Why We Get Sick: The Hidden Epidemic at the Root of Most Chronic Disease - and How to Fight It

4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars | 3,861 ratings

Price: 11.57

Last update: 02-16-2025


About this item

A scientist reveals the groundbreaking evidence linking many major diseases, including cancer, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s disease, to a common root cause - insulin resistance - and shares an easy, effective plan to reverse and prevent it.

We are sick. Around the world, we struggle with diseases that were once considered rare. Cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and diabetes affect millions each year; many people are also struggling with hypertension, weight gain, fatty liver, dementia, low testosterone, menstrual irregularities and infertility, and more. We treat the symptoms, not realizing that all of these diseases and disorders have something in common.

Each of them is caused or made worse by a condition known as insulin resistance. And you might have it. Odds are you do - more than half of all adults in the United States are insulin resistant, with most other countries either worse or not far behind.

In Why We Get Sick, internationally renowned scientist and pathophysiology Professor Benjamin Bikman explores why insulin resistance has become so prevalent and why it matters. Unless we recognize it and take steps to reverse the trend, major chronic diseases will be even more widespread. But reversing insulin resistance is possible, and Bikman offers an evidence-based plan to stop and prevent it, with helpful food lists, meal suggestions, easy exercise principles, and more. Full of surprising research and practical advice, Why We Get Sick will help you to take control of your health.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.


Top reviews from the United States

  • Ken Leon-Guerrero
    5.0 out of 5 stars This book is the Human Body Owners Manual
    Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2021
    Knowledge is power. We get fat and sick one bite at a time,and this book tells us why, and with that knowledge we can act with intention.

    Today is my 67th Birthday! Yay ME, I made it; which is a big and welcome surprise when I think back to all the people I know that didn't make it this far; most of them dying early because of metabolic diseases like cancer, cardiac disease, diabetes or hypertension.

    Through the decisions we make, we get sicker or healthier. It is all a choice we all make three to six times a day.

    November 2019, I had reasons to be concerned that I wouldn't. I was a Type 2 Diabetic with high blood pressure and very long list of chronic medical conditions my doctors were telling me were a "natural progression of getting older."

    December 2019, my wife and I went on the Covid-19 weight loss program and I lost 20 pounds in five weeks (I do not recommend that program for losing weight). In March of 2020 we changed from "counting calories" on a mostly vegetarian diet, to eating a low carb/healthy fat diet; and as the numbers show, the rest was history.

    The journey getting from there to here took a lot of control, because old habits die hard. But along the way I learned getting healthier is worth it. I feel better. I walk better. I sleep better. My mind is clearer, and I have energy levels that amaze me.

    I made this journey one decision at a time. At every point of action we make a decision. We will either make a good decision or a bad decision. Sometimes we know what kind of decision we made right away - putting bobby pin in electrical outlet lesson learned right away. Sometimes we don't know if it was a good or bad decision for a long time - if ever. Bucking a seat belt when we get into a car is an example of a lesson that does not happen instantly, and may never be learned.

    When you take time to read the owners manual for your body (WHY WE GET SICK by Dr. Benjamin Bikman) you can start making better decisions about how you fuel your body that have both short term and long term impact on your health.

    Just as our food choices are the poisons that kills us slowly, they are also the medicines that can health faster than any pill a doctor can prescribe.

    When you eat breakfast, knowing that eating the toast and hash browns is sticking the bobby pin into the electrical outlet, and avoiding them is putting on the seat belt, you can make a better decision.

    When you eat lunch, having a burger, french fries and soda is sticking the bobby pin into electrical outlet, and having a "bunless burger" with a side salad and dressing, with a unsweetened iced tea is putting on the seat belt, you can make a better decision.

    When you eat dinner, a plate of pasta noodles with garlic bread is sticking the bobby pin in the electrical outlet, and a plate of zucchini noodles with fathead dough garlic cheese bread is putting on the seat belt, you can make a better decision.

    Over time making better decisions leads to better numbers. Better numbers lead to better health. The numbers in the table below are the numbers that are part of every medical check up I go through as I track my progression deeper into this lifestyle. Anyone who is working on improving their health is probably tracking these numbers as well, or should be.

    EGL: Estimated Glucose Level
    A1C: Standard Glucose Test
    TRI: Triglycerides - Inflammation Indicator
    HDL: The "good cholesterol"
    LDL: The mistakenly called "bad cholesterol"
    CHLS: Total cholesterol - a number I now don't care about
    Weight: The number we obsess way too much about
    BMI: A number we should obsess more about - percentage of body fat
    Customer image
    Ken Leon-Guerrero
    5.0 out of 5 stars
    This book is the Human Body Owners Manual

    Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2021
    Knowledge is power. We get fat and sick one bite at a time,and this book tells us why, and with that knowledge we can act with intention.

    Today is my 67th Birthday! Yay ME, I made it; which is a big and welcome surprise when I think back to all the people I know that didn't make it this far; most of them dying early because of metabolic diseases like cancer, cardiac disease, diabetes or hypertension.

    Through the decisions we make, we get sicker or healthier. It is all a choice we all make three to six times a day.

    November 2019, I had reasons to be concerned that I wouldn't. I was a Type 2 Diabetic with high blood pressure and very long list of chronic medical conditions my doctors were telling me were a "natural progression of getting older."

    December 2019, my wife and I went on the Covid-19 weight loss program and I lost 20 pounds in five weeks (I do not recommend that program for losing weight). In March of 2020 we changed from "counting calories" on a mostly vegetarian diet, to eating a low carb/healthy fat diet; and as the numbers show, the rest was history.

    The journey getting from there to here took a lot of control, because old habits die hard. But along the way I learned getting healthier is worth it. I feel better. I walk better. I sleep better. My mind is clearer, and I have energy levels that amaze me.

    I made this journey one decision at a time. At every point of action we make a decision. We will either make a good decision or a bad decision. Sometimes we know what kind of decision we made right away - putting bobby pin in electrical outlet lesson learned right away. Sometimes we don't know if it was a good or bad decision for a long time - if ever. Bucking a seat belt when we get into a car is an example of a lesson that does not happen instantly, and may never be learned.

    When you take time to read the owners manual for your body (WHY WE GET SICK by Dr. Benjamin Bikman) you can start making better decisions about how you fuel your body that have both short term and long term impact on your health.

    Just as our food choices are the poisons that kills us slowly, they are also the medicines that can health faster than any pill a doctor can prescribe.

    When you eat breakfast, knowing that eating the toast and hash browns is sticking the bobby pin into the electrical outlet, and avoiding them is putting on the seat belt, you can make a better decision.

    When you eat lunch, having a burger, french fries and soda is sticking the bobby pin into electrical outlet, and having a "bunless burger" with a side salad and dressing, with a unsweetened iced tea is putting on the seat belt, you can make a better decision.

    When you eat dinner, a plate of pasta noodles with garlic bread is sticking the bobby pin in the electrical outlet, and a plate of zucchini noodles with fathead dough garlic cheese bread is putting on the seat belt, you can make a better decision.

    Over time making better decisions leads to better numbers. Better numbers lead to better health. The numbers in the table below are the numbers that are part of every medical check up I go through as I track my progression deeper into this lifestyle. Anyone who is working on improving their health is probably tracking these numbers as well, or should be.

    EGL: Estimated Glucose Level
    A1C: Standard Glucose Test
    TRI: Triglycerides - Inflammation Indicator
    HDL: The "good cholesterol"
    LDL: The mistakenly called "bad cholesterol"
    CHLS: Total cholesterol - a number I now don't care about
    Weight: The number we obsess way too much about
    BMI: A number we should obsess more about - percentage of body fat
    Images in this review
  • Erin Jenkins
    5.0 out of 5 stars Educational easy read
    Reviewed in the United States on November 29, 2024
    I found this an easy insightful read with practical application. I am encouraged that I don't have to let insulin control me and I have the ability to do something about it and let me age well.
  • austin22
    5.0 out of 5 stars Ben is legit and the book is well written, VERY eye opening stuff
    Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2024
    Ben is a PhD, so you can trust his work (I also have a PhD). Lots of books out there by "experts" who have never done research (i.e. medical doctors), I did my homework on Ben and he's legit. Check his google scholar page, he's an excellent researcher and his book should be taught everywhere. We simply ignore insulin resistance as a whole and blame everything on other causes, the room cause of many diseases does seem to be linked to our diet and insulin resistance. Very good book, I'm almost done with it. (only negative is it was clearly written WITH a ghost writer but I don't mind, publishers like ghost writers, he tries to be funny in places and it's silly, a PhD would never write this stuff but oh well) 5 stars, without a doubt a must read.
  • alan d hulsebus
    5.0 out of 5 stars highly recommended
    Reviewed in the United States on January 31, 2025
    Everybody should read this book, especially doctors. Easy to follow directions to greatly improve your health. Also get "How Not to get Sick"
  • L Dobbs
    4.0 out of 5 stars Easy to read book about blood sugar and more
    Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2024
    Ben Bikman PhD gives readers an easily understood explanation of the complicated processes of how the human body turns food into energy. He also provides clear advice on the human diet and topics like blood sugar, ketones and metabolism. He tells his readers how to eat to lose weight and explains why we develop metabolic diseases such as diabetes. His background as a medical school professor and undergraduate college professor helps him explain complex subject matter in simple to understand ways. I learned a lot about things I had never understood before.
  • Hard Scrabble
    5.0 out of 5 stars QUICKSAND OF INSULIN EXPLAINED
    Reviewed in the United States on December 21, 2024
    For years, I have been slowly sinking in the quicksand of my own fat, drowning in my own fat, and never, ever came close to understanding that no matter how much you exercise, cut calories, or try different diets, or use thermogenic vitamins, supplements or hop on vibration plates, or jump on exercise equipment--nothing works. But I read this book in two hours. And I reviewed it two hours later, reading it again and in plain language---spoiler alert---Professor Bitman took the fluttering moth of this complex subject, the topic of insulin resistance, and turned it inside out: the moth morphed into a bright yellow sombrero. And I walked outside--illuminated--- by sunlight, the truth. Inflammation causes insulin resistance by the overproduction of ceramides that gunk up our glucose receptors. I AM DROWNING IN INSULIN AS AN OBESE MAN. AND UNTIL I DROP THE HIGH LEVEL OF INSULIN, I WILL REMAIN FAT. There are many videos that help elucidate the subject and different pathways to ceramides. Professor Bitman is the expert on ceramides. Fasting lowers insulin. Its that simple. One has to drop insulin levels to get the body to use AMPK to lower the enzyme that blocks CPT1 on the membranes of mitochondria, that is the gateway for fats to get in, for fats to burn in the mitochondria. With high levels of insulin---suppressing AMPK, the obese person never gets to first base in a game of baseball. Fasting for 72 hours is a home run. Alt Day Fasting for 48 hours is a like hitting a double. You can steal third from there. After three months of managing a SOBER DIET. The Obese are trapped in the quicksand of too much insulin. FASTING LOWERS INFLAMMATION. It reboots your immune system with a 5 day fast. FASTING 5 days once a month has been recommended by Dr Viktor Longo as a way to help reverse fatty liver and become healthier. FASTING once a month helps to reduce the excess palmitate in your liver, pancreas, thymus, and visceral fat around the heart, kidneys. Eat a sober diet by eliminating nicotine from smoking, drugs, alcohol, fructose from honey, fructose in berries, sugar, carbs, cereals, pasta, breads, cake, donuts, pizza, pies, potatoes, peanut butter, all nuts, all seeds, seed oils, even olive oil and avocado, and processed meats. Avoid artificial sweeteners, and the sweet taste of toothpaste and mouth wash. Eat a strict way---avoiding animals fed corn and soy like chicken, pork, turkeys---eat beef, eggs, goat cheese, sheep cheese, salmon, sardines, krill, cod liver, shrimp, scallops, crab, mussel, clams. After 3 months, you can start having something sweet again by making a great keto dessert---heavy cream, knox gelatin, and a few tsp Glycine (amino acid) chilled in a bowl in refrigerator. Add blue berries in gelatin on top of the white cream base. This is called a Keto Blueberry Salad, and recipe from the 1950s.
    Heavy cream is allowed if its organic and it does not have bad thickening agents. You can use Glycine to sweeten caccao, or coffee, or Golden Milk with Turmeric. I add MCT oil for these keto warm drinks. I do not sweeten my mushroom coffee with Cordycepts, Chaga, Lions Mane, and Porcini. I take unsweetened KETO electrolytes. I do not sweeten my bone broth. Or when I put butter in my coffee.

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