ESSENTIAL READING

Nutrition-related books I recommend and books I am currently reading.

Currently Reading:

• Surviving an Eating Disorder: Strategies for Family and Friends by Michele Siegel, PhD, Judith Brisman, PhD and Margot Weinshel, MSW
• Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal by March Roach

Next on my Reading List: 

• Fat is a Family Affair: How Food Obsessions Affect Relationships by Judith Hollis, PhD
• The Parent's Guide to Eating Disorders by Marcia Herrin, EdD, MPH, RD and Nancy Matsumoto

Recommended:

Allport, Susan

• The Queen of Fats: Why Omega 3s Were Removed from the Western Diet and What We Can Do to Replace Them

Becker, Gretchen

• The First Year - Type 2 Diabetes: An Essential Guide for the Newly Diagnosed  

          This is an excellent guide for patients and family members alike. The author has diabetes herself, and she writes with a informative and non-condescending voice. The book reads like a timeline; each chapter covers a certain amount of time starting with days and progressing to months. Within each chapter new information is presented in a "learning" section while coping and behavior is addressed in a "living" section. 

Gans, Keri

• The Small Change Diet: 10 Steps to a Thinner, Healthier You 

Herrin, Marcia

• Nutrition Counseling in the Treatment of Eating Disorders 

Kessler, David A.

• The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite

          The title is a bit of an exaggeration, but this does contain some worthwhile insights into the brain's response to our palate's favorite trio: sugar, fat and salt. For those with trouble resisting certain foods, the author offers some practical, research-based suggestions for how to 'reprogram' your behavior.

Kingsolver, Barbara

• Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life 

          I put off reading this book for quite some time, thinking it was simply a rehash of Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma. How wrong was I! While it does cover many of the same topics, Barbara Kingsolver's writing is poetic, funny and just a delight to read. It is a journey of one family's attempt to buy food only grown in their area (in many cases, their own backyard). The book is peppered with recipes and writings by her oldest daughter and husband. I couldn't put it down. 

Mullin, Gerard E. and Swift, Kathie Madonna

• The Inside Tract: Your Good Gut Guide to Great Digestive Health 

Nestle, Marion

• Food Politics
• What to Eat

Pollan, Michael

• The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals
• See also: The Omnivore's Dilemma for Kids: The Secrets Behind What You Eat

• In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto
• Food Rules: An Eater's Manual

         There is almost too much to say about Michael Pollan's books - if you eat, you should read them.

Rollnick, Stephen; Miller, William R.; Butler, Christopher C.

• Motivational Interviewing in Health Care  

       This is a great guide to incorporating motivational interviewing into a variety of healthcare settings. Especially helpful in learning how to make the most of a limited amount of time - it's amazing what 5 minutues of MI can accomplish! This book is filled with examples of dialogue- very handy.

Satter, Ellyn

• Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense

          Information on all aspects of child feeding from newborn through toddler-hood.
          Includes Satter's division of responsibility in feeding:
                  The parent is responsible for what is served to eat and when;
                 The child is responsible for how much to eat, and whether to eat at all.

• Your Child's Weight: Helping without Harming

Wansink, Brian

• Mindless Eating

          An immensely fun - at times hilarious - romp through the realm of food psychology, as told by a researcher who should have a second career as a humor writer. Wansink's wit is apparent as early as page two, on which he proudly proclaims that many of his studies, deemed front-page news by The New York Times and Wall Street Journal (not to mention the Journal of the American Medical Association), may also be found in the pages of the National Enquirer and Uncle John's Bathroom Reader.
          However much you like to laugh, humor is not the only reason to pick up this book. In light of the growing obesity epidemic, many of Wansink's findings are decidedly un-funny. As director of The Cornell Food and Brand Lab, Wansink details and proves how easily we are fooled by food expectations, plate size, color and description. Many of his findings seem like common sense - until you realize the extent to which anyone (yes, nutritionists too!) may be led astray. It's no surprise that when given larger (vs. smaller) plates, we serve ourselves more and eat more. But just how much more? The results are unappetizing, to say the least.
          At times I was transported back to my 'Food, Nutrition and Behavior' class by Wansink's discussion of taste perception. In a dark room, simply telling people they were eating strawberry yogurt was enough to hide the very real chocolate flavor of their snack. One subject even said it was the best 'strawberry' yogurt she ever had! While making dinner guests eat in the dark isn't the most convenient way to improve your cooking, each chapter of Mindless Eating concludes with very practical "reengineering strategies" to apply Wansink's research to real life. Part behavioral study, part diet book, part humor: anyone who dines will benefit from Mindless Eating (no pun intended).


Wolke, Robert L.

• What Einstein Told His Cook: Kitchen Science Explained
• What Einstein Told His Cook 2: The Sequel: Further Adventures in Kitchen Science

         Answers to common kitchen questions, including explanations of the difference between raw sugar and refined sugar, why the amount of total fat on the nutrition label doesn't add up, why you can dissolve up to five cups of sugar in one cup of water (how does it fit?) and how your lasagne can dissolve tin foil (but still be safe to eat).