Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy: The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating Paperback – July 7, 2005

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 :)

Books on dieting and nutrition are available in endless numbers (perhaps exceeded only by the number of cookbooks ;-)). The trouble is that 95% of such books are crap, being authored either by persons without the proper background for expertise or with a strong agenda aside from educating the reader, or often, both issues.This book is authoritatively and objectively written by Dr. Willett and as such brings to the market a much needed *reliable* source of information.It should be noted that this is *not* a diet book. Dr. Willett is a nutritional epidemiologist, and so true to form, he expounds on the known links between dietary choices, and various forms of disease, as they have been established over time by epidemiological studies. It's also important to point out that Dr. Willett does not here describe the results of the latest study on this or that, and thank goodness, because he confines what he presents to associations that are based on solid evidence - that is, large, well designed, and multiple studies, and therefore, knowledge that can be relied upon. Where he does on occasion mention *apparent* epidemiological links that need further study to validate, he dutifully and carefully indicates that with caveats.Dr. Willett also respects the reader - although this is written appropriately for a general audience, he nevertheless engages the reader with mechanistic explanations for why a dietary choice is associated with disease, if the mechanism is known, for example.I was thankful that although the book is on dietary choices, he includes a chapter on weight control and exercise. While it could be considered to be offtopic, Dr. Willett is an MD/PhD, and rightfully includes this chapter because of the overriding strength of the epidemiological evidence for *these* lifestyle choices, as well as *what* to eat, keeping the big picture goal of patient health in mind.All in all, I can't say enough good about this book. If you care about your health, I can wholeheartedly recommend that you buy and study it thoughtfully, and implement his recommendations. I have been doing that, and have found that I feel better, and have been losing weight in terms of short term benefits. Of course the long term benefits of reduced risk for so many chronic disease patterns are at least as important in the end.