Fit for Life: A New Beginning [Mass Market Paperback]

The quality and quantity of information in those earlier books were GREAT. This book pales in their shadow. Harvey's newest book lacks Mission, Market and Focus. Mission: He wants you to live a healthier life, but does not tell you how to do this in this book. Market: The book is titled "Fit for Life : A New Beginning : Your Complete Diet and Health Plan for the Millennium" but it is not a complete health plan, it is an addendum to his last book. Focus: This book spends much of it's resources on an unscientific, yet potentially empowering concept of the cause of cancer, with multiple jabs at the many causes for this disease... with very little content on what to do. Almost every major piece of "new" information is a rehash or a reference to better source material, often his own but also other works. The benefits of gentle exercise is explained far more thoroughly by Covert Bailey in "New Fit Or Fat", the mind body connection ideas are better covered by Deepak Chopra and Norman Cousins.

In 1987, I read Harvey Diamond's best-selling book "Fit for Life." At the time, I was 29 years-old and still youthfully thin. There was no apparent reason for me to go on a diet, but the information Mr. Diamond offered was so compelling, I immediately went on the "Fit for Life" health regimen. I looked forward to exposing Diamond's book as a shameful hoax.

That was 14 years ago, and I haven't wavered from the "Fit for Life" principles since. While my fortysomething friends suffer with hernias, hypertension, sexual dysfunction, back pain, weight problems, arthritis and other maladies, I am still thin and remarkably healthy. During a recent physical exam, the doctors were positively amazed by my numbers. I never inform MD's that I'm on the "Fit for Life" diet because they'll probably dismiss the principles and try to scare me into resuming an animal-based diet (indeed, I never cease to be amazed by how many people are actually threatened by Mr. Diamond and the "Fit For Life" tenets). But for me, there's simply no going back. Unlike many of my friends who feel powerless against the ravages of time, I feel in-control and much closer to nature. This skeptic owes a tremendous debt of gratitude to Mr. Diamond. He is perhaps the closest thing to a "guru" that I have.

I view Diamond's new book as the third in a series. Beginners are advised to read the original "Fit for Life" or "Fit for Life II," as they best explain Mr. Diamond's "natural hygiene" principles. "A New Beginning" offers new information that seems better suited for readers already familiar with Diamond's guidelines. The new wrinkle here is a principle called "periodic monodieting" - i.e. occasional raw fruit fasts designed to cleanse the lymph system. Though it requires some discipline, the results are absolutely miraculous - like a blind man having his sight restored. Though it's not quite as revelational as "Fit for Life," Diamond's new book is a good read and a great reference.

I am highly suspicious of the few readers that submitted negative reviews. One reviewer noted that many doctors - including the vaunted Andrew Weil - have dismissed Diamond's books as "bunk." They also attempt to fault Mr. Diamond for cashing in on his "Fit for Life" franchise. OK, let's examine these accusations ...

America is a capitalist country where virtually everyone has something to sell. Mr. Diamond has built his "empire" by saving lives, which strikes me as the noblest way to make a buck. I wonder why the reviewers don't level similar profiteering charges against Andrew Weil, who has authored several books, publishes a subscription newsletter and lectures frequently. And though Weil may possess more formal medical training than Diamond, I'm more impressed by another obvious difference - though they are approximately the same age, Mr. Weil is overweight and grandfatherly while Mr. Diamond is thin and youthful looking.

Draw your own conclusions.

Judging from their mean-spirited comments, I suspect the aforementioned reviewers have some connection to the medical establishment. Or perhaps they don't possess the discipline required to adhere to the "Fit for Life" principles. Whatever the case, one thing is clear: Naturalists like Harvey Diamond, Steven Meyerowitz, Ann Wigmore and Michael Klaper have struck a nerve with their advice about a plant-based diet. For centuries, the American public entrusted its health to the traditional medical establishment. In return, many of those trusting souls were butchered, maimed and drugged through heinous surgical procedures, stupefying pharmaceuticals and nutritional misinformation. As evidenced by the explosion in pharmaceutical television ads, the drug and medical industries won't stop until America is teeming with pill-popping, psychosomatic junkies. Fortunately, many people are wising up. It's no coincidence that the alternative health industry has blossomed into a multibillion-dollar concern. Fed up with the arrogance and deceptiveness of a profit-crazed medical hierarchy, an increasing number of Americans are taking their health into their own capable hands.

I spent the first 29 years of my life eating the typical "four food groups" diet recommended by doctors and the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture. It made me sick, lethargic and depressed. Thanks to Harvey Diamond and "Fit for Life," I've spent the last 14 years of my life eating mostly plant-based foods - potatoes, rice, beans, whole-grain breads and pastas, soy, raw greens and fruits. I haven't felt or looked this good since I was a kid.

Take it from a converted skeptic. If you value your health then you'd better read books like "A New Beginning." For goodness' sakes, stop taking vague weight loss advice from potbellied doctors with possible ties to the meat, dairy and pharmaceutical industries.

P.S. I have no affiliation whatsoever to Mr. Diamond. Never even met the guy. 'Nuff said ...