Zone diet

"The Zone" is Sears' term for proper hormone balance. When insulin levels are neither too high nor too low, the human body uses stored fat for energy, causing weight loss. The diet centers around a "40:30:30" ratio of calories obtained daily from carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, respectively. The formula is controversial, but studies over the past several years (including non-scientific study by Scientific American Frontiers) have shown it to produce rapid weight loss.

Hormonal paradoxes

Sears emphasizes a hormonal paradox which "low-fat" advocates were unaware of, namely that low-fat carbohydrates increase the production of the hormone insulin, causing the body to store more fat. He points to the cattle ranching practice of fattening livestock efficiently by feeding them lots of low-fat grain. He and others have noted the irony that human diets in the West for the last twenty years have been full of low-fat carbohydrates, yet people are more obese — Sears claims as a result.

In addition to this, Sears describes fat consumption as essential for "burning" fat. Monounsaturated fats in a meal contribute to a feeling of fullness and modulate the rate at which carbohydrates are absorbed into the bloodstream. Low-fat diets actually stimulate fat storage, according to Sears, by creating high levels of insulin in the blood.

The "low-carb craze"

Low-carbohydrate diets like the Atkins diet are rapidly becoming popular throughout the United States, but Sears claims that they miss the point. According to him, they ignore the importance of hormonal balance, as well as the influence of dietary balance on digestion and hormone production.

See also