Roizen, a physician and author of the bestselling RealAge: Are You as Young as You Can Be?, teams up with La Puma, also a physician and a professionally trained chef, to offer a new approach to eating based on the premise that, by making even small changes (e.g., starting every dinner with an ounce of nuts), we can become biologically younger than our chronological age (e.g., Roizen is 55 years old but has calculated his "RealAge" to be 38). Roizen and La Puma begin with a variety of quizzes so readers can assess their current diet and determine where they need to make changes. While many of the self-assessment tests are in the book, the authors frequently refer readers to their Web site for more detailed quizzes and additional nutritional information, which limits the book's value. On the other hand, this work does an excellent job of analyzing specific foods and explaining their benefits or risks to readers. Less appealing—and comprising a large section of the book—is the analysis of other well-known diet programs (e.g., the Atkins diet, the Carbohydrate Addicts diet, the Zone) and how to modify them using the RealAge principles. Although there is a reassuring validity to Roizen and La Puma's criticisms, readers may also find them somewhat smug. Overall, though, the RealAge diet is a refreshing and accessible approach to an age-old problem. (May)
Forecast:Given the huge success of
RealAge, readers' continual concern with dieting (particularly in pre-bathing-suit season) and a five-city author tour, this book should reach bestseller status.
