TW: This book [and my review] is about diets, body anxiety and body-shaming, eating disorders and the work it takes to get into recovery from them. I am typically not a TW kind of person, but in this case [as I have friends who are in life-long recovery], I think it is important. This book is a very important read and I tried to write the best review I could about it, but I also know that it can be extremely triggering to those who are not yet in recovery, just starting recovery or are currently struggling with recovery. I have also hidden my review behind a spoiler link for that reason as well.

<spoiler>
1. Diets SUCK.

2. Diets DO. NOT. WORK.

3. Diet Culture and the people that make it happen have their own circle of Hell waiting for them.

4. Diet influencers [I am looking at you Kardashians] will be hanging out with the people of #3.

5. Recovery is never ending [the author makes that very clear as she discusses her journey along with all the information she has found] and one should not E V E R be ashamed of where they are in life.

6. Just because someone has "therapist" behind the name, DOES NOT MEAN they have your best interest at heart [I am looking at you Joyce {from the book - IYKYK} and if they are in the pockets of a "diet" company, they are most certainly NOT looking out for you.

7. People who claim they love us need to stop saying sh*t like "YOU have such a pretty face, if only you'd lose a few pounds" [I. WAS. EIGHT. the first time this happened. E I G H T]. It is dangerous, damaging, and extremely unloving and it needs to stop. I look back at pictures of when I was that age and O M G I was freaking adorable and certainly didn't need a D I E T. Sigh. All it did was start a life-long struggle with how I looked and my weight [that has only ended since I was diagnosed with a chronic illness and medication has made it impossible to diet] that has made me hate myself for a good many years.

8. IF YOUR CHILD WANTS TO DANCE OR DO GYMNASTICS LET THEM DO IT. Teachers, STOP TELLING LITTLE GIRLS AND BOYS THAT THEY ARE "TOO BIG" OR "TOO TALL" OR "TOO FAT" TO DO BOTH OF THESE SPORTS [I was 6 and 7 when these things were said to me, BY PROFESSIONALS - yeah, you get the picture]. JUST. STOP. IT.

9. Those who love us, please just love us where we are. Support us, care for us, help us, but don't tell us what to do. Those who struggle with body anxiety, body-shame, eating disorders and all that comes with those things just need support and love and caring. IF someone tells you [or shows you] how they need supported, then for cryin' out loud, DO THAT and stop telling them what YOU think they should do.

10. Doctors who judge someone simply by their weight - see #3

To say this book hit me hard is an understatement. While I have never struggled with an eating disorder like anorexia or bulimia, I did, for years, overeat. I ate for comfort, for love, and to calm my anxiety. It took years [and so. many. stupid. diets.] for me to overcome that, to find things that were non-damaging for comfort and to calm my anxiety [I HIGHLY recommend therapy, something I have never had the chance to have, but I know people who have found great therapists who have helped them so much <--it may take a few, advocate for yourself and if your gut says NO, find a new one] and to tell people to STOP shaming me for my body by recommending a new diet [like I have not already tried them all] or asking me "how my weight is" [like they are blind and cannot see that I am still a very large woman]. I will say that while that was totally empowering for me, most people who loved to shame were not fans of me telling them to shut their traps. ;-)

There are ways to get better and there are ways to learn to like [if not love] yourself IN the body you are in. It is literally a lifelong process and there will be moments you will want to chuck it all and go back to the damaging behaviors; all I can say to that [and to myself] is BE KIND TO YOURSELF. You are forever a work in processes and it helps to always remember that. Surround yourself with people that truly love and support you, clean up your social media [or get rid of it completely], even if that means unfriending or unfollowing people you have known for years [THIS has been glorious for me] and BE KIND TO YOURSELF.

We are literally all in this together.

I was able to get the NetGalley audiobook for this book and WHOOSH that was crazy. Listening to the author tell her story and talk about all the things that led to her needing to be in recovery, with ALL the emotions that come with that, was amazing. It really bring home just how serious this is [for those who have never, ever, struggled with food or body anxiety will appreciate this audiobook for that very reason] and how the author still struggles while in recovery. I really appreciated her humor amidst all the sorrow and pain and I also appreciated her transparency and vulnerability. It really comes through in the audiobook. I highly recommend listening to this book. </spoiler>

Thank you to NetGalley, Cole Kazdin, St. Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for providing the ARC and audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“This is a public health crisis many of us won’t survive, why doesn’t it feel like one? Is it because society tells women that it’s more important to be thin than alive?”

This book was as upsetting and it was enlightening and listening to Kazdin herself narrate it added a whole other level of intimacy. Tackling topics like fad diets, eating disorder culture, and the disparity between care for white and BIPOC people, Kazdin has managed to write a masterful piece of work which balances personal anecdotes with expert advise and a whole lot of fact-checking. Listening to this book at times felt like crossing off a checklist of issues with food I and other women in my life have, and it was genuinely distressing at times to recognize how severely our culture instills in women that to be worthy we must be thin. Kazdin's work is brutally honest about her own recovery and relapses, whilst being ever compassionate and articulate; this should be required reading!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Essentials and Cole Kazdin for an ARC of this book.

I really enjoyed reading What’s Eating Us. Not only was it informative, but it was entertaining and told a beautiful story of struggle and success. I appreciated the realness of her lived experience, while also looking to research and science. This book tackles the lack of appropriate treatment, diet culture and cultural barriers. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants to learn more about the topic.

Trigger warnings: ED, Infertility
5/5 stars - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

What’s Eating Us is fantastic non-fiction about eating disorders and disordered eating. I really appreciated author Cole Kazdin’s vulnerability as she weaved her personal story in with research and other women’s stories. I also was really glad she highlighted racial disparities in diagnosis and treatment of EDs. I didn’t expect there to be anything new for me to learn, but there were some new treatments highlighted that I hadn’t heard about before. This book is full of important information, and I hope it reaches many, many people.

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the advance audio copy for review.

Interesting history and discussion of eating disorders and the experience of many women. I recommend avoiding this book if you are still in recovery or are struggling with your relationship with food and eating.

I found this audiobook to be a well-written and well-researched journalistic take on women, weight, health and today’s society. Infusing her reporting with her own experience, Kazdin tries to pinpoint why we, as women, struggle so much with our bodies and their perception in society and personally. It felt like fate to finish this during Eating Disorder Awareness Week, and to re-examine the way we treat ourselves, our bodies and our vision of what it means to be healthy. I would recommend this book for all women, but particularly those looking to embrace their bodies and those still struggling to see their gifts.

Thank you to Macmillan for this audio ARC!

I think this covered a lot of important topics in a way that was both real and personal. The author's own experiences added a lot to the research and factual information and kept the book from feeling too dense. This also felt much more... realistic than I expected. The ED mentality is something I am familiar with and it was captured very well here. I appreciated how real the author was when describing her experiences and her thoughts.

This gave good factual information, solid personal anecdotes, and a horrifying look into how common disordered eating behaviors are (especially in women). The author highlighted the issues with current ED care and talked about some promising avenues, both present and future.

I personally cannot relate to the chapters on fertility and motherhood and they felt like they dragged a bit... but I can appreciate that this is a common struggle that many women face and I think it's important to talk about.

Overall this was a very valuable read that I'll definitely recommend to others!

As thorough and knowledgeable as it was heartfelt, What’s Eating Us by Cole Kazdin was an excellent read. I enjoyed the audiobook very much. It made the material even more engaging and the author,s humor really come through.

I picked up "What's Eating Us" because I expected it to be somewhat in line with "Beauty Sick" by Renee Engeln, but more focused on eating disorders than overall body image. "What's Eating Us" ended up being heavier on the personal narrative and qualitative research than I was looking for, but as this book taught me, there isn't a ton of qualitative research out there because not enough funders are taking this seriously.

Overall I give this 4/5 stars. Cole Kazdin is an excellent writer who bore their soul in this publication and it was important to hear that such a successful career woman still struggled with body image. Thank you Cole, for taking the time to put pen to paper about this very personal issue and your experiences surrounding it.

I immediately recommended this book to everyone I know. I couldn’t get over how amazing and informative this was. A must for all women!

Excellent piece of non fic that skillfully blends memoir/bio with research and reporting. I love that she contextualized ED in the context of white privilege and also talked about how it affected
BIPOC communities. Very well done and inspiring.

Whenever we begin a conversation about women and weight there will be a lot to unpack. Women almost universally experience anxiety about their bodies, their diet, and their weight. Kazdin starts a very honest and factual discussion about diet culture, disordered eating, and the astounding pressure women feel each day to change their bodies to be anything other than what they are.

"What's Eating Us: Women, Food, and the Epidemic of Body Anxiety" by Cole Kazdin is a powerful and thought-provoking read that has left a lasting impact on me. The author expertly tackles the intersections of eating disorders (ED) and their effects on women's lives, including comorbidity with other mental health struggles, infertility, and how it disproportionately diagnosis and treatment is available to BIPOC communities. This book opened my eyes to the extent of this problem and the lack of regulation in treatment options, a major issue that needs to be addressed.

One of the things I appreciated most about the book is Kazdin's use of personal anecdotes and experiences with ED. This added a human element to the book and made it much more relatable for me. The author's emphasis on community as a tool for healing is a message that personally resonates with me, especially coming from a community focused culture. The power of community in healing is often overlooked when dealing with various mental health issues and eating disorders.

It was disheartening to learn about the double standards in ED recovery, with some doctors treating ED while also collaborating with weight loss companies. This highlights the societal pressure and unrealistic beauty standards that women face every day, and how it is perpetuated further by the medical professionals meant to help us heal. The book also revealed the discrimination that individuals face based on their size. It is legal in the United States to fire/not hire someone based on their size.

Overall, "What's Eating Us: Women, Food, and the Epidemic of Body Anxiety" is a must-read for anyone looking to better understand eating disorders and their impact on women's lives. The book is insightful, personal, and thought-provoking, making it a valuable resource for anyone interested in this topic.

I listened to the audiobook and thought it was an easy read! Although Cole discussed many serious topics, she was still able to crack me up. This book was definitely an eye opener for me though. Cole really explains diet culture from a different perspective, the perspective of someone dealing with the lifelong recovery of an eating disorder. I felt emotionally conflicted at times because of some of the context, like dieting is bad period. I do wish there would have been more tips and discussion on how to deal with binge eating.

I was tentative about requesting this book for personal reasons, but I'm so incredibly happy that I did. For those that might be feeling too anxious to pick up a book about disordered eating, please give this one a try. You'll be so happy that you did!

Cole Kazdin handled this subject matter so delicately and respectfully it honestly made me cry at times. Her own story is so flawed and beautiful that I seriously think everyone should read this book, especially those who are suffering; know someone who is suffering; or is raising a daughter that may (probably will) experience anxiety concerning their eating habits.

I've never devoured a non-fiction book so quickly and I'll definitely be following-up on some of the subject matters discussed by Kazdin.

The conclusion of this book was so emotional. I've already copied out several of the sentences for future reference.

What an amazing book. What an amazing experience.

I really enjoyed this deeply personal and yet scientifically based book on eating disorders. Cole did a great job of interspersing facts and research with humor and personal anecdotes. I listened to the audio in a few short sittings! It was so engaging and informative. There were moments during which I teared up and laughed along with the author, which is not a typical reaction in science and health readings! I think this is a very important read for men and women of all ages!

I found this book both enlightening and disheartening. As a woman living in our diet culture and weight loss saturated society, I felt this book brought to light all the ways we are conditioned for disordered eating and eating disorders. I liked the combination of the author’s personal experiences as well as her research into treatments and therapies. As someone who has a loved one currently seeking treatment, I was disheartened to learn that there really is no standard of care or treatment and that research is about 10 years behind. We have got to do better!
Thank you to NetGalley and

The first hour of this book states the obvious. I was hoping for new information, specifically strategies to navigate society’s expectations.

I see the benefit of the book for certain demographics. I, as a doctor, appreciate the inside look at the experience and feelings of people who have struggled with eating disorders. But I found the organization of the book hard to follow, I was unsure what the overarching point is even as I got to the halfway point. I appreciate calling out problems with the system, but the book feels bleak. I also think the author isn’t defining certain words they use clearly. Saying no diet is sustainable isn’t true considering vegan, vegetarian, Dash, and Mediterranean are considered diets. I’m assuming the author meant fad diets, but it is kind of important to define in the book. Now I did listen to the audiobook so it’s possible that there is an appendix at the end of the book to address these things and I just didn’t have access to that.

Another book that I have had on my kindle that took me a while to get to and I REGRET.

What's Eating Us attracted my attention because its a topic that I do believe most-to-all women struggle with- the idea of their bodies. Cole Kazdin writes about the topic and surrounding topics- eating disorders, fertility, body image, etc. I really enjoyed how this was informative and also threaded with memoir from the author's own journey. This might not be for everyone, but I particularly liked hearing about her story.