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Rating: 
Summary: Poor ideas about exercise, advice is paranoid
Review: Dr. Weil has a lot of odd advice in this book, and questionable ideas. For instance, rather than partaking in proper fitness training, particularly high intensity training which yields phenominal health benefits, he believes it's enough to chop veggies and do work around the house. This is probably a reason that he himself is overweight. He also believes that if you're overweight and healthy, this is better than being thin and healthy, but what about the evidence that abdominal fat is so highly related to diabetes and heart disease? Routinely he jumps on the most recent study saying this or that, such as mushrooms being cancer-causing, and many of his recommendations are likely to change because there is insufficient research behind them at this time. He believes soy is a wonder food, which there is, again, limited evidence that isoflavones are really good for your body. He does have some interesting ideas about antioxidents which are probably worth reading. I suppose the fundemental issue I have with the book is that it makes a lifestyle recommendation on physical activity that is probably insufficient for optimum health, but convenient for people unwilling to exercise. The book is, otherwise, a big list of foods and some of their theoretical benefits in isolation, without any higher level analysis of a complete dietatry recommendation. His book reads like: food A is good, except for this variety, which is bad. Food B is bad. Food C is good in this way and bad in this way. But really, at the end of the day, what is the actual consequence of all of these details as they're completely unquantified? Is consumption of white mushrooms and peanuts typical in the American diet really going to cause a statistically significant difference in cancer? Why should consumers be paranoid about such nonsense? Wouldn't it be more reasonable to make more solid recommendations on physical activity, cholesterol levels, saturated fats and the ratios of macronutrients than to list all of these insignificant dangers, and moreover to show how a *complete* diet fared with these recommendations, since he is a professor.
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Summary: Good Information for optimal Health
Review: Dr. Weil is well informed about the subject he deals with in this book. His belief that diet can prevent the epidemic of many diseases we see on the rampage seems to be astonishingly accurate. The increases rates of cancer can be attributed partially to the lack of many essential micronutrients the body's defense system requires. Certain types of oils and fats we are consuming could be the culprit for the western civilization heart attack epidemic. On of the things Dr. Weil made me acutely aware of is the danger of processed foods and their additives. They are amlost all deleterious to our health. Food manufactures use them for economical reasons while the health of their costumers suffer. Yes, modern medicine is a very powerful tool. My concern is that many of our expensive medical treatments would not be necessary if we would simply provides our bodies with what they need to tak care of themselves. You will hear much of what you have heard before, but now you will understand the siginifigance of it. You will also become acutely aware of many other dietary truths that will aid you on your path to better health. My only gripe is that Dr. Weil provides an obvious affinity for eastern trains of thought and much liberalism at the same time. Besides that I commend this book to everyone.
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Summary: Information about health and nutrition
Review: Eating well for optimum health by Dr. Andrew Weil is a great book that offers very informative information about health, nutrition, and the food that we eat. The food we eat is the most essential part of a healthy life, and without food, we would not be alive. The book explains very clearly the benefits that foods can have on a persons health. From fats, carbohydrates, and proteins which are the most essential elements of the calories that we intake on an everyday basis to the micronutrients and vitamins that are also taken in, it offers a complete overview of the benefits all the elements of food have on our health. His beliefs about certain diets which he considers the worst diets and the diets that he considers the best diets( the paleolithic diet, the raw foods diet, the vegan diets, etc.) are very interesting. He also offers very good information about common low-fat and low-carb diets that are very common. It is very informative because a lot of people do not really know the effects that these diets will have in the longrun and how they really effect your health. He offers a very interesting perspective in the beginning of the book about how food is essential to society because what a person eats is quite representative of the person, and how food effects our cultural and social wellbeing. He offers ways to eat that people can like and also benefit from. It shows that you can eat something healthy that does not taste bad. This is shown through his recipes towards the end of the book. There are very appetizing recipes such as the mediterranean tuna steaks, salmon cakes, and the frozen banana pie which all sound delicious. Eating well for optimum health is a great book that could benefit the reader and those around the reader with eating well and becoming healthy or staying healthy.
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Summary: Andrew Weil is a big fat............
Review: Eating Well For Optimum Health
Review by: Kehaulani Marciel Eating well for optimum health is the concern of many Americans in today's society. The book written by author Andrew Weil is an outstanding book for obtaining optimum health. Dr. Weil draws out how exactly our body works and what our body needs to perform at its peak. Throughout the book you will learn how to improve your health, dietary advice for chronic ailments, as well as recipes to help you reach your optimum health.
Proteins, fats, micronutrients, and carbohydrates are all necessities of life. These are the three basics of human nutrition, which help us to obtain a healthy lifestyle. Yet, eating these things in large or uneven amounts can be very unhealthy likewise. It is important that we get proteins, fats, and carbohydrates in our diets because our body uses them and breaks them down and produces glucose, maltose, disaccharide, lactose and many other components that the body needs to maintain optimum health.
Dr. Weil lists the "Worst" and the "Best" diets that have been studied through many people's eating habits. He continues to pinpoint the benefits as well as the downfalls of each diet. He compares the United States to other countries and explains how and why that particular country is so much healthier. We see that here in America, we are constantly eating fast foods and grabbing a quick snack on the way out. In Asian countries, food selection is much different resulting in healthier life styles. When dining out, Americans often load up on bread and dive into oily and fattening dinner platters which offer a beautiful display. If we were to substitute our gourmet dinners for something a bit healthier, America would not be the top country for obesity.
Eating healthy does not only help you to look better, it helps you to feel better. Studies have shown that people, who consume fast foods, candies, sodas, as well as red meats, are more likely to not only have an obesity problem, but have health problems as well. Japan contained the healthiest people until recently. The average age for men was 77.2 while the women averaged 84.1 years. According to the traditional Japanese diet, there is a correlation with very low rates of coronary heart disease and hormonally driven cancers. Their foods are also prepared at an unusually low percentage of total calories from fat. It is obvious that in some parts of the world, traditional diets are no doubt better than those of today. If we Americans were to eat like our distant hunter-gatherer ancestors, most of our health problems including obesity and cardiovascular disease would disappear. This diet consists of no processed food and little to no carbohydrates. They ate meat from wild game, fish, wild fruits, nuts and tubers. They had no salt or vegetable oils, which made their foods a lot healthier than today's meals.
Through reading this book, you learn not only how to change your bad eating habits, but how to shop for them and order them as well. Dr. Weil shares a number of healing and inspirational stories of how people have changed their lives for the better. With just a slight modification of ones diet, we see a great improvement not only in appearance, but in long-term health as well. With the helpful and abundant recipes provided by Dr. Weil himself there is no reason to delay "Eating Well For Optimum Health."
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Summary: McDougal Redux
Review: I truely believe that if you read this book you will change your lifestyle! Read this book and then read it again! It's definitely a keeper!
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Summary: A MUST READ!
Review: This book has changed my entire outlook on eating. If the human body came with a handbook, this would be it. I thought I knew a little bit about nutrition, but after reading this book, I realized I knew nothing. It is absolutely incredible the things that we really need to know about nutrition that we just don't know or hear anything about. And to make things worse, the things we do here are either half-truths or just wrong. Dr. Weil clears up everything. He is on at the cutting edge of research into nutrition and well-being, and he is very quick to tell you which studies hold merit and which do not. He presents all sides to every point he makes, and gives you his opinion and why he feels the way he does. This is THE book for diet and nutrition, even if you don't have any weight or health problems. You owe it to yourself to understand what foods do and how the body uses them. The bonus is that this book is fascinating and very well-written. It isn't a "doctors only" book that is impossible to understand, yet it also isn't watered down. This was the first Dr. Weil book I owned, and because of it, I now own everything he has written, and I'm a happier, healthy person because of it.
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Summary: A Goldmine of Essential Information
Review: This book is wonderful. It doesn't say "This food is good so eat it." Dr. Weil really explains what foods do for you. He explains the science of food and nourishment. The book is so interesting. A wealth of information. There were so many facts or studies in this book that I was compelled to share with others.
Another thing I liked about the book is that he isn't pushing anything on you. He is just laying things out as they are leaving you to make the decisions. He ends each chapter with what he recommends, but nothing is rigid.
I highly recommend this book. I cannot stop telling my friends and family about it. This is a book everyone should read. No kidding.
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Summary: Poor ideas about exercise, advice is paranoid
Review: This is an excellent book as many other reviewers have noted but please be aware of the following: 1)It is not a "diet" book in the sense of magical ways to lose weight 2)It is not a book on "fitness" nutrition for people who want huge muscles and low body fat. 3)Health in the sense of the absence of disease, the optimum functioning of the organs of the body and a long-life has much more to do with body chemistry, blood pressure, cholersterol levels, the condition of your coronary arteries, the presence or absence of free-radical damage, etc than it does with the amount of lean muscle mass that sits on your frame or whether or not your body looks good in a bathing suit. I make these points because many people complain the Dr. Weil doesn't look like John Bastow or the author of "Body for Life" so what can he know about "health". Get a clue!! While regular moderate exercize is related to longevity there is NO evidence that "Body for Life" types are healthier the way it really counts just because they have better looking bodies than Dr. Weill. Which do you think is healthier: a lean muscular body combined with high blood pressure, clogged arteries and a colon lined with intestinal polyps? or a body that looks pudgy in a bathing suit but with low BP, low cholesterol, clean arteries and an otherwise clean internal bill of health? This book is about eating well for health and it is excellent. One of things I like most is that there is nothing "flaky" about it. Weill reviews what we know about nutrition from solid scientific research and is always clear to distinguish that from his own opinion about nutritional matters that may not be fully supported by current research. Buy it and live longer.
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Summary: My favorite Dr. Weil book --packed with good info
Review: This is hands-down my favorite book of Dr. Weil. I like it even better than "Eight Weeks to Optimum Health" and that's saying a lot. Dr. Weil doesn't believe in crazy dieting. Good for him. He does believe in healthy eating habits and can explain why certain fats are bad for you, and THEN he gives delicious recipes to substitute for things like french fries (oven-fried potatoes.) In fact, many of the recipes are very very good, especially the fish recipes. He also debunks both the high-fat high protein diet and the very low fat (and difficult to maintain) diets as well. In addition, the recommendations of food choices for various illnesses were helpful. When you finish reading this book, you are left with plenty of good suggestions to help you choose foods at home and when you eat out, and you don't have to give up good things to live on rice cakes and seaweed puffs. This book is fun to read, too. What more could you ask for?
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Summary: Well worth reading
Review: This is the first time I have read any of Dr. Weil's books and I found this one full of new and useful information that I took to heart. Some good points Dr. Weil made were quite interesting For example he mentions that in the 1950's, scientests thought vegtable oils were healthy and they lowered the risk of a heart attack. This turned out to be false but to this day many foods still contain high amounts of this substance leading to more calories in peoples diets and more weight gain. Another point that Dr. Weil makes is that it is not the toatal amout of fat that we have in our diets but which foods contain more of saturated fats instead. Then he makes the point that the idea a of a balanced diet is in consistant due to the vast amout of complex foods. Because he says the best way to get good advice for a healthy diet is to ask a professional or read books not from most doctors or nureses. The reason why is that people particulary doctors get this thought is because of the poor or lack of nutritional education in America.
For people who are looking for new ideas on how to diet this book is one of the best options for both finding out which are the best and the worst diets in the world. Also for various recepies with less fats and chemecals.
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