Suzanne Somers may forever be ingrained in American minds as the ditzy blond from Three's Company, but her five past bestselling diet books prove that her fit figure is admired by millions. Now in her fifties, Somers has endured what she calls the "Seven Dwarves" of menopause—Itchy, Bitchy, Sweaty, Sleepy, Bloated, Forgetful, and All Dried Up. She claims that until one tames the hormonal roller-coaster of menopause, there's little hope of losing weight: "If your hormones are out of balance, no weight-loss program will work for you." She recommends supplementation with "natural, bioidentical hormones" available from a compounding pharmacist, or an endocrinologist specializing in bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT). The synthetic hormones so widely prescribed, she says, cause the body to "mimic pregnancy," and result in a "high-insulin state," both of which lead to weight gain and bloating.

Read our interview with Suzanne Somers

While finding these natural hormonal supplements may be difficult for some readers, as the majority of BHRT-prescribing endocrinologists practice in the Los Angeles area, Somers stresses it's worth making the trip for a BHRT appointment. Moreover, readers may balk at a major side effect of taking bioidentical hormones: the return of one's menstrual period. "To me, having a period is a small price to pay for great health, increased vitality, and a slim figure," she says. Somers adds to her hormonal advice a detailed menu plan, which includes limited amounts of whole grains, and plenty of fruits and vegetables. She also recommends a few "high-glycemic" foods to avoid at all costs. The recipes are mostly drool-worthy, with dishes including Chicken Parmigiana and Warm Chocolate Soufflé Cakes, with the less labor-intensive dishes requiring some of her packaged Somersize-brand sauces, spices, and sweeteners. While the hormone supplementation in her plan may be hard to come by, her dietary advice is much more sensible than what you'll find in the majority of weight-loss books these days.--Erica Jorgensen

I am not sure about this one

OK, I will say that the recipes are interesting. The premise of hormonal imbalance is obviously proven right. However, isn't it too dangerous to play with hormones? I would not advice that to anyone. I'd rather stay, with natural, "grandma" remedies as suggested in "Can We Live 150 Year" by Tombak. But I must applaud Ms. Somers for putting emphasize on "whole foods". Overall, if one is not afraid of hormonal treatment, then it is a book worth having.

A great informational tool for any woman...

This book is loaded with great information on how a woman's body works and why we feel so miserable at our peek years, and what to do about it!Her recipes are so simple and amazing! My whole family liked everything I haved tried so far, and 2 of the recipes contained spinach! My kids run the other way when they see the green stuff, but they really liked the way she put it all together. I have been doing her program for 2 weeks now, and my stomach is flatter, I feel less bloated and I am looking into starting bioidentical hormones. I am only 30, but I have 3 children and a very stressful work load. I have several premenapausal symptoms already, and every year it gets worse... I'm hoping her approach will work for me! She looks better at 50 than I do at 30, so I definitly need some help! Her book is also easy to read and she explains things in several ways to be sure you understand. She wants woman to feel good and enjoy life- you get that sense of caring with every page. A must have for any woman! 5 stars...

Relentless shattering of destructive untruth...

The most important message in this book will be found in the introduction by Mrs. Somers and her physician David Allen, MD. That message refutes a common mistruth still taught to medical students every day.

Now (after finding it impossible to control her weight doing all the things in her early books that previously worked for her), Mrs. Somers has found that without proper hormone balance it becomes impossible to feel energetic and control weight consistenly within a healthy range. So, the first chapter of this book explains modern strategies of hormone replacement. Then the remainder of the book explains diet and exercise.

The tragedy (and the mistruth): Physicians are taught that only about 1% of people with obesity have abnormal hormones as part of the reason for thier obesity. When looking at adults over the age of 40, I find a much higher percentage of people with one or more hormone abnormalaties (all discussed in this book): growth hormone, thyroid (T3 or T4), testosterone, estradiol, progesterone, DHEA, or cortisol.

This book should be helpful for both men and women for the introduction and the first chapter alone. I know from my research and patient care that she speaks the truth.

As for her diet recommendations, the Abs Diet, Eat Right Every Time would work better as guiding tool. Supplement the foods there with recommendations by Mrs. Sommers (which tend to be more involved...with three sons and many patients when I cook it better be very fast most of the time and still the right kind of food).

As for the exercise part of the book: I'm sorry, but of several thousand patients, I've yet to meet ONE who lost weight and kept it off using any machine they bought from an info-mertial. Walking works. When you're walking 20 miles a week (the amount that recent research shows would keep most Americans at normal weigh WITH NO CHANGE IN DIET), if you still have extra time after walking 20 miles a week, then play with any of Mrs. Somers' toys and reap the polishing effects. Don't ice the cake with exercise toys until you've cooked the cake of normal weight with walking. Mrs. Somers honestly admits that her exercise products are not necessary but offer an extra boost for those who can afford them. The importatnt exercise problem identified by the book is that if your hormones are unbalanced and an anchor to you, you will not likely ever reach the 20-mile mark because exercise makes you feel like you were in a bar-room fight. Instead of recovering from exercise with more energy and less fat, you will feel more fatigue, plant yourself in a chair or bed to recover, and keep gaining weight.

As for finding a physician by contacting the organizations she lists in the back of the book, just be careful. These organizations will provide a useful list; but, speaking as someone who's been a member of all of these organizations at various times and attended their conferences, there can be a wide range of abilities and philosophies within it's membership. Ask how long the physician has been involved: if more than 5 years and involved in legitimate research, then you're more likely to have a winner. Less than 2 years, you may just have someone who's jumping on the bandwagon and trying to figure it all out by practicing medicine with your health.

This book is beautifully done. Mrs. Sommers makes it plain that her astounding beauty did not come by watching sit-coms and reaping the rewards of the genes of angels; her beauty comes from the genes of angels combined with the fortitude and hard work of a galley slave mixed with intelligent application of modern medicine.

If you're still struggling with weight, I'd recommend you take Mrs. Sommers' advice, read the intro and first chapter of this book and pull up any hormonal anchors that you may be dragging before exhausting yourself with diet and exercise.

I love this woman for the good she's doing. Physicians have lost some of their credibility and Medicine has been described as a "leaning tower of Pisa" by Prince Charles (I think "Leaning" due to the great force with which research is driven into wonderful discoveries by pharmacutical companies while research about basics like eating and exercise go grossly underfunded)--leaving physicians guessing about what works and people trying to figure it out with trial and error. But, here's a case where the relentless evangelism of a Star is helping give women the courage to stand up to their physician and demand a break from old dogma. If she makes another fortune doing it, she deserves every cent.

--Charles Runels, MD
Author of "Anytime...for as Long as You Want: Strength, Genius, Libido, & Erection by Integrative Sex Transmutation (A 15-Day Course for Men to Improve Life and Sex)"