Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy

This book, widely regarded in America as the most scientific book on diet, appears to be just a ploy to sell you olive oil and multivitamins. It even propagates the fish oil myth, which is just modern day snake oil.

The content is nice, of course, but the book could be of higher quality, materialy speaking. It's not too big of a problem, though.

This is such a great book. I'm studying nutrition and have read lots and lots of books on this subject but this is definitely on the top of my list! Anyone interested in nutrition or trying to change his/her eating habits should read it!

This book should be mandatory reading for anybody who eats food (that would be ALL of us), and especially for my fellow residents of the United States, where we unforuntately suffer from what I might call "nutritional illiteracy". What makes this book great is that its purpose is NOT to promote a diet- its purpose is to inform the reader about nutrition. Willet does not have an agenda- he's not trying to sell you on a diet, a line of supplements, snacks, or pills. He's not trying to get you to subscribe to a program. He's just trying to inform you about NUTRITION. In simple, easy to read language, he explains what happens inside of your body when you eat particular foods, and what the greater impact of that effect is in the long run. Generally speaking, the points that Willet makes are painfully obvious, once explained. A perfect example of this is his clear explanation of how and why so many people with American, western pattern diets inflict diabetes upon themselves. I had always been told vague pieces of advice from well-meaning people who would say things like, "don't eat too much sugar, or you'll get diabetes" and "too much white bread/pasta/rice will give you diabetes". Unfortunately, nobody could tell me HOW or WHY this was the case. Willet explains, in very simple terms, how different foods are absorbed at varying rates of speed within our bodies... there is some slightly more advanced science behind this, but basically refined foods (like refined sugar and enriched flour) break down too quickly, and force our insulin production to spike. The more frequently this is done, the worse off your body will be, and it creates a vicious cycle of insulin spiking (not to mention the hunger and fatigue that result from eating refined foods). Thanks to Willet's clear explanations, I was finally able to understand what impact refined foods have on my body- and why I should stick to whole grains whenever possible. Another fine example is how Willet points out that the Food Pyramid was created by the USDA, whose purpose is to protect the interests of American farmers... so why would you ever trust what they were telling you to eat?! Fortunately, the Food Pyramid has been done away with, but a lot of us grew up studying that cursed thing (I'm 32). Finally, Willet puts into very clear terms that the single worst food you can ingest is refined sugar. Fat doesn't make you fat... SUGAR does! But wait, you say... what about sugar substitutes? Does Willet address those? Aren't they bad for you, too? Turns out they MIGHT be, but the existing body of evidence says no. Willet points out that nutritional science is always changing, because the research and data is ever growing- and he periodically revises his book to reflect that. I keep this book close at hand, and use it as a reference. Whenever I'm wondering about a particular food, I look it up in the glossary and take a moment to educate myself. There is nothing more important to your health than the foods you eat, and as such, this book is an invaluable resource. I'm so glad I discovered it, and took the time to read it. It will positiviely affect my health and well being for the rest of my life :)

ハーバードの専門家による、科学的エビデンスを重視した一般向けの栄養学入門書です。食文化などの違いのため、直接的に実践につながりにくい記述が多いですが、医療上の栄養指導におけるヒントを十分に得られると思います。我田引水が多いですが、比較的バランス取れた記述と感じました。所々に、アメリカの食品業界、ロビー活動に対する怒りが散りばめられています。

Not hip, but very practical if you really want to know what to eat to stay (or become) healthy. Contains useful nuggets of information about topics that people who write for hype will just skip. I actually bought the kindle version first and then got the physical book for the recipes.