Diets and dieting have concerned--and sometimes obsessed--human societies for centuries. The dieters' regime is about many things, among them the control of weight and the body, the politics of beauty, discipline and even self-harm, personal and societal demands for improved health, spiritual harmony with the universe, and ethical codes of existence. An A to Z encyclopedia, this innovative reference work spans many periods and cultures as the acclaimed cultural and medical historian Sander Gilman lays out the history of diets and dieting in a fascinating series of articles.