The Best Nutrition Book on My Shelf

I want to make it clear right from the start that this article is not the "cliff notes" to the book, In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan.  My goal is to spark the interest level of the reader so they are motivated to go out and buy the following books by Michael Pollan and learn from his unique research on our food system: In Defense of Food, Omnivore's Dilemma, and Food Rules.  These books can be great educational tools / resources for athletes and clients, as well as a tool to help us rethink eating. 

There is also an amazing documentary which I saw Mr. Pollan discussing on Oprah about 9 months ago called "FOOD, inc."  This was not a typical, "eat this and eat this much of these nutrients daily", kind of documentary.  The focus is the governments influence on our food system, how what we eat is produced and the livelihood of the American farmer that harvests our food.  In his books and documentary, Michael Pollan provides comprehensive research on both the politics that overshadow the food system and how individuals can make educated food choices from the soil to the table.

The following are some key points I found reading the book.  These points have become a major part of what I teach the athletes that I work with, both at the pro level and youth level. 

1.)    The food scientists and food industry has complicated eating and created an "ideology of nutritionism," which has 3 myths:  "What matters most is the nutrient; the purpose of eating is to promote a narrow concept of physical health; and that because nutrients are invisible and incomprehensible to everyone but scientists, we need expert help in deciding what to eat."  We have been told and sold into thinking that we are deficient in specific nutrients and that longevity and health are found in consuming marquee nutrients.  That being said, notice how many more products there are on the shelves now that are fortified with specific nutrients.  We are channeled into being told what to eat because we trust the food scientists, food marketers, and the government.  Unfortunately those three groups do not always have the people's best interest and health in mind.

2.)    The idea that dietary Fat is responsible for chronic disease (the lipid hypothesis) is rapidly losing strength as a national dietary recommendation.  For "several decades" reducing fat has been the focus of national dietary recommendations.  Recent Studies have found some earth-shattering conclusions as to which dietary fats have a direct correlation with CHD and which fats the public have been told are healthy for us.  I think all readers will recognize the latest type of fat to stay clear from (Trans fats), but I think after reading Chapter 1, section 5, they will be shocked to find what we have been taught for the last 30+ years about fat is wrong.

3.)    Food Relationships;  "Carbohydrates in bagel will be absorbed more slowly if the bagel is spread with peanut butter; the fiber, fat, and protein in the peanut butter cushion the insulin response, thereby blunting the impact of the carbohydrates."  "Drink coffee with your steak and your body won't be able to fully absorb the iron in the meat."  Olive oil on tomatoes makes lycopene more available to the body.  The concept of foods having a functional relationship is not new and only now is being explored in great detail.  Designing a nutrition program based on food relationships and not nutrients we are told to eat is clearly a more effective and natural way to feed our body for health and performance.

4.)    Eating links us to the earth and its elements as well as to the suns energy.  This may sound like a cosmic concept but soil, water, sun, grass, animals, fruits, vegetables, and humans are in fact linked directly through eating.  This concept inspired these questions: What is in the soil that my vegetables are grown in?  What is in the soil and grass that animals eat?  How clean is the water that we drink and the water that the animals drink?  Do the animals get enough sun (you may laugh but watch Food, INC and you won't think it is a foolish question)?  How are our fruits and vegetables fertilized and are there any hormones used to grow them?

5.)    The biggest change in our "food environment" since the "advent of agriculture" is the advent of the modern diet.  One of the key features of the modern diet is a shift towards increasingly refined foods.  Look at your supermarket and consider what is on the perimeter?  Meat, Dairy, and Produce, is a standard layout of a market.  Now consider how many aisles are in the center of the store and what make up the products in those aisles?  The answer is processed and refined foods.  Here are the most striking members of the center aisles; Grains that are produced into products that have an astounding shelf-life and Corn syrup, which is now in so many products it's difficult to keep track of the amount.  You can assume if a product is refined, corn syrup is in it!  I think it is important that the majority of our food shopping purchases come from the perimeter.  It may be more expensive to shop there, but it is much healthier.

6.)    The American people have been fooled for a long time with terminology like; reduced fat, low sugar, low fat, grade A beef, etc.  It is important to understand what these terms mean.  The following is a reference from Michael Pollan's book, In Defense of Food.  It highlights the importance of terms like "free range", and "grass fed" and how you can decipher the truth in how the animal was cared for and pastured.  There is also a website reference for more info on food terminology. 

"Free range" doesn't' necessarily mean the chicken has had access to grass; many egg and broiler producers offer their chickens a little more than a dirt yard where nothing grows.  Look for the word "pastured."  And in the case of beef, keep in mind that all cattle are grass fed until they got to the feedlot; "grass finished" or "100% grass fed" is what you want. For more on the nutritional benefit of pastured food and where to find it, go to eatwild.com.

Conclusion

After reading Michael Pollan's book and watching Food, INC I felt like I had to relearn what constitutes healthy eating and how to educate the athletes and my family on healthy eating.  My first step was to change our team's nutrition manual and discard any promotion of consuming a single nutrient for optimal health.  When you buy these texts and watch the Food, Inc documentary you will become more educated and highly informed in the area of healthy eating.  Once the shock wears off!

Happy eating.

The following is a list of Michael Pollan's nutrition on-line resources for, "finding real food and eating locally."

1.  Center for Informed Food Choices (www.informedeating.org)
2. Eat Local Challenge (www.eatlocalchallenge.com)
3. Eat Well (www.eatwellguide.com)
4. Eat Wild (www.eatwild.com)
5. Food Routes (www.foodroutes.org)
6. Local Harvest (www.localharvest.com)
7. Weston A. Price Foundation (www.wetonaprice.org)

Pollan, Michael.  In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto (New York: The Penguin Group, 2008)