The Healthy Gut Handbook

Disappointing. Bought this alongside The Diet Myth and wish I hadn't bothered. It's in huge print with loads of wasted space so you're paying for a huge amount of paper with nothing on it. then there's a full 30 pages in the middle of food diaries to fill in. The start of the book just gives broad headlines of what's in The Diet Myth but nothing new and no detail. Then there's a bunch of boring recipes - nothing new or special, just things like overnight oats, chickpea masala, boiled eggs(!) - stuff you'll find a million other similar recipes on the internet and they're not nicely laid out and illustrated so not luring me to see if this vegetarian Bolognese is any better than any other. And it is just mostly vegetarian dishes - no how to make saurkraut or kimchee or kefir or any of those famous gut friendly foods that would seem relevant to the books premise. The whole thing feels like a very lazy bit of bandwagon jumping.

I am a huge fan of the author's Without The Calories series, and was excited to see a new book by her. Healthy Gut Handbook takes the author in a new direction, while still retaining the simple, great-tasting recipes that I've come to expect from her.Justine Pattison has spent time researching how keeping the bacteria in our gut is paramount to our health and our diet, and the recipes reflect this - focusing on pre-biotics and pro-biotics. There is a 28 day eating plan for those who wish to follow it, but plenty of choice for those who don't wish to. The author has included space for each day within the plan for you to write notes about how the day is going, new foods eaten and exercise taken. It's a great way too keep track.I have found that I was very quickly able to incorporate the meals into my diet and lifestyle. They are simple to make and taste amazing. As expected with the author, there are great tips on how to freeze portions (and defrost them again) and also how you can make changes to the recipe according to your taste. My favourites include Pork and Apples in Cider, Spinach and Sweet Potato Dhal, Spiced Lentil Soup and Poached Egg and Smashed Avocado on Sourdough Toast. Portion sizes are generous, which means my urge to snack in between meals is noticeably less.In 3 weeks, I have dropped a clothes size, lost nearly a stone in weight and gained lots of energy. I also like that the author has a support group on Facebook for those using her books. It's great to be able to share, and gain inspiration and motivation from each other.I have read a few other books regarding gut health, but can honestly say that this is the most straight forward, with recipes that you can trust to taste good and do good.

after a lifetime of being overweight (I am now 71) and trying every possible diet, means or method to get my weight off, I found this book which I believe is based on Prof Tim Spector's book "The Diet Myth" - also amazing reading. The Healthy Gut Handbook is easy reading and the 28 day healthy gut plan has fantastic, tasty and filling meals. The ingredients come within everyday shopping and do not cost the earth as other diets I have tried in the past. I have been following the plan for just over a week and already feel more energetic and losing lbs gently...can't wait until the end of the month to see overall loss! I am convinced this is the eating life style I should follow now - it is a pity something like this was not around 50 years ago!

Whether you follow the 28 day eating plan or not it's a book full of great recipes and advice on building up good gut health. I've made lots of the recipes. Tasty food with fresh ingredients, so some recipes take longer to prepare especially when adding peeled and chopped vegetables. Worth the effort though and so enjoyable. It encouraged me to use lentils which I've always got in the cupboard but rarely used. Such a good source of protein. I was also reminded of the benefits of batch cooking and it has tips on freezing extra portions. A practical informative, no nonsense recipe book and more. Recommended.

What I really like about this book is that it contains a schedule with what meals to eat. Then, in the same schedule, are the page numbers for the recipes so you know how to make the food.The food and the recipes all appear easy to make and are truly delicious.Even better is the fact that it is possible to make batches of these and store them in the freezer. Okay so you can do that with any recipe but the quantities described here are adequate for that to happen as a side-effect.