The Adaptation Diet: A Three-Step Approach to Control Cortisol, Lose Weight, and Prevent Chronic Disease

400 Pages·2013·1.78 MB·English

by  CHARLES A. Moss M.D.

Further praise for The Adaptation Diet
“If you have no hope you can ever lose weight and feel at peace, read
The Adaptation Diet. It provides clear, concise suggestions that can help
you shed not only the pounds but also many of your other health
concerns. Yes, you are holding the book that has proven, sensible
recommendations and explanations to resolve many medical challenges.
Turn your life around today by simply trying this diet.”
—Doris J. Rapp, MD, author of Our Toxic World: A Wake Up Call
“The Adaptation Diet offers a unique perspective on weight loss, pointing
out the weight-gaining effects of ‘dietary stress,’ and how to deal with
them. Going way beyond just calorie control, Dr. Charles Moss points
out that dietary stress reduction—with or without calorie reduction—
will result in significant and sustained weight loss. He tells us which
foods and supplements actually reduce the food-stress-induced, over-
active cortisol response, allowing that elusive goal, weight loss, to
happen while at the same time improving your health. If you want to
lose weight, The Adaptation Diet is an excellent place to start!”
—Jonathan Wright, MD, Editor, Nutrition & Healing Newsletter
“Dr. Moss is a colleague I’ve admired for decades for his competence,
compassion, clarity, and communication style. His latest book reflects his
considerable accomplishments in ways accessible for all those interested
in better health. With epigenetics or lifestyle and environment
determining 92 percent of health due to what we eat, drink, think, and
do, the healthier choices recommended in this guide can add years to
life and life to years.”
—Russ Jaffe, MD, PhD, Founder/Chief Executive Officer Fellow,
Health Studies Collegium Perque Integrative Health Elisa/Act
Biotechnologies
“Too tired to exercise? Is your willpower ambushed by unrelenting food
cravings? Start reclaiming your health with The Adaptation Diet. Patients
self-prescribing this book can consider it as a toehold for scaling
impediments to optimal wellness. They can be confident in the medical
science and in Dr. Moss.”
—Ingrid Kohlstadt, MD, MPH, FACPM, FACN, Faculty, Johns
Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; Executive Director,
NutriBee National Nutrition Competition, Inc.; Editor, Advancing
Medicine with Food and Nutrients, CRC Press, December 2012
“As a colleague of Dr. Charles Moss in integrative medicine since the
1970s, I can attest to his pioneering work in nutritional medicine, and to
his wide-ranging knowledge and contemporary application of
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the world’s oldest mind-body
medicine model. In this book he blends the wisdom of the latter with his
thirty-five years of practical clinical experience with cutting-edge
nutritional medicine. The result is a book that helps the reader deal with
modern health risks with clear and practical suggestions and with the
wider understanding of how our diet itself directly affects our stress
levels.”
—Ronald Puhky, MD, BAc, Dip Ac. Medical Director, InspireHealth
Integrative Cancer Center, Victoria, BC

Copyright © 2013 by Charles A. Moss, MD. All rights reserved. No portion of this book, except
for brief review, may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or
by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the
written permission of the publisher. For information contact North Atlantic Books.
Published by
North Atlantic Books
P.O. Box 12327
Berkeley, California 94712
Cover design by Suzanne Albertson
The Adaptation Diet: A Three-Step Approach to Control Cortisol, Lose Weight, and Prevent Chronic
Disease is sponsored by the Society for the Study of Native Arts and Sciences, a nonprofit
educational corporation whose goals are to develop an educational and cross-cultural perspective
linking various scientific, social, and artistic fields; to nurture a holistic view of arts, sciences,
humanities, and healing; and to publish and distribute literature on the relationship of mind,
body, and nature.
MEDICAL DISCLAIMER: The following information is intended for general information purposes
only. Individuals should always see their health care provider before administering any
suggestions made in this book. Any application of the material set forth in the following pages is
at the reader’s discretion and is his or her sole responsibility.
The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows:
Moss, Charles A., 1947–
The adaptation diet : a three-step approach to control cortisol, lose weight, and prevent chronic
disease / Charles A. Moss, MD.
pages cm
Summary: “Based on his 35 years of clinical experience, Dr. Charles Moss presents an easy-to-
implement approach to normalize cortisol (the main stress hormone), lose weight, and reduce
your risk for diabetes, heart disease, and cancer”—Provided by publisher.
Includes references.
eISBN: 978-1-58394628-2
1. Weight loss. 2. Reducing diets—Recipes. 3. Health. I. Title.
RM222.2.M654 2013
613.2′5—dc23
2012033900
v3.1
Dedicated to my mother, Helen Moss,
for her unconditional love and many
nutritious home-cooked meals.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Over the course of my practice experience, I have learned more about
stress and diet from my patients than from any book or medical
conference. I am indebted to their commitment to improve their lives
through the ideas presented in this book.
I have had many colleagues over the past thirty years who have
shared their own clinical experiences and helped me to refine my
approach with patients. A partial list includes Jonathan Wright, MD,
Jeffrey Bland, PhD, Theron Randolph, MD, Doris Rapp, MD, David
Buscher, MD, as well as other members of the following professional
organizations, of which I am a member: the American Academy of
Environmental Medicine, the American College for Advancement in
Medicine, the Institute for Functional Medicine, and the American
Academy of Medical Acupuncture.
I want to thank Kate Jordan, Deb Blotner, and Kathy Sartain for their
professional help in organizing this information and making this book
possible.
CONTENTS
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Preface
Adaptation and Health
CHAPTER 1:
Food and Adaptation
CHAPTER 2:
Detoxification and Adaptation
CHAPTER 3:
Phases One and Two of the Adaptation Diet: Detoxification and
CHAPTER 4:
Identification of Food Allergies
Phase Three of the Adaptation Diet: Control Inflammation and
CHAPTER 5:
Maintain Healthy Cortisol Levels throughout Life
The Stars of the Adaptation Diet
CHAPTER 6:
Cortisol Tamers
CHAPTER 7:
The Curious Cases of Gluten and Candida
CHAPTER 8:
Beyond Adaptation: The Promise of Epigenetics
CHAPTER 9:
Conclusion
CHAPTER 10:
APPENDIXES
Glycemic Index
APPENDIX A:
Recipes for Phases One and Two of the Adaptation Diet
APPENDIX B:
Recipes for Maintenance: Phase Three of the Adaptation Diet
APPENDIX C:
Rotation Diet
APPENDIX D:
Wheat-Free Diet
APPENDIX E:
Anti-Yeast Diet
APPENDIX F:
Resources
APPENDIX G:
References
About the Author