Friday, 7 April 2017

James Wong - How To Eat better


Rating: 4/5

Review:
helpful and sensible dietary advice



James Wong is a properly trained, experienced scientist who really knows what he is talking about.  In the field of popular dietary advice, this is by no means always the case and is very valuable attribute.  He puts this knowledge over very well here in a well balanced, nicely presented and easily readable book.

The book does what it claims to do: it gives advice about how to choose and cook foods to get the best dietary advantage from them.  No dodgy, overblown "superfood" claims, nor "radical new diets" but sound scientific research and sensible suggestions based on it.  Wong is also refreshingly clear about what is established fact about what compounds are found in certain foods, for example, and what is suggested but not fully established by research about any beneficial effects these may have.  In a world where a tentative suggestion from incomplete research may be trumpeted as an Astonishing Breakthrough which will Transform The Way We Live, such honesty is very welcome.

All the advice is sensible, although it's not all welcome, to be honest.  For example, Robusta coffee beans may contain lots more possibly healthy compounds than Arabica – but they don't taste nearly so good to me, so I'll just take my chances on that one, thanks.  Nonetheless, the information is there to be assessed, and the recipes to help to utilise the science are sensible and largely appetising-looking.

In short, this is a nicely presented, useful book with genuinely sensible and valuable content which is easy to read and understand. It stands out in a very crowded market indeed and I can recommend it.

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