thought that women who ate a little candy would binge on it. In the 19th century and the beginnings of the 20th century, the main concern among nutrition experts was that people, especially poor laborers, were undernourished, and the main goal was to find inexpensive ways to supply enough food energy. Especially after World War One, the main concern among women, and the main concern for Peters, was being slender. Her book reinforced the message that the fashion industry (Vogue, Chanel, etc.) was implying through the design of their clothing: being fat was no longer in style. Peters presented a solution: counting calories as a way to lose weight. The book was written with the mindset that all women wanted to lose weight. According to Peters, who had lost 50-70 lbs with her diet regimen, dieting meant being beautiful and being in total control of the self. Being thin, to Peters, was an issue of self-esteem as well as physical health. She captivated her readers by letting them know that she knew the shame in being fat (having once weighed 200 lbs), and the sacrifice that dieting entailed, first hand. Beyond this, however, Peters saw dieting as having a moral dimension. She saw people who did not have control over their weight as morally suspect. In order to be thin, women must resist temptations, which she explains with the language of sin, punishment, and redemption. She also mentions other reasons, beyond self-improvement, that made her diet even more appealing. During World War I, rationing was a regular part of daily life. Peters suggested that her diet would make dealing with rationing easier. For instance, she said that women who count their calories will be able to leave the left-over rations for children during the war. She stated, "that for every pang of hunger we feel we can have a double joy, that of knowing we are saving worse pangs in some little children, and that of knowing that for every pang we feel we lose a pound." The diet would also help prevent food shortages; by counting calories, women would be showing patriotism and improving themselves at the same time. See also Robert Hugh Rose References External links "1922: Counting Calories". (History of Diets, Part 6).Men's Fitness Mar. 2003: 28. Gale Group: Health & Wellness Center Women's America: Refocusing the Past. Seventh ed. New York: Oxford UP, 2011. 1873 births