[.ca] The Healing Secrets of Food: A Practical Guide for ... (ISBN 1577311884)

WHAT YOU EAT HAS A PROFOUND AFFECT--AND EFFECT:
This book is a new kind of nutrition guide. It starts with an overview about how so many of us have spun out of control with food--66% are overweight or obese and even more Americans obsess about food by what Kesten describes as "counting calories, watching weight and figuring fat--both in food and our bodies." It then goes on to explain how diet can radically affect more than physical health, that it also influences how a person feels emotionally, even spiritually. The antidote to our disordered eating is the remainder of the book, which turns to science and story-telling to explain long-lost secrets about the many ways food heals. Finally, this book offers a step-by-step, practical solution to eating well and to actually enjoying your food at the same time. This book is highly informative and enlightening. My only criticism: This isn't a cookbook, but I would've liked to see some recipes. Still, it brings up and answers a lot of diet and food questions that other books on the subject miss or ignore completely. It's a gem.

Informative and fun...not boring:
Books that deal with preventative health issues are of great interest to me because I learn so much and my life always improves. This is one of those books that is not boring, but such a great joy to read. A physician friend recommended it because it deals with the whole issue of how and where we eat and not just what we should eat. Part Two chapter two is one of my favorite chapters because it deals with the healing secret of socializing and the "French paradox" which is all about how eating at an hour and with others, that best suits the individual is healthier, and that communing which is where the term communion comes from, helps a person to not overeat and to better digest one food because when we eat amongst those we like, we tend to eat slower and we tend to eat better or healthier foods as well. The story shared in this chapter about the midnight meal is well worth the price of the book itself. Chapter Seven titled The Healing Secret of Optimal Food is wonderful because it deals with eating healthy whole foods and not getting sucked into believing good food needs to be difficult to prepare or fancy in any way. That having a bowl of fresh apples, oranges, kiwi, bananas, peaches, grapes etc and eating some with pleasure and passion does wonders for the senses. Or a simple fresh spinach salad with lemon juice and oil dressing and cutting off some fresh slices of hearty rustic bread to eat with the salad can be like dining at a quaint café in the French Alps. Or how about some garbonzo beans (chickpeas) with fresh tomato and steamed shrimp with a vision of a Greek seaside café? The book also speaks of meats and how to choose them wisely and prepare them so they retain their goodness. And eating meat in smaller servings like the French, Italians, Greeks and Asians do, which is more as a condiment in many ways. I was also pleased to read the "Asian Wisdom" section that spoke of how some eat congee which is a soup for breakfast since we eat soup for breakfast a lot. Or even vegetable stir fry. Come to think of it, the books great value for me, was how it kindly pointed out to Americans that other cultures have a great deal of wisdom to share when it comes to eating well and not being unfit or fat.

HEALING WITH FOOD:
This long overdue book presents a highly regarded step-by-step program that shows how to eat optimally by nourishing the whole person. The techniques in THE HEALING SECRETS OF FOOD are a marvelous blend of ancient and contemporary nutrition and scientific concepts; it is also the first to offer time-tested techniques that hold the potential to invoke the the many ways in which food nourishes. It also offers a broad variety of excellent exercises that show you how to use the concepts in an every day, practical way. A truly important contribution to health, healing and well-being, which I read after taking Kesten's excellent Integrative Eating E-Course on the Spirituality & Health website. Her latest research on the concepts in THE HEALING SECRETS OF FOOD also reveal what she calls "Syndrome O," a pattern of eating and food choices that lead to overeating, overweight, and obesity. Written about in Kesten's "The Enlightened Diet" column in Spirituality & Health magazine, her research motivated me to buy the book and to familiarize myself with her comprehensive program. These are learnable techniques that have transformed what I eat. It's a true blueprint for health and healing.

DEMYSTIFYING OPTIMAL EATING:
Unlike most books about food and diet, this book is a celebration of the intelligence inherent in both food and in human beings. The approach and guidelines outlined in this book could save you years of confusion about the best way to eat. By merging food wisdom of ancient civilizations and religions into an effective and scientifically validated approach, this book has had a profound influence on my life, the role of food in it, and my health--both mental and physical. I found the "Personal Food Profile" quiz to be an invaluable tool for feedback. Read it--no, savor it--for a new understanding of food.

Big disappointment; Beware 5 Star Ratings:
I hate to write negative reviews, but here goes. I was extremely disappointed in this book. It basically amounts to be grateful for your food, eat with others when you can, chew slowly, and eat whole natural foods. Good advice, yes, but not worth the price of the book. I was also disappointed in the book's failure to include much in the way of scientific proof in support of the statements. Many times the evidence presented is purely anecdotal, or purely personal. Examples of the latter include the author's telling us how a neighbor surprised her one year with a chocolate cake left on the doorstep, and how after she and her husband hiked in the mountains for days on end, they each ate two full meals at the first restaurant they visited. Not much there in the way of nutrition or health information. Lastly, I think that the glowing quotes on the book jacket should come with a truth in advertising disclosure. One of them was written by her husband (who works at Ornish) and another comes from another executive at one of the Ornish groups. Oh, did I mention that the author has worked at Ornish too? I just think that I could have done better for the money, and would advise anyone looking for substantial nutrition and health information to look elsewhere. Like a book by Dean Ornish (who wrote the book's introduction). By the way, one of the glowing 5 star reviews of this book was written by the author's husband, who didn't disclose his status as such in the review. Sheesh; hype, anyone?