Disease-Proof Your Child: Feeding Kids Right is authored by Dr. Joel Fuhrman.
This book's jumping-off point is his first book, Eat to Live, which I haven't read. Basically, the entire premise is that our society is focused on remedy and medication to solve health problems instead of using the body's natural defense--good nutrition--to prevent disease and illness in the first place.
His philosophy is that it isn't enough to just reduce saturated fat, or eliminate artificial dyes or sweeteners, etc.--you have to EAT MORE VEGETABLES (and fruits, but especially vegetables). He makes the case that it is the specific phytochemicals and nutrients in plants that give your body the tools it needs to prevent cancer, asthma, viruses, etc. from successfully gaining ground in a child's body.
He is a proponent of vegetarianism and veganism but also points out that you can be a healthy omnivore so long as you limit consumption of animal products and especially make sure that you are eating lots of veggies.
Overall, I found the book an interesting read, as well as a thought-provoking one. The whole dairy disagreement that so many in the diet/nutrition/health world debate is one that is probably outside the scope of this post (or blog, for that matter).
Whether you agree with his philosophy or not, it might be worth a gander.
I read (that is, thumbed through) Eat to Live, and you've summarized it very well, so this must not be much more than an extension. Does it have good recipes & meal suggestions?
ReplyDeleteInteresting. I wish I lived these ideas better. I mean, I KNOW that to be healthier I need to eat (and feed my family) more vegetables... it just gets hard in all the planning aspect (you know?). I honestly was WAY healthier before my mission... and now I'm just happy when things aren't cooked in 2 cups of lard like everything was in Honduras.
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate the book review and I just signed up for a copy at my library. Thanks!
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