Metabolical by Robert Lustig

 

Since cell biology is a mysterious, complicated subject for most of us, this book is definitely not an easy read. It is, however, a very worthwhile read. For me, this book tied together and explained some information that floats around the culture and almost never seems perfectly clear.  We hear that certain things are bad for us, or we suspect on our own that something is harmful; and all of this bad news causes us to second guess ourselves. Who or what should we believe? Are we paranoid or just cautious?

Lustig does a very thorough job of explaining what goes on in our cells when we ingest certain common substances in our environment. Plastics, preservatives, Teflon coating, the myriad items we see on food labels - we know something is  worrisome about all of these things, but it is often hard to access the specifics. The author explains in detail precisely what happens to us on a cellular level  when we eat things that aren't food..

This isn't a beach read kind of book, but I'm also pretty sure you won't be able to put it down. It is true that health is wealth, and work like this makes it possible for everyone to share in that wealth.

Why We Get Fat and What to Do About It

This is a highly readable book, which is fortunate as Gary Taubes knows a great deal about topics that most of us care about. I will confess that I have not yet gotten through his tome, Good Calories, Bad Calories. I get by with this omission because I read a dozens of books written by people who have read it.

Modern problems like metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance run so counter to natural science that they can be daunting to understand, This is, however, the world we have created for ourselves, so understanding what we have wrought brings some peace of mind.

No time to read the whole book?
In a nutshell: You can totally wreck your regulatory hormones by ingesting sugar and highly processed food. To heal your own biology, eat real food. Eliminate sugar, most grains, and processed seed oils.

Botony of Desire

Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan
Pollan traces the history of potatoes, marijuana, tulips and apples to make some insightful points and fascinating reading about ecology, economics, botany, and nature. This one small book will give you a grip on science that many semester courses fail to impart. There is also quite a bit of macro-economics in this little gem.

Pollan doesn't get mystical about it, but he does make a convincing case for the self determinism of plants. When a scientist sees life on a continuum, science leaps forward unhindered by ancient, useless dogma.

The Great Cholesterol Myth

Authors Stephen Sinatra and Jonny Bowden make a compelling case for ditching the statin drugs. The book presents an ocean of evidence that theses drugs are being sold to the general public for no reason except to increase the profits of major pharmaceutical companies. They contend (and they are by no means alone in this) that the evidence used to connect cholesterol to diet and to connect cholesterol to heart disease is shaky at best. At worst, it is down right fraudulent.

This is a well organized and fairly easy to read book. If there are statins or cholesterol threats looming anywhere in your life, this is a good book.

Too busy to read the book?
In a nutshell: Don't take statins. Eat plenty of vegetables and good quality meats. Ditch the grains and added sugars and get some exercise. For a more complete explanation, you'll have to read at least a few chapters.

Monkey Girl

Monkey Girl by Edward Humes
This is a well told tale of the Dover, Pennsylvania school board debacle concerning creation and intelligent design. The author does a terrific job of narrating a complex and nearly unbelievable true story.

Michael Pollan

Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan
This book reads more like a suspense novel than a nonfiction book. I couldn’t put it down. Everything you ever wanted – or more likely, didn’t want – to know about the food you eat. Update note: His newest book is In Defense of Food. It’s terrific.

Post Script: Omnivore's Dilemma was released in April of 2006. I read it shortly after that, sitting on the back porch, letting my end of school year work pile up all around me because I simply couldn't put the book down. I knew I should have waited for my summer break, but this was as much a page turner as any mystery I have ever read. Not only did it change my life, I'm pretty sure he changed the world with this book. There are a great many themes about food and food production that have become part of our modern consciousness that can be traced to this book.

In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan
A follow up to The Omnivore’s Dilemma and just as good. the premise of the book is summed up in his quip, "Eat food, mostly plants, not too much." That seems obvious enough until one realizes that there is startlingly widespread confusion about what food actually is. And that is precisely what the book is all about.

Kingsolver

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
This is in the same class as Michael Pollan’s Omnivore’s Dilemma. It is the true story of a family’s attempt to “eat local.” They dubbed themselves “locavores” for one year, and maintained a diet of locally grown and prepared meals. Kingsolver is a great writer and the book is informative as well as entertaining. Her husband and oldest daughter also contribute to this one.

Science and Nature

Life on Earth by David Attenbourough
This is a beautifully written and photographed book about the fascinating world of plants and animals all over the globe. This is nature writing at its best.

The Naked Ape by Desmond Morris
The book is dated in that the central ideas have woven themselves into our collective cultural knowledge. It is still a good book because it was revolutionary in its day and reading it is a little bit like traveling to the headwaters of a great river.

Kon-Tiki and Fatu-Hiva by Thor Heyerdahl
Among infinite other talents, Thor Heyerdahl is a wonderful storyteller. These two books are the ones we've read, but he has a few others as well. Fatu-Hiva has been published more recently under the title: How Green Was the Earth on the Seventh Day.

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek and Teaching a Stone to Talk by Annie Dillard
These are just two of her books; she has written several. Her work is not easily categorized, but she makes a great many observations about the natural world and her writing has a unique quality that merits more publicity than she gets. She is a favorite of scholars, writers, and philosophers and is quoted frequently.