Research & Resources

One Bite at a Time: Nourishing Recipes for People With Cancer, Survivors, and Their Caregivers

by Rebecca Katz

Synopsis: Rebecca Katz, health supportive chef extraordinaire, has published our favorite new cookbook. A review on amazon.com says, “The two squash soup was the best thing I’ve ever eaten that didn’t contain chocolate.” We agree! These recipes are nourishing, and put the "Yum!" back into cooking. A great gift for anyone, not just cancer survivors.

The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever Conducted and the Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss and Long-Term Health

by T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D. and Thomas M. Campbell II

Synopsis: This exhaustive presentation of the findings from the China Study conclusively demonstrates the link between nutrition and heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. Referred to as the "Grand Prix of epidemiology" by The New York Times, this study examines more than 350 variables of health and nutrition with surveys from 6,500 adults in 65 counties, representing 2,500 counties across rural China and Taiwan. While revealing that proper nutrition can have a dramatic effect on reducing and reversing these ailments as well as obesity, this text calls into question the practices of many of the current dietary programs, such as the Atkins diet, that enjoy widespread popularity in the West. The impact of the politics of nutrition and the efforts of special interest groups on the creation and dissemination of public information on nutrition are also discussed.

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

by Walter Willett

Amazon Editorial Synopsis:
Aimed at nothing less than totally restructuring the diets of Americans, Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy may well accomplish its goal. Dr. Walter C. Willett gets off to a roaring start by totally dismantling one of the largest icons in health today: the USDA Food Pyramid that we all learn in elementary school. He blames many of the pyramid's recommendations--6 to 11 servings of carbohydrates, all fats used sparingly--for much of the current wave of obesity. At first this may read differently than any diet book, but Willett also makes a crucial, rarely mentioned point about this icon: "The thing to keep in mind about the USDA Pyramid is that it comes from the Department of Agriculture, the agency responsible for promoting American agriculture, not from the agencies established to monitor and protect our health." It's no wonder that dairy products and American-grown grains such as wheat and corn figure so prominently in the USDA's recommendations.

Willett's own simple pyramid has several benefits over the traditional format. His information is up-to-date, and you won't find recommendations that come from special-interest groups. His ideas are nothing radical--if we eat more vegetables and complex carbohydrates (no, potatoes are not complex), emphasize healthy fats, and enjoy small amounts of a tremendous variety of food, we will be healthier. You'll find some surprises as well, such as doubts about the overall benefits of soy (unless you're willing to eat a pound and a half of tofu a day), and that nuts, with their "good" fat content, are a terrific snack. Relying on research rather than anecdotes, this is a solidly written nutritional guide that will show you the real story behind how food is digested, from the glycemic index for carbs to the wisdom of adding a multivitamin to your diet. Willett combines research with matter-of-fact language and a no-nonsense tone that turns academic studies into easily understandable suggestions for living.

Spices of Life : Simple and Delicious Recipes for Great Health

by Nina Simonds

Amazon Editorial Synopsis:
Award-winning author, Nina Simonds has had an ear cocked to the healing properties of food since beginning her studies of Chinese cuisine in Taiwan. Give a culture a few thousand years to grow and flower and it will have a thing or two to say about what's good to eat, and what's good for you to eat, no question about it. Other cultures may not have it all quite as tabulated and codified as the Chinese (or Hindu culture with the laws of Ayurveda), but have settled over the eons on a way of life and cooking that works to the benefit, not the detriment, of the body. Mediterranean culture comes to mind. Measure all that against fast food and a culture (our own) that willfully strips time away from the daily need to eat--and not just eat alone, but as a family or group with time for each other--and you have the roots of a health crisis. So it's perfectly natural for an insightful food writer like Nina Simonds to produce a wonderful cookbook with the idea of health and healthy living at it's core. Spices of Life is the result.

The 160 recipes are divided into sections that include Something to Graze On, Appetizers that Make a Meal, Homey Soups, Hearty Stews and Braises, Main-dish Salads, Pleasures from the Garden, Versatile Stir-fries and Sautes, East-West Barbecue, Irresistible Vegetarian, Satisfying Staples: Noodles, Rice and Other Grains, Light and Sumptuous Sweets, and Foods that Fight Common Ailments. Simonds's deep experience with Asian cooking comes through in Technicolor Spicy Sichuan-style Green Beans. But so too does her own heritage, as in Great-Aunt Sophie's Chicken Soup.

The sidebars to each recipe give health information about various ingredients.

8 Weeks to Vibrant Health

by Hyla Cass & Kathleen Barnes

Amazon Editorial Synopsis:
In 8 Weeks to Vibrant Health, acclaimed integrative doctor and bestselling health author Hyla Cass, M.D., and health writer Kathleen Barnes address ways women can empower themselves by discovering the underlying causes of your health problems. Then you are given the tools you need to determine why you are experiencing these symptoms and to remedy the imbalance that causes the symptoms.

Helps women overcome these common health problems by providing:

• A safe, proven approach to restoring body balance and general health that incorporates the best therapies from mainstream medicine and from integrative and natural medicine
• Self-assessments and other powerful diagnostic tools to help identify specific imbalances and their triggers
• Detailed guidance on diet, nutritional and herbal supplements, lifestyle changes, detoxification programs, exercise programs, and other methods of restoring vibrant health

Becoming Vegan

by Brenda Davis & Vesanto Melina

Amazon Editorial Synopsis:
The authors of Becoming Vegetarian explore the benefits of a vegan diet (eating without meat, eggs or dairy products). More and more people are being motivated to become vegans because of the impact of their nutritional choices on their health, the environment, animal rights, and human hunger. As registered dietitians, Davis and Melina are well-qualified to provide the latest information on how a vegan diet can protect against cancer, heart disease, and other chronic illnesses getting all the protein you need without meat meeting your needs for calcium without dairy products what vegans need to know about B12 why good fats are vital to healthy and how to get them balanced diets for infants, children, and seniors pregnancy and breast-feeding tips for vegan moms considerations for overweight, underweight, and eating disorders achieving peak performance as a vegan athlete how to deal gracefully with a non vegan world.

The New Becoming Vegetarian: The Essential Guide To A Healthy Vegetarian Diet

by Brenda Davis & Vesanto Melina

Amazon Editorial Synopsis:
Comprehensive and well-researched, this new edition provides everything you need to know about making a healthy transition to a vegetarian diet or maximizing its benefits if already a vegetarian.

Updated with the latest recommendations for intakes of vitamins, minerals, proteins, and fats, the authors show how to achieve optimal nutrition for all stages of life. Easy-to-read tables, figures, menus, and food guides help you determine how to meet your nutritional requirements. You'll also learn what plant-based dietary components and factors play active roles in both the prevention and treatment of chronic illnesses.

And for practical application, over 50 new and easy recipes show how to incorporate highly nutritious ingredients - some of which may be unfamiliar. These delicious meals include contributions from chefs Joseph Forest, Ron Pickarski, Joanne Stepaniak, and Yves Potvin (Yves Veggie Cuisine) as well as favorites of the authors.

Clinician's Handbook of Natural Medicine

by Joe Pizzorno, Michael Murray & Herb Joiner-Bey

Amazon Editorial Synopsis:
As a companion to the Textbook of Natural Medicine, this book offers clinicians rational choices involving the treatment of diseases and symptoms through natural medicine. Organized alphabetically and includes flowcharts and summary data on options, including herbs, supplements, and dietary advice. Plastic-coated softcover.

Feeding the Whole Family: Whole Foods Recipes for Babies, Young Children and Their Parents

by Cynthia Lair

Amazon Editorial Synopsis:
Are you concerned about the freshness of commercial baby food? Are you frustrated with making separate meals for your picky eater? Would you like move toward a plant-based, whole foods diet? Families all over the country have found satisfying, delicious answers to these questions and more in Cynthia Lair's Feeding the Whole Family.

There are over 150 family-tested recipes using whole grains, beans, vegetables, and fruit. Each recipe contains suggestions on how to transform dishes parents will love into food for babies and young children. Plus the book contains valuable insights on breastfeeding, starting solids and how to attract children to healthy eating.

Feeding the Whole Family also features an extremely handy "Identifying, Shopping, & Storing Whole Foods" glossary, a complete index and delightful stories and illustrations. The book is bound with a special binding that lies flat.

This is the perfect gift for new parents.