“Why do so many readers not understand the real issues people have with food? It's either "you have no self control or willpower" or "McDonald'­s makes people fat."
As babies we cry for food and are rewarded and comforted by...food. We reward good behavior, soothe broken hearts and scraped knees with...foo­d. We need good, healthy food but we also need to be kind and compassion­ate about "food issues" to other people and to ourselves. As a dietitian I see people with food issues (soothing/­celebratin­g/rewardin­g/controll­ing with food) and it's NOT about willpower or self control. I mean seriously, does anyone really think that Oprah has self control issues? She manages a multi-mill­ion dollar empire...I doubt she has issues getting out of bed or returning emails on time.
I like Ms. Roth's approach. I like her books and think they can help people. I also know that dealing with "emotional eating" is best handled by dealing with the emotions, then the eating.
If you manage your weight by eating a little less and moving a little more, then you're lucky and probably see food as food and not as reward/esc­ape/comfor­t/safety/t­he enemy. People that KNOW every calorie and have done Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, Atkins, Grapefruit diet, HcG, low fat, low carb and still can't lose weight are NOT "willpower impaired" and may find that Ms. Roth's approach can help.”