44 pages • 1 hour read
The Obesity Code: Unlocking the Secrets of Weight Loss
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Key Figures
Jason Fung
Jason Fung (b. 1973) is a Canadian nephrologist (kidney specialist) and expert in obesity, type 2 diabetes, and intermittent fasting. Fung’s rigorous research methods, combined with his credentials and decades of professional experience, lend credibility and authority to The Obesity Code. Fung received his medical degree from the University of Toronto and completed his residency and fellowship in nephrology at the University of California, Los Angeles. After years of treating patients in renal failure, Fung shifted his attention to type 2 diabetes. In contrast to his peers, who focused on the symptoms of diabetes (abnormal blood glucose levels), Fung studied the root causes of the disease, namely, excessive insulin secretion and insulin resistance.
The Obesity Code served as the point of departure for several related projects, all of which solidified Fung’s status as a leader in his field. In 2019, he published The Obesity Code Cookbook, which builds on the sample meal plans included in The Obesity Code’s Appendix. In 2021, he co-authored The Diabetes Code Cookbook with Alison Maclean, which is a companion piece to his Diabetes Code of 2018. Fung’s website, The Fasting Method, expands on the content of The Obesity Code with weekly meetings, coaching, and masterclasses about diet and intermittent fasting (only available through paid subscription). Through interviews, presentations, and publications, Fung continues to promote intermittent fasting and unprocessed foods as solutions for various ailments, including reducing cancer risks.
Robert Atkins
Robert Atkins (1930–2002) is an American cardiologist and author of Dr. Atkins’ Diet Revolution: The High Calorie Way to Stay Thin Forever (1972), a weight-loss book promoting a diet low in carbohydrates and high in proteins and fats. In 1963, Atkins weighed 224 pounds, despite years of experimenting with conventional low-calorie diets (96). Recalling medical literature from the previous decade, Atkins tried a low-carb diet and lost weight. He then recommended the diet to his patients, who successfully shed pounds. Two years later, Atkins appeared on the Tonight Show promoting his revolutionary weight loss method. In 1970, Vogue ran a feature on him. Atkins was already well-known by the time he published his book, which became an instant bestseller. By the early 2000s, Atkins’s book was among the top 50 best-sellers in history. Based on its success, Time named Atkins Person of the Year in 2002.
The Atkins Diet fits into Fung’s multi-pronged approach to weight loss, with some modifications. Atkins advised eliminating almost all carbohydrates, save certain vegetables. Proteins and fats became prime sources of calories, notably, meat, eggs, cheese, and butter. Fung refined Atkins’ approach, arguing that processed carbohydrates (rather than all carbohydrates) cause weight gain by raising insulin levels and increasing the risk of insulin resistance. Foods rejected by Atkins thus find a place in Fung’s approach, especially whole foods, such as fruits and starchy vegetables, both of which contain carbs. Fung also diverges from Atkins in that he suggests eating protein in moderation, as proteins can cause insulin spikes. Like Atkins, however, Fung recommends eating large amounts of fat, only warning readers to avoid trans fats.
Like other weight loss methods, the Atkins diet does not work in the long term. According to Fung, the problem lies in the incompleteness of the carbohydrate-insulin hypothesis. Lasting weight loss demands a multipronged approach, such as eliminating added sugars, addressing insulin resistance, practicing fasting, and reducing cortisol.
David Jenkins
David Jenkins is a British-born researcher specializing in the use of diet in preventing hyperlipidemia and diabetes. Jenkins is a professor both in the Departments of Nutritional Sciences and Medicine at the University of Toronto, and staff physician in Endocrinology and Metabolism at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto. A leading authority on nutrition, Jenkins received his PhD from the Faculty of Medicine at Oxford University in 1976. The following year, he was awarded a medical degree from Oxford’s Faculty of Clinical Medicine.
Jenkins is widely credited with inventing the glycemic index, a rating system for foods containing carbohydrates. The glycemic index measures foods against glucose, which is given a value of 100. The goal of the glycemic index diet is to lower the consumption of foods that raise blood glucose to achieve weight loss. Fung takes issue with the glycemic index, arguing that the system can be misleading. For example, fructose has a low glycemic index, yet it plays an important role in weight gain. In contrast to glucose, fructose can only be metabolized by the liver. Excess fructose causes fatty liver, which leads to insulin resistance and weight gain. The glycemic index measures blood glucose, not insulin, and thus downplays the dangers of fructose. In addition, the glycemic index only measures carbohydrates, ignoring other insulin producing foods, such as dietary proteins. Despite the shortcomings of the glycemic index, the system sparked an interest in low-carb diets, which serve as a point of departure for Fung’s Obesity Code.
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