Rating: 
Summary: Good gerontology, bad nutrition
Review: Dr Walford is a leading authority in the field of gerontology, and makes a compelling case for the potential of a nutrient-dense, low calorie diet. Although, as he admits, the mechanism is little understood, it is proven to have beneficial effects on all animals studied, from earthworms to apes. And as the physician to the Biosphere team, he conducted the first human trial, with spectacular impacts on both health and ageing biomarkers.Walford is also an engaging guide. The tone is hype free, and the book is full of sensible and balanced advice about how to adopt such a diet in a safe, sustainable and relaxed way. I particularly appreciate his guidance that you should use your common sense and leave the calorie counter at home on social occasions, and that the occasional treat will cause no harm. This is a pleasant contrast to puritanical approach of many low-carb authors. The problems begin when he starts to advise on food choices. He is out of his field here, and it shows. Dr Walford has swallowed uncritically the increasingly discredited lipid hypothesis for coronary heart disease (see the work of Ravnskov for a devastating overview of the commercial interests, sloppy thinking, bias and outright academic fraud that lies behind this proposition). As a result, Walford is positively phobic about nutritious and stable fats such as butter and tropical oils, which have been eaten without problems for millennia. Instead, he proposes that we adopt corn oil for general cooking (processed corn oil is an unstable and damaged oil, which is farther damaged by heat), and the new-fangled and suspect canola oil for baking. Instead of butter, we would apparently be better off using a synthetic product called "Butterbuds". The recipes also make heavy use of other suspect ingredients such as non-fermented soy and dried skimmed milk. And, bizarrely, he classifies Coca-Cola and cream soda as "wholesome beverages". The Biosphere team achieved their remarkable results with fresh and wholesome products they farmed for themselves. But Walford appreciates that this diet would be too plain for wide acceptance, and offers us what he calls a "gourmet" version in the book. Common sense suggests that some of the benefits would be offset by the nutritional problems outlined above. However many of the menus can be easily adapted to use more traditional and safer ingredients. And the authors also market an affordable and unique software programme that can analyse a meal plan and suggest ingredients that would plug any nutritional gaps, so it should be possible to develop your own low calorie nutrient-complete meals with a little effort. Apart from the rather major caveat above, this is a valuable guide to an important development in the field of nutrition. Well worth reading.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent
Review: For those readers interested in health/life-style improvement or information about the CRON diet or Biosphere 2 project, this book offers (in easy-to-understand terms) a plethora of useful information. The majority of the book centers around recipes that support the CRON lifestyle--although many are for 8-servings, might contain ingredients that are a bit hard for the average consumer to find, and even take a good chunk of time to prepare. ...
Rating:
Summary: Nice Surprise
Review: I initially read this book out of curiosity stemming from the sensationalism surrounding the Biosphere and expected it to center around food forms not found in most Americans' diets. What I found was a very readable reference for nutrition that mostly correlated with other sources I've read. The promotion of caloric reduction, which seems to carry some controversy, is not a means of weight control but the result of improved nutrition. While the recipes may need a little modification to align with one's palate, the book's overall approach to nutrition is credible and inviting.
Rating:
Summary: A gem of a diet book
Review: I really liked the message in this book. The diet information made a lot of sense, for a change. All of the research that was done at Biosphere and in animal research has shown a clear link between consumption of calories and shorter life span. Walford shows how to limit your number of calories while maintaining a diet that satisfies your nutritional needs. The diet makes very sensible recommendations about supplements and antioxidants, in addition to some very good recipes. The only problem with the book was the list of ingredients for the recipes. Some of them are very expensive and hard to find. For the most part I liked the recipes, but some of them were a bit tasteless. I think with the advice in this book in addition to other "macrobiotic" cookbooks one could make very sensible diet.
Rating:
Summary: In answer to the slanderous reviews on this page.
Review: I researched information on Roy Walford's health condition and found that in fact, his inability to walk and speak is not due to his diet but to an experiment in which he took part. The February 2000 edition of Discover magazine sites the following quote as the source of Walfords illness:
"A chronic nerve disorder--which he picked up nearly 10 years ago as a volunteer guinea pig in a surreal ecosystem experiment". Plus I was unable to find anything as reference below regarding an article published by AARP. Please check, and double check, your facts before decrying another person's efforts to find viable health alternatives.
Rating:
Summary: In answer to the slanderous reviews on this page.
Review: I researched information on Roy Walford's health condition and found that in fact, his inability to walk and speak is not due to his diet but to an experiment in which he took part. The February 2000 edition of Discover magazine sites the following quote as the source of Walfords illness:
"A chronic nerve disorder--which he picked up nearly 10 years ago as a volunteer guinea pig in a surreal ecosystem experiment". Plus I was unable to find anything as reference below regarding an article published by AARP. Please check, and double check, your facts before decrying another person's efforts to find viable health alternatives.
Rating: 
Summary: Walford is Dying! -- New York Times 11/23/03
Review: In case you are about to buy Walford's book and practice Caloric Restriction as preached by him, consider today's (Nov. 32, 2003) New York Times article by David Hochman which reveals that Walford is dying. According to Times story, "By almost anyone's standards, Dr. Roy L. Walford is an old man. At 79, he is confined to an electric wheelchair and his voice is so weak, he speaks into a microphone wired to a small tabletop amplifier...Dr. Walford...is..dying..." If you really want to retard aging and extend your lifespan, why model yourself on a failed anti-aging guru? Someone who is prematurely dying? Don't be conned by the uncritical reviews by Walford's little sect of true believers. Check out The ImmorTalist Manifesto: Stay Young & Save the World" on Amazon. This is not a diet book. But it will lead you to The Elixxir Program. Elixxir has been called "the only anti-aging guru who has actually stayed young." (Investor's Business Daily) So if you're like me, you would rather model yourself on an anti-aging guru who's not prematurely old and dying, but one who has stayed young! The Elixxir Program cuts out all the needless puritanism and self-deprivation and abstinence from wine, etc. in Walford's regimen. And leaves in what is scientific and what works. P.S. Walford's condition is sad and tragic. But it is absolutely unethical and probably legally liable for him to not reveal this in his books. So that you can take it into consideration. So your choice is Walford or Elixxir?
Rating:
Summary: The diet is based on important principles; needs fine-tuning
Review: My husband and I were excited by the information in Walford's book. We attempted to follow the diet and tried many of the nutritious "mega-meals", which are meant to be cooked in bulk and frozen in individual portions. We were impressed by the thorough and complex process Walford used in constructing his recipes. We accepted the massive grocery lists and hours of preparation time as a small price to pay in view of our objective-- extending our lives by 10-20 healthy years. Some of recipes, such as the paella, were truly delicious and satisfying. Others, however, needed additional clarification, required hard-to-find ingredients, or demanded significant levels of skill. Recipes also had a tendency to be disappointingly dry, whether by design or due to our inexperience. Finally, we would have appreciated additional guidance in assembling quick and practical meals and snacks to complement the daily "mega-meals". We have eagerly sought further refinements of the diet for the non-gourmet/non-scientist. I am amazed that Walford's calorie-restriction diet has not received more attention by other writers and researchers.
Rating:
Summary: Walford is Dead; Was Feeble for Years
Review: Roy Walford has died of Lou Gehrig's Disease. Or ALS. At 79. Far from the 120 years that he bragged he would attain. It seems "the anti-aging plan" did not work for him. If you look at picture of him at his own site, he looked awfully old. He was in declining health for most of the last decade. Needed a cane to walk many years ago before he became total invalid. And if you look at the picture put up by his devotees, Walford looked horribly prematurely aged. Walford's physical condition was first revealed in a Modern Maturity story. It pointed out: "For a man who plans to live forever, he's alarmingly feeble and cannot walk unaided. He moves around his kitchen by hanging from a series of straps slung overhead." (Modern Maturity, 2001) In a November 23, 2003, the New York Times wrote: "By almost anyone's standards, Dr. Roy Walford is an old man. At 79, he is confined to an electric wheelchair and his voice is so weak, he speaks into a microphone wired to a small tabletop amplifier....(Walford) is dying from the fatal nerve disorder known as Lou Gehrig's disease." To be fair, caloric restriction does work in all the specie tested so far. And is most likely to work in humans too. And Walford was a scientist who did important research. But a good scientist does not translate usually into a good anti-aging guru. **The question you have to ask is whether Walford's adaptation of caloric restriction is seriously flawed.** Might it be linked to his ALS? To his premature enfeeblement? To his premature aging? To his premature death? His regimen is a very tough one. And if the reward is merely 79 years, which many free-eating, free-drinking and even obese gourmands can achieve, then you have to wonder if it's worth it. Caloric restriction works. But the question is does caloric restriction as preached and practiced by Walford work? If your aim is to retard your aging and extend your lifespan through caloric restriction, you need to ask yourself whether it is possible that Walford did it the wrong way. And if those erros are part and parcel of his "anti-aging plan." And in this book. For the last 30 years of his life, Walford abstained from alcohol. He was fanatical about fat calories. And for the most part vegetarian. And he ate only 1600 calories. All this for a mere 79 years? And starting to get sick as early as in his sixties? Not very "anti-aging" if you ask me. The alternative? Well, to me it's The Elixxir Program. I can't speak for the author but it seems they are both based on the same science. But on The Elixxir Program, you can drink in moderation. Eat anything in moderation. And do away with all this Prohibitionism in Walford. In other words, you can have a life! I have found The ImmorTalist Manifesto by Elixxir to be a good start. It is not a diet book but provides the new anti-aging worldview you need for The Elixxir Program. And you can get it on Amazon. Visit elixxir's site too. And get on the Yahoo mailing list called The ImmorTalist Chronicles if you can. Good luck in the journey.
Rating:
Summary: Walford is Dead; Was Feeble for Years
Review: Roy Walford has died of Lou Gehrig's Disease. Or ALS. At 79. Far from the 120 years that he bragged he would attain. It seems "the anti-aging plan" did not work for him. If you look at picture of him at his own site, he looked awfully old. He was in declining health for most of the last decade. Needed a cane to walk many years ago before he became total invalid. And if you look at the picture put up by his devotees, Walford looked horribly prematurely aged. Walford's physical condition was first revealed in a Modern Maturity story. It pointed out: "For a man who plans to live forever, he's alarmingly feeble and cannot walk unaided. He moves around his kitchen by hanging from a series of straps slung overhead." (Modern Maturity, 2001) In a November 23, 2003, the New York Times wrote: "By almost anyone's standards, Dr. Roy Walford is an old man. At 79, he is confined to an electric wheelchair and his voice is so weak, he speaks into a microphone wired to a small tabletop amplifier....(Walford) is dying from the fatal nerve disorder known as Lou Gehrig's disease." To be fair, caloric restriction does work in all the specie tested so far. And is most likely to work in humans too. And Walford was a scientist who did important research. But a good scientist does not translate usually into a good anti-aging guru. **The question you have to ask is whether Walford's adaptation of caloric restriction is seriously flawed.** Might it be linked to his ALS? To his premature enfeeblement? To his premature aging? To his premature death? His regimen is a very tough one. And if the reward is merely 79 years, which many free-eating, free-drinking and even obese gourmands can achieve, then you have to wonder if it's worth it. Caloric restriction works. But the question is does caloric restriction as preached and practiced by Walford work? If your aim is to retard your aging and extend your lifespan through caloric restriction, you need to ask yourself whether it is possible that Walford did it the wrong way. And if those erros are part and parcel of his "anti-aging plan." And in this book. For the last 30 years of his life, Walford abstained from alcohol. He was fanatical about fat calories. And for the most part vegetarian. And he ate only 1600 calories. All this for a mere 79 years? And starting to get sick as early as in his sixties? Not very "anti-aging" if you ask me. The alternative? Well, to me it's The Elixxir Program. I can't speak for the author but it seems they are both based on the same science. But on The Elixxir Program, you can drink in moderation. Eat anything in moderation. And do away with all this Prohibitionism in Walford. In other words, you can have a life! I have found The ImmorTalist Manifesto by Elixxir to be a good start. It is not a diet book but provides the new anti-aging worldview you need for The Elixxir Program. And you can get it on Amazon. Visit elixxir's site too. And get on the Yahoo mailing list called The ImmorTalist Chronicles if you can. Good luck in the journey.
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