While lounging poolside this summer, I got the chance to catch up on some much-needed reading. Most of the books I read were focused on my favorite subjects, nutrition and wellness. Many of them are definitely worth checking out, so here’s a little review of some of my favorites! Hopefully you’ll get a chance to sneak some in before the school year starts to pick up. Happy reading!
1. Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think by Brian Wansink
As soon as I started reading, I couldn’t put this book down. Brian Wansink is a professor and the director of the Food and Brand Lab at the University of Illinois. Throughout the book he discusses many experiments that his lab conducted, as well as the psychological, emotional, and physical aspects of over eating. For example, he explains the difference between physical hunger—the kind of hunger that causes your stomach to grumble and is satisfied through eating a meal—and emotional hunger—the hunger that is caused by the brain when you’re not actually hungry, but you think you are because of certain sights, smells, or the environment you’re in.
Additionally, I thought that some of the most interesting information he shared was how portion size, smell, and sight can cause us to eat more than we need. In all of the information Wansink presents, he backs it up by explaining the experiments his lab did to find if their ideas were accurate. The experiments were fascinating and interesting to read about. He also gives small, simple tips to prevent over eating in our daily lives, such as putting our junk food in opaque, covered containers in order to prevent our eyes from tricking our brains into thinking we need some of the junk food when we aren’t hungry. This book is definitely a must read!
2. Sugar Nation: The Hidden Truth Behind America’s Deadliest Habit and The Simple Way to Beat It by Jeff O’Connell
Over consumption of sugar is one of the fastest growing problems in America. Not only do extreme amounts of sugar increase the obesity problem, but it’s causing the rate of diabetes and other diseases to rise drastically. Jeff O’Connell, a pre-diabetic himself, explains his personal story and the problems associated with too much sugar
Many of O’Connell’s facts make you take a second look at what you’re eating and the scary realities of too much sugar cause you to reevaluate your diet and lifestyle. I would recommend this book to anyone who’s interested in some of the hidden mysteries when it comes to sugar and it’s role in the American diet.
3. The Skinny Rules: The Simple, Nonnegotiable Principles for Getting Thin by Bob Harper
Bob Harper is known for his role as one of the trainers on the TV show, The Biggest Loser. In this book, he sets out some “nonnegotiable” rules to live by and lose some weight. While I personally could never stick to something as strict as this, he definitely has some important points that are essential to living a healthy lifestyle.
Harper lays out his rules and then explains why each one is essential in thorough detail. Some of my favorite tips he gives are to get rid of fast food and fried food, eat apples and berries every day because of their high fiber content, and to make sure you don’t drink your calories –stick to water instead. He also provides a recipe chapter in the book with many healthy breakfast, lunch, and dinner options you can cook yourself! The Skinny Rules is a great book for anyone with who wants to lose weight or just make some small dietary improvements.
4. Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating by Mark Bittman
Bittman’s book was a different kind of wellness book. It focused on how the foods we consume and America’s agriculture not only harm our bodies, but also the environment we live in. He goes in depth about how America’s current food industry mass produces highly processed food and how it leads to many diseases and the obesity epidemic. One of his primary focuses in the book is the meat industry and their unsustainable production that causes large amounts of waste and pollution. His suggestion is to counteract this by doing a “vegan before six” diet and not consuming animal products and highly processed foods before six at night. People who are curious about the environment and the food industry should consider checking this book out.