Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy: The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating

Rating:
Summary: Sensible Advice
Review: As a physician I am often put into the embarassing situation of giving advice on diet which is later proved wrong. Recently (within the last few years) sufficient evidence has been collected in major scientific studies to refute previous recommendatioins regarding diet. For instance we used to preach a low fat diet, high in "complex" carbohydrates like starches--but the evidence when looked at closely and honestly, as in this book, argues against this approach. Anyone interested in their health should read and study this owner's manual for the human body. I hope to see periodic updated editions.

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Summary: the USDA should read this book!
Review: This book makes it clear that the USDA Food Pyramid, based on shaky scientific ground back in 1992, contributes to overweight, poor health, and unnecessary early deaths. Dr. Willett, a Harvard professor of nutrution, has no political agenda to promote here. He suggests simple corrections to the Pyramid which, if followed, would vastly improve the health of our citizens.

It is simply scandalous (but not surprising given the influence of various entrenched agricultural interests in Washington) that the USDA has not amended its faulty Food Pyramid. You can tell Ann Venemen, current Secretary of the USDA, that this is so by emailing her at [e-mail].

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Summary: The best book on nutrition yet.
Review: I have been waiting for this book or one like it for some time. Now Prof. Willett has collected together the large amount of recent epidemiological evidence on which eating patterns and foods maximise human health. The book is very readable and presents a new epidemiologically-based food pyramid. Of particular note is the new pyramid's lack of dependence on animal products; they are optional, not neccessary. Some, like milk and red meat, are even strongly advised against. Other innovations are the recommendations that fats (of the right sort) make up 30-40% of calories, that wholegrain foods are much preferable to refined grain foods and that weight control and exercise are the foundation of the pyramid.
An excellent book and a refreshing look at nutrition in that it is based on the best available human data (as opposed to animal data or conjecture) on the relationship between body weight, exercise, diet and health.

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Summary: Straight-to-the-point on eating, drinking, and being healthy
Review: Great, straight-to-the-point book on, as the title indicates, eating, drinking, and being healthy. Since the current "Sleeper-esque" advice ("You want what?!?! That stuff will kill you!") doled out by the news, fad diets, and even various nutritionists with an agenda ("nothing with a face") has congealed into a confusing, conflicting mess, it's gotten nearly impossible to know what to do. The information and data in this book are based on actual historical studies. It even has the guts to go against other dubious public health agendas and state that it's been discovered that an alcoholic drink or two a day, provided you aren't an alcoholic, is actually good for you. The writing is clear and organized well for reading cover to cover, or just as reference. The recipes in the last chapter top off a nearly perfect book about nutrition and diet.

Rating:
Summary: Stunning
Review: I've known since 1991 that the USDA Food Pyramid was compromised by the Dairy and Meat Industries (upon reflection, the fact that the Department of Agriculture published it should have tipped me off that this was always intended to be more of a marketing tool than anything else). As I've pursued the quest to a healthier me, I've discovered through "alternative lifestyle" health books that whole grains are far superior to refined, and through personal experience I've learned that the more vegetables you eat the better.

Despite all of this, my jaw still dropped through much of the book. I was skeptical when Willett touted the benefits of fats (it's half of the base of his new pyramid!), but I was thoroughly convinced by the time I finished that chapter. We all know that too much of the bad fat is, well, bad for you, but I was surprised that the good fat can actually protect you.

What impressed me the most was how non-political and agendaless (that's a word now) Willett was. Overall, he endorsed a diet rich in vegetables, whole grains, fruits and unsaturated fats. However, he didn't say an absolute no to meat and dairy, though he did temper that with quite a few warnings. Also, it's been trendy in the last few years to espouse the virtues of the traditional Asian diet. As he points out, that diet isn't always so healthy, especially when it isn't coupled with a lot of exercise. Finally, he provided a good enough argument to convince me to take my vitamins- not as a replacement for a healthy diet, but to hedge my bets.

The most important piece of information Willett passed along he (admitedly) spent the least amount of time on: Stay thin and healthy. I was appalled by his BMI anecdote (the healthy levels for BMI are 25 and below because the real level would have made most of the country overweight). I suggest the Covert Bailey books as a complement to help you lose the weight (because diet alone won't do it).

Rating:
Summary: Must read
Review: Walter Willett is the greatest nutritionist in the world, and he writes with definitive authority and exciting clarity.
His honesty and integrity shine through on every page.
Best of all, the recommendations are clear, supported by the best science, and very practical.
We who follow his 4 simple recommendations as our foundation for eating, drinking and being healthy for a long time will thank him every day as we pursue his simple (and easy and inexpensive) program. We'll almost certainly live monger than if we were ignorant of what he hands us so generously in this health-establishment-shattering book.
Thank you, Dr. Willett.

Rating:
Summary: Good nutrition is backed by science!
Review: This book presents basic nutritional and medical knowledge that everyone should know in order to make informed decisions on how to "Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy". I was happy to see it among the best selling Amazon books so that the message will get widely disseminated. It is more confirmation that the way I am eating is on the right track. I was glad to see underlying scientific studies supporting sensible eating, well written in a no nonsense plain english approach. He pictorializes his findings in a new food pyramid, correctly showing exercise as a foundation. He also includes a sample menu and many flavorful recipies. If even a small percentage of the population followed this advice, we would not be having a national health care crisis. Too few people stress prevention as a way to solve health problems -- perhaps it's just not politically correct! Don't underestimate the power of collective consumer demand. Grocery stores are already responding to healthier eating trends, but we also need healthy fast food and other restaurants. Read this book to help yourself and others!!

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Summary: Finally, a diet book with something to say
Review: I was attracted to this book by the Harvard Medical School auspices under which it was published, but expected more of the same old same old. WOW, was I wrong. Here is a book, written not by some alternative medicine wacko but by serious establishment scientists, that takes many of our current accepted principles about eating and persuasively dismantles them. It's the 21st century, after all, and as the authors show us, there is new and more sophisticated information (the glycemic index, for example) that should change our ideas about which carbohydrates are "complex" and other things we have grown to take for granted. Even if you don't buy all of it (the notion that the conventional food pyramid was the result of undue influence by agriculture, for example), this is a book that will make you think, reassess, and perhaps change your dietary habits. Very worthwhile.

Rating:
Summary: Life Changing
Review: Finally a comprehensive, well-reasoned set of recommendations for those of us who simply want to eat better. This exteremely well written book is absolutely life changing.
By cutting through the hype that surrounds "discovery-of-the-month" fad-nutrition diets, the author provides a fantastic perspective on how nutrition affects our overall health. Drawing on a vast array of nutritional studies conducted over the past 25 years, the author is careful to highlight the difference between preliminary/inconclusive studies, and well-confirmed scientific results.
The author steers clear of prescribing specific diets, but he gives solid advice on which foods to embrace and which foods to minimize. Since reading this book my wife and I have re-examined our own eating habits, and made some important -- but easy -- changes. We are still eating well, but we now have a new appreciation for the foods that can help sustain a healthy lifestyle.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to know more about building a healthy diet. It has changed the way my family looks at food forever.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent nutritional guide
Review: Current nutritional information, easy to read and use. Emphasizes important facts in easy-to-find boxes throughout the book. An excellent guide for anyone interested in healthy eating habits. NOT a diet book--just reasonable facts that promote healthful habits.