{"product_id":"the-hacking-of-the-american-mind-isbn-9781101982945","title":"The Hacking of the American Mind","description":"\u003cb\u003e\"Explores how industry has manipulated our most deep-seated survival instincts.\"\u003cb\u003e—David Perlmutter, MD, Author, #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestseller, \u003ci\u003eGrain Brain\u003c\/i\u003e and\u003ci\u003e Brain Maker\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e–bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eFat Chance \u003c\/i\u003ereveals the corporate scheme to sell pleasure, driving the international epidemic of addiction, depression, and chronic disease.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e While researching the toxic and addictive properties of sugar for his \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestseller \u003ci\u003eFat Chance\u003c\/i\u003e, Robert Lustig made an alarming discovery—our pursuit of happiness is being subverted by a culture of addiction and depression from which we may never recover.\u003cbr\u003e             \u003cbr\u003eDopamine is the “reward” neurotransmitter that tells our brains we want more; yet every substance or behavior that releases dopamine in the extreme leads to addiction. Serotonin is the “contentment” neurotransmitter that tells our brains we don’t need any more; yet its deficiency leads to depression. Ideally, both are in optimal supply. Yet dopamine evolved to overwhelm serotonin—because our ancestors were more likely to survive if they were constantly motivated—with the result that constant desire can chemically destroy our ability to feel happiness, while sending us down the slippery slope to addiction. In the last forty years, government legislation and subsidies have promoted ever-available temptation (sugar, drugs, social media, porn) combined with constant stress (work, home, money, Internet), with the end result of an unprecedented epidemic of addiction, anxiety, depression, and chronic disease. And with the advent of neuromarketing, corporate America has successfully imprisoned us in an endless loop of desire and consumption from which there is no obvious escape.\u003cbr\u003e             \u003cbr\u003eWith his customary wit and incisiveness, Lustig not only reveals the science that drives these states of mind, he points his finger directly at the corporations that helped create this mess, and the government actors who facilitated it, and he offers solutions we can all use in the pursuit of happiness, even in the face of overwhelming opposition. Always fearless and provocative, Lustig marshals a call to action, with seminal implications for our health, our well-being, and our culture.\"Our health, resistance to disease, and ability to function on a day-to-day basis have essentially been hijacked, all in the name of corporate profits. Dr. Lustig explores how industry has manipulated our most deep-seated survival instincts to motivate our food choices in a way that directly undermines our ability to survive. But more importantly, \u003ci\u003eThe Hacking of the American Mind\u003c\/i\u003e eloquently reveals how we can disengage from this influence and re-establish ourselves on a path to wellness.\"\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e—David Perlmutter, MD, author of the #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestseller, \u003ci\u003eGrain Brain\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eBrain Maker\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A provocative, persuasive plea to stop seeking the wrong kind of happiness. Take it from the neuroscientist\/endocrinologist who sounded the alarm about sugar: chasing rewards is far less rewarding than finding contentment.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003c\/b\u003eAdam Grant, author of \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestsellers \u003ci\u003eOriginals\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eGive and Take\u003c\/i\u003e, and coauthor of the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestseller \u003ci\u003eOption B\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Robert Lustig takes on one of the greatest paradoxes of our time: how can it be that we have more sources of pleasure than ever before in human history, and yet are increasingly sick, broke, and unhappy? By deftly weaving together neuroscience, history, economics, and more, he provides a much-needed explanation of how the 'pernicious peddling of pleasure' causes real happiness to elude so many of us — and also provides a desperately needed roadmap for escaping the pleasure trap.\"\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e —\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003eSharon Begley, coauthor of the\u003ci\u003e \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/i\u003ebest seller \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Emotional Life of Your Brain\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Pleasure and happiness are not the same thing – as our addictions to everything from unhealthy food to cellphones show. In this book, Dr. Lustig unpacks the science of pleasure versus happiness to explain the true causes of the last 40 years of addiction, depression, and disease. The good news is that the solution is easy — well, maybe not so easy — put down your cellphone. And sleep. You’ll be happier, and you’ll live longer!\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003c\/b\u003eArianna Huffington, author of the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e best seller \u003ci\u003eThe Sleep Revolution\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Dr. Robert Lustig examines our culture of illness, an industry-created fog that, despite our best efforts to cope, has left us stressed, isolated, addicted, and depressed. With \u003ci\u003eThe Hacking of the American Mind\u003c\/i\u003e, he empowers us with the science of mind, brain, and love in a delightful, insightful, and humorous way. You can live by pursuing pleasure, sugar-coated as 'happiness,' or you can read this book.\"  \u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003c\/b\u003eElissa Epel, coauthor of the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e best seller \u003ci\u003eThe Telomere Effect\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eRobert H. Lustig, M.D., MSL, \u003c\/b\u003eis professor of pediatrics in the Division of Endocrinology and a member of the Institute for Health Policy Studies at University of California, San Francisco. He has authored 120 peer-reviewed articles and 70 reviews, as well as \u003ci\u003eFat Chance,\u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eThe Fat Chance Cookbook\u003c\/i\u003e, and\u003ci\u003e Metabolical\u003c\/i\u003e. He has mentored 30 pediatric endocrine fellows and trained numerous other allied health professionals. He is the former chairman of the Obesity Task Force of the Pediatric Endocrine Society, a member of the Obesity Task Force of the Endocrine Society, and a member of the Pediatric Obesity Devices Committee of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. He is also the president of the nonprofit Institute for Responsible Nutrition, dedicated to reversing childhood obesity and Type 2 Diabetes. He consults for several childhood obesity advocacy groups and government agencies.Once upon a time we were happy. Then the snake showed up. And      we've been miserable ever since. Hieronymus Bosch's painting      Garden of Earthly Delights (circa 1500) is a triptych housed in      the Prado in Madrid. It is an allegorical warning of what happens      when we squander our birthright of happiness divined from God in      one garden and move on to the pleasures of the flesh in the next      garden, with the inevitable result of eternal damnation. Figures.      Our most lauded goal in life-to be happy-is seemingly an illusion,      out of reach for us common folk. Except the rich aren't any      happier. Happiness seems to be a mirage, something to chase after,      to keep us turning over rocks, kissing frogs, and trying to fit      keys into the magic lock.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e But along the way, wandering through our own individual gardens of      earthly delights in search of our seemingly unobtainable nirvanas,      we've sure had a whole lot of fun. Or we've at least tried to. We      buy shiny things, play Powerball, imbibe with friends or sometimes      alone. So why are so many of us miserable? Are we destined just to      sink further into the abyss of pleasure with no hope of      extricating ourselves to find real happiness? Is it all futile?      Lots of people have died trying to get to that magic place of      contentment and inner peace, that thing called \"happiness.\" But if      we can't get there, what's the point?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e What if I told you that happiness is right there in front of you,      just behind the curtain of your own brain?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e To some, an argument over the difference between pleasure and      happiness might seem like a straw man, a false argument not really      worth having. Hey, they both feel good; why should you care? And      pleasure is here, now. Happiness . . . maybe not so much, and not      so soon.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e But it does matter. And not just to you but to all of society.      Explaining the differences between these two otherwise positive      emotions form the narrative arc of this book.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e Terms of Endearment\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Pleasure takes many forms and has many synonyms: \"gratification,\"      \"amusement,\" \"indulgence,\" \"titillation,\" \"turn-on.\" But the      experience of pleasure is the visceral readout of activity of a      specific brain area known as the \"reward pathway.\" In fact,      pleasure is actually two phenomena in one. First, one experiences      the motivation for a given reward. Second, one experiences the      consummation of that reward as the visceral experience we call      pleasure. For simplicity, I will call it reward so both the social      science and the neuroscience can effectively be treated as one.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The old adage goes, \"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.\" Same      for happiness. Happiness is in the brain of the experiencer. And      it too has its own brain area, known as the \"contentment pathway.\"      But as a philosophical concept, happiness has a long history and      has been tangled up with the history of society for as long as      there's been society. Happiness consists of a grab bag of      definitions that have changed and morphed over time. The root of      the word, \"hap,\" means luck. And we see this etymological root in      other words relating to chance occurrence: for instance,      happenstance or perhaps. Early societies weren't very happy; after      all, with famine, plague, and war, they had a lot to be unhappy      about. Happiness was chance, fleeting, and seemed to alight on      only a select few in any given society.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e The God Factor\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Religion has been the arbiter of both pleasure and happiness since      there was religion. By no means is the brief history that follows      meant to be exhaustive, but understanding where we came from can      help us determine where we are going.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The Jewish tradition says that the study of the Torah is the path      to happiness, because \"all its paths are peace,\" and by following      the law one could not help but achieve happiness. The Greeks are      on record for jump-starting both the pleasure and happiness      industries. In the third century BCE they wrestled the concept of      happiness away from the concept of hedonism, the philosophy that      said that the goal of life was net pleasure (pleasure minus pain).      Aristotle expanded on the Jewish concept and argued that happiness      consisted of being a good ethical person, a manifestation of      reason and virtue, and coined the term eudemonia, a synonym for      \"contentment\" (the concept on which this book is based). Zeno, the      father of Stoicism, took this up a notch to say that unhappiness      resulted from errors of judgment and that the true sage was immune      to unhappiness; the converse of this was, of course, that if you      were unhappy, you were no sage. Epicurus weighed in to say that      happiness was a state of peace, absence of fear, absence of pain,      and a life surrounded by friends-threads of which remain with us      today.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Then came Christianity, which said many things, one of which was      that happiness will occur there and later as opposed to here and      now. Life is unpleasant, but if you live it as an upstanding      Christian, heaven awaits. Pleasure was the devil on earth, and      pain in the form of humility and service was the path to a happy      afterlife, a gift from God. Islam refined the concept to turning      it into a struggle, the war between good and evil on earth, and      one would be rewarded with happiness in the afterlife. And the      Baha'i faith has its feet in both camps by stating that we humans      are noble from the start and capable of continual spiritual growth      both in this world and in the afterlife. So make the world a      better place now and heaven a better place later.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The Eastern religions take a slightly different approach, by      establishing the methods for achieving happiness now rather than      later, because there is no later-at least, not the heaven of      Western theology. Hinduism proffered the theory of reincarnation      as a means of \"getting it right\"-that the goal of religion was to      adhere to a way of stopping the process of death-rebirth (so you      don't come back as a frog). Buddhism added specific practices      allowing us to break free of this cycle to achieve \"nirvana,\" or      liberation. Thus, pleasure has historically been the cultural      antagonist to achieving happiness. In terms of the science,      nothing's changed.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Indeed, there is not one definition of \"happiness.\" What it means      to be happy is quite different, depending on the times in which      you live, your religious and cultural affiliations, and likely the      language you use. For instance, some languages define \"happiness\"      as \"good luck and favorable circumstances\" (i.e., out of your      control), while in others \"happiness\" refers to \"favorable      internal feeling states\" (somewhat in your control). Obviously,      this makes it very hard to write about, because the definitions      and the criteria for inclusion have been a moving target.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e Happy Endings?\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Happiness is what most people say they really want: the spouse who      can manage those things you can't; the house with the porch and      the white picket fence; the two matched children (one boy, one      girl) who get all the awards in high school and go on to Ivy      League colleges; seeing the world with your family; having a      retirement nest egg (I always liked the Prudential commercial with      psychologist Dan Gilbert that states, \"Retirement is paying      yourself for what you like to do\"); and growing old with your      spouse without infirmity. Then again, most parents today simply      wish for minimal psychiatric bills, no trips to rehab and no      police record, good colleges on their children's résumés, and      offspring who are neither bullies nor bullied. Yet virtually any      hallmarks of happiness are noticeably absent from most of our      written history, in part because who'd want to read it? That's      kind of the point. Happiness is what we say we want. But reading      about someone else's happiness can get kind of boring. Lack of      conflict doesn't make for a very good page-turner or miniseries.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Since the Renaissance, happiness has been the main stated goal of      life, rather than being on good behavior to reserve yourself a      seat in the afterlife. When asked their primary desire, people      across the world, from the U.S. to Slovenia, have put happiness at      the very top of their lists. But despite our five-hundred-year      eyes on the prize, as a whole we consistently miss the target. The      self-help section of any bookstore (that is, any bookstore that is      left: their disappearance is itself a marker of our collective      loss of happiness) is chock-full of tomes that explore the      achievement, value, or consequences of pleasure or happiness in      isolation of each other. The publication of books on happiness has      become a lucrative niche market, to be sure.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e Pop Happiness\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e In the twentieth century, Martin Seligman and his colleagues on      the beaches of Mexico birthed an entirely new field called      \"positive psychology,\" which aims to get us to focus on what is      right with our lives rather than what is wrong. Positive      psychology studies positive emotions, positive traits, and      positive institutions in an attempt to make your life more, well,      positive. The idea is to capitalize on your strengths rather than      to emphasize your weaknesses or detriments. (To lead a productive      and fulfilling life, you can take an online authentic happiness      test.) Seligman argues that your happiness is based on who you are      intrinsically, voluntary actions, and your circumstances. Tal      Ben-Shahar's Positive Psychology class has been and continues to      be the most subscribed undergraduate lecture course at Harvard      University (maybe because it's an easy A?). Clearly, intelligence      and youth don't guarantee happiness.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Sonja Lyubomirsky takes positive psychology even further by      breaking the driving forces of happiness into a pie chart: she      states that happiness is 50 percent genetics (set point), 40      percent up to your own behaviors, and 10 percent environment      (national or cultural region, demographics, gender, ethnicity,      experiences, and other life status variables such as marital      status, education level, health, and income). More recently      studies put the heritability of happiness (i.e., satisfaction with      life and well-being) somewhere between 32 and 36 percent. One      genome-wide analysis found two genetic variants associated with      subjective well-being (i.e., contentment), while yet another      report suggests there are at least twenty more, which implies that      we won't be genetically engineering happiness very soon. The      argument that your state of happiness is only 10 percent based on      your circumstances\/environment becomes difficult to parse      considering that we live in our environments 24\/7 and are      constantly barraged with commercials of what we need to be happy.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Numerous pop psychology books have popped up, arguably because      people want to know how to get happier. Each of these books views      happiness as one phenomenon, and most confuse pleasure with      happiness. Until you can distinguish the difference between these      two emotions, you can't recognize either one as unique and you      can't understand, let alone fix, the problem for yourself or for      your family.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e One Origin of the Confusion\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e If you google \"happiness,\" here's what you get: \"pleasure, joy,      exhilaration, bliss, contentedness, delight, enjoyment,      satisfaction, contentment, felicity.\" Note the conflation of the      concept of pleasure with the concept of happiness in this      definition. Where did this conundrum come from, anyway? Who      conflated pleasure with happiness in the first place? And how is      it that governments and businesses have been able to harness this      confusion for their own purposes? (See Chapters 13 and 14.) Here's      one quick and dirty explanation of how words make all the      difference. Aristotle argued \"the pursuit of happiness and the      avoidance of pain is a first principle; for it is for the sake of      this that we do all that we do.\" Enter eighteenth-century      political philosopher-economist Jeremy Bentham. Bentham was a      curious fellow hell-bent on quantifying and scientifically      explaining individual human experience by constructing a tally      sheet of happiness. He might be called the godfather of      utilitarianism, the term John Stuart Mill coined in the nineteenth      century to describe the philosophy of increasing net world      happiness as the primary goal of human existence. Bentham argued      that each person should consider others' welfare as seriously as      his own. But in the process, Bentham bastardized Aristotle:      \"Nature has placed mankind under the governance of two sovereign      masters, pain and pleasure, and that just happens to be a fact . .      . benefit, advantage, pleasure, good, or happiness, all of which      ultimately comes to the same thing.\" Under Bentham's rubric,      anything that minimized pain and maximized pleasure by its very      nature increased happiness. Carrying Bentham's rubric forward into      the neuroscientific age, anything that triggers dopamine or opioid      release and action (see Chapter 3) would equally qualify as      generating happiness.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Even academics have confused the concepts of pleasure and      happiness. For instance, the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy      states that there are two separate \"accounts\" of happiness: (1)      hedonism (maximization of pleasure), and (2) the life satisfaction      theory, giving them both equal standing. What? Since when is      hedonism even in the same room as happiness? Aristotle would be      turning over in his grave.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Now that you understand the history of the words themselves, how      they have been confused with each other, and how even pop      psychologists and Google can't tell the difference, let me now      make clear how I am defining them, because the brain science says      so. For the rest of this book, pleasure, derived from the French      plaisir for \"to please,\" is defined as the concept of      gratification or reward. The keys to this definition are: (1) it      is immediate, (2) it provides some level of excitement or      amusement, and (3) it is dependent on circumstance. Conversely,      happiness is defined as the Aristotelian concept of eudemonia-that      is, \"contentment\" or well-being or human flourishing, or, as in      the introductory quote from Yeats, \"growth\"-physical and\/or      spiritual. The keys to this definition are: (1) it's about life,      not the afterlife, (2) it's not prone to acute changes in one's      life, and (3) it is unrelated to circumstance, so anyone can be      happy, not just the rich and the powerful.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e Unraveling the Threads\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e These two similar yet conflicting aspects of our neurobiology      interact with each other, and it is this interaction that serves      as the fulcrum on which our lives, our self-worth, and our      internal compasses are balanced (see Chapter 10). Our current      collective wisdom does not distinguish between reward and      contentment at the etymological level, and fails to acknowledge      the personal and societal consequences of mistaking one for the      other at the biochemical level. And there are consequences, to be      sure. That's what this book is all about. Because chronic      excessive reward eventually leads to both addiction and      depression; the two most unhappy states of the human condition.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e This confusion also belies the basis for many of today's most      successful marketing strategies (see Chapter 13). Over the past      forty years, the dark underbelly of American enterprise has waged      war on the American psyche. City College of New York sociologist      Nicholas Freudenberg coined the term \"corporate consumption      complex\" for the six biggest industries that sell us various      hedonic substances (tobacco, alcohol, food) and behavioral      triggers (guns, cars, energy). Add to that the consumer      electronics sector, which further takes advantage of our      neurobiology, and wrap it all up in some slick Madison Avenue      packaging, and you have an unbeatable recipe for corporate profit.      In fact, their recipes are continuing to improve: as the science      of reward is elaborated and becomes more precise, new techniques      in neuromarketing are now becoming mainstream. And as corporations      have profited big from increased consumption of virtually      everything with a price tag promising happiness, we have lost      big-time. America has devolved from the aspirational,      achievement-oriented \"city on a hill\" we once were, into the      addicted and depressed society that we've now become. Because we      abdicated happiness for pleasure. Because pleasure got cheap.","brand":"Avery","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46302193746149,"sku":"NP9781101982945","price":20.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781101982945.jpg?v=1767739697","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/the-hacking-of-the-american-mind-isbn-9781101982945","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}