener for me since most of the stuff from the book I’ve already knew but I loved that everything was based on studies and how author demythologized some of the biggest dietary BS. more
Very eye opening book for me. I personally tap dance right on the edge of being classified as diabetic, so this really woke me up to the issue of insulin, weight, and body metabolism and the impacts they all have on your health. (I knew, just didn’t want to address). The author does a good job walking you through the chemical reactions, effects on the body, impacting fat, impacting metabolism, impacting health. I thought maybe it got a little too technical, but I thought it was needed AND I was listening to the audiobook while walking, I think some of this would have been better with his charts and indexes. more
Preface to the review: I listened to the audio while I was deep cleaning my house. At 1. 5 speed. So. I might have missed a few things. more
This book provides a boatload of really good reasons to change my wicked ways (especially with carbs and sugars) and make better decisions to improve my health. It is packed with information, and the research to back it. Bikman gives published studies for every claim he makes —with over 35 pages of references (in small print. ) at the end of the book. I come from a family of diabetics and I KNOW how much better I feel when I take steps to discourage insulin resistance. more
This book should be read slowly to understand the medical terms and how the body functions. Some simple steps to fight insulin resistance are reducing sweet drinks (including fruit juices and diet sodas), doing resistance training (exercises using weights), reducing carbohydrates, eating more vegetables, and eating meals about five hours apart (no constant snacking). more
Practical. Easy to understand but scientific and supported by research. Some of it was repetitive from other sources I have read before, but I still found it useful. Insulin resistance is prevalent and dangerous. . more
Don’t mind me, I’ll just be on a diet for the rest of my life. . more
This is one of those books where everything the author says might very well be true, but the way it's presented makes me skeptical. You know, very much "here's proof these other things are bad and dumb, but this one diet is great. Works for everyone. Do it now. " He's definitely trying to sell you an idea. more
Very informative read that condenses a huge amount of studies and research into easily digestible sections. Definitely becomes repetitive, which is a good thing really because the facts and ideas are constantly being backed up by real science, however this can easily lead to disengagement with the text. A good one to pair with Lifespan, which follows a similar trajectory for why we get sick/don’t live as long as we could and offers some similar tactics to combat our destructive lifestyles, tactics that really aren’t unreasonable for most. . more
3. 5 stars. Good book on insulin, insulin resistance and why it matters so much. Yet, I don't agree with some of his conclusions and food recommendations, pushing keto a bit too much vs what is known in the scientific literature, up to a point where he suggests that mayonnaise might be good for you. more
I took pathophysiology by Dr. Bikman a couple years ago and learned so much. A lot of this was review and I wonder how well I’d have understood if I didn’t already have some of this knowledge. All in all, I think it’s cool to feel like we have control over our own health and a lot of diseases in America. I feel more motivated to prioritize my health and do what I can to extend my healthy, happy years of life. more
Benjamin Bikman makes a convincing case about insulin resistance and the need to be aware of the long term health effects. Very-research driven, and focused on insulin. He also presented at a forum about this topic and is a great way to get a 30 minute summary. https://speeches. byu. more
Several years ago my then-boyfriend told me about a group of scientists who were calling Alzheimer's "Type 3 Diabetes. " And I was fascinated. Especially because I had been diagnosed as pre-diabetic several years earlier and was managing it via diet so well that, when I switched doctors, the new one didn't believe me (I've fallen off the wagon several times. Nobody's perfect. And my rant about mindful eating can go on a different review). more
This book was chock full of science. I loved that. It is definitely a book I will want to read again to process. You can definitely tell the author is a scientist -- which brings me to my one con - the book is also typical of those written by a scientist in that the recommendations are too loosy goosy. Books written by medical doctors tend to be very specific -- do this, not that. more
If you’re reading this you’re probably insulin resistant. Don’t argue with me, put that donut down and listen. Insulin resistance leads to obesity and a litany of chronic diseases that you’re probably dying from right now. Stop worrying about fat and worry about sugar instead, unless it’s fat and sugar together then worry about it and if it’s polyunsaturated fat then worry, look, the food pyramid is a lie perpetrated by corporations that want you fat and sick annnnd…your mom dresses you funny. Honestly, I agree with most of this book but it has no new information and it’s a bit of a boring read. more
Despite its title, this book does not detail every reason a person could get sick, but rather focuses on insulin resistance as the cause of most major contemporary health problems. While the author is convincing; he provides a lot of peer-reviewed, valid and reliable scientific backing, the book still seems simplistic to me. Health is not as simple as managing healthy insulin levels. Regardless, my awareness of how insulin, and my own choices about diet, exercise and lifestyle influence my health will guide some positive changes for me, and for that I am thankful. more