Book Review: In Defense of Food

I've been slacking on my posts lately, hope you don't mind a book review for a change.

I recently read, In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan. I have been really reluctant to read this book since I thought he was going to be some crazy extremist who only told one side of the story. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed the book--even though he did bash on my profession. He may actually be a little bit extreme, but I really think it's the direction that we need to go in our eating habits.

Pollan tries to look at the big picture of food and eating. His moto: "Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much. Here are some of the points he makes:
- Stop focusing on single nutrients to avoid or attain
- Avoid processed foods as much as possible
- Get your "nutrients" in the context of food
- Take a more active role in your eating experiences (garden, cook, eat meals with family, etc)

My criticisms,
- He knocks the food guide pyramid. He has his reasons and I understand the shortcomings of the pyramid. But I think the pyramid is just the first step on the ladder. I think that before people can start eating the way he suggests that they need be eating in the way the pyramid suggest. The FGP is a great guide for how get a variety of foods and eat in a balanced way. Once you have achieved that, than you can continue to improve your diet and eating behavior/lifestyle

- This is an extension of my first criticism but his suggestions are a little too extreme. One category of people that will have a hard time are those who don't know how to cook. There is really no other way for them to learn how to eat "healthy" per his suggestions without learning how to cook. There are many other categories of people who will struggle with his suggestions. And that's normal. My main suggestion when making any lifestyle change is that it has to be done gradually it order for it to be permanent and manageable. That's why I like the FGP--it helps you to do that.

- He claims that drinking alcohol will help you to be healthy. Yes, there are studies that show alcohol can have positive affects on your health. While I don't expect everyone to believe in abstinence from drinking, I also don't think you need to drink in order to be healthy. If you currently drink alcohol, you should limit your alcohol consumption to 2 drinks for men and 1 drink for women. If you don't drink alcohol, I don't think you need to start drinking 1-2 drinks/day to be healthy.

Overall, it's a great book and has motivated me to improve the way our family eats. I hope you will take some time to read it--it gives you the perspective that you really are what you eat and that eating healthy is an investment in your physical and mental health!