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|  | Author: Michael Pollan
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Category: Book
List Price: $11.00
Buy New: $5.70
as of 7/30/2010 02:28 CDT details
You Save: $5.30 (48%)
Seller: ReadyToGo
Rating:  231 reviews
Sales Rank: 140
Languages: English (Unknown), English (Original Language), English (Published)
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Pages: 112
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 8 x 4.5 x 0.5
ISBN: 014311638X
Dewey Decimal Number: 613.2
EAN: 9780143116387
ASIN: 014311638X
Publication Date: December 29, 2009
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: EXCELLENT CONDITION. NEVER READ.
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Showing reviews 16-20 of 231
 Kudos to Pollan June 3, 2010
Justine A. Lee (Saint Paul, MN United States)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
I have to admit that I hated Pollan's Omnivore's Dilemna. Due to scientific inaccuracies (hey, I'm a scientist), I couldn't finish it.
That said, Food Rules ROCKS. I loved the simplistic, fun, daily rules to read through. Simple rules like shopping the periphery of the supermarket to not eating cereal that turns your milk weird colors seem basic but easy to follow. It's a fun book that you end up quoting to friends. I aim to live by these practical, realistic rules. Two thumbs up. Easy, simple read. You can finish it in an hour.
Michael Pollan has emerged as a great leader in the locavore movement! June 2, 2010
Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Man (Spartanburg, SC)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
If you've been paying attention at all to the subject of diet and health over the past few years, then there's no doubt you've heard of the name Michael Pollan. A trained journalist, he's transitioned from reporting on the story to BECOMING the story with his highly-influential New York Times bestselling books The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals and In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto as well as a major appearance in the critically-acclaimed film on the state of our food supply in America called Food, Inc.. Yes, Pollan has been a busy man and he's doing great work educating the public about what healthy eating is all about. While most people tend to make their diet more complicated than it needs to be, the reality is it's rather elementary if you stick with a few basic principles to guide your daily decisions. That's the concept behind Pollan's latest offering called Food Rules: An Eater's Manual.
An unassuming little 4.5×7-inch book, this is one power-packed punch of information you can use to make healthy decisions for you and your family. Broken up into three parts-"What Should I Eat?" "What Kind Of Food Should I Eat?" and "How Should I Eat?"-Pollan says it's all about eating real food, mostly plants, and not too much. If this theme sounds familiar, then it should if you've read any of Pollan's previous books on diet. But the bite-sized format of Food Rules may make this more compatible for the average person to consume and absorb all the lessons he's been conveying through his previous works. Maybe Gary Taubes and his publisher could put something together like this for his bestselling 2007 release Good Calories, Bad Calories: Fats, Carbs, and the Controversial Science of Diet and Health (Vintage). People like simplicity when it's done right like this book is.
I knew the book was going to start off well when I saw Pollan dedicate it to his mother who "always knew butter was better for you than margarine." YES! He proceeds to share how eating has become more of a chore these days because we needlessly rely on media pundits and so-called health "experts" to tell us what's right and wrong about what to put in our mouths. Food is no longer the sustenance of life, but rather something to be critically examined for its impact on health either negatively or positively.
While I certainly see nothing wrong with being careful about what foods you choose to consume (and neither would Pollan), he's right about the obsession and it cuts both ways. You've got one group of consumers who absolutely don't give a rip about what they're eating as long as it tastes good to them. So they fill up their shopping carts at the supermarket with Cheetos, Hot Pockets, Twinkies, and Coca-Coca none the wiser that not a bit of that is real food. On the other hand, there's another set of consumers who are ardent about perfection in their diet. You can only eat fresh organic vegetables, grass-fed meats, and nothing artificial at all. They believe if you stray from this even a little that you are damning yourself to an unhealthy lifestyle. Both of these extremes are ludicrous and Pollan says there is a happy balance between the two.
Pollan's mantra of "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." that was basic premise of his book In Defense of Food is the underlying theme of Food Rules and it guides all of the information contained within these pages. I would only amend that statement to say "Eat real whole foods. Eat to satiety. Mostly grass-fed meats and organic vegetables." He does seem to be stuck a bit on conventional wisdom regarding the health halo of consuming vegetables, but Pollan is most of the way there with many of the 64 "rules" he shares within the 140 pages of this book.
His goal with Food Rules is to help people make better choices when shopping for food and that's a very good thing. And he's starts off with a bang with Rule #1 to just "Eat Food." Sounds simple enough, but most people haven't got a clue what "food" really is. Pollan explains this concept which lays the groundwork for what he attempts to communicate for the rest of the book. Positive messages for people who are livin' la vida low-carb include "avoid food products that contain high-fructose corn syrup," "avoid foods that have some form of sugar (or sweetener) listed among the top three ingredients," "avoid food products with the wordoid `lite' or the terms `low-fat' or `nonfat' in their names," and "shop the peripheries of the supermarket and stay out of the middle." This is all sage advice that will serve you well when purchasing food for you and your family.
The visualization that Pollan uses to get people to think about real food is remarkably effective. He educates people to think about food as something that is supposed to "eventually rot" and that you should be able to think about it growing in the "raw state." Mickey D's French fries and Twinkies never seem to spoil no matter how long they stay in your cabinet which is why you don't need to be putting them inside of your body. And too many people think food comes from supermarkets. Actually, real food comes from local farmers which is why Pollan is such a fan of farmer's markets where you can support the locavore movement while feeding your family the most nutritious and delicious foods possible.
As for the kind of food to eat, Pollan acknowledges that there is such a thing as a "healthy" high-fat or low-fat diet. It's about choosing the plan that's right for you. He encourages eating the leaves of plants which falls right in line with the green, leafy veggies you consume on a healthy high-fat, moderate protein, low-carb lifestyle. But his insistence on treating meat like a "flavoring" or "special occasion food" is where I would part ways with him. He repeats the mantra that vegetarians are "generally healthier than carnivores" and that's just plain nonsense. While not identifying what he thinks is the exact blame for why meat is a poor choice on a regular basis, Pollan does hint that it could be the saturated fat, protein, or absence of veggies from the meals. But the latest science is showing saturated fat has no bearing on heart disease, protein should be limited to the amount that is adequate for the individual, and veggies can be combined with meat for a nutritious meal plan. This is the heartbeat of the low-carb lifestyle!
I do appreciate that Pollan notes it's better to consume animals "that have themselves eaten well." This means avoiding the grain-fed factory farm meats in favor of those that have been grass-fed and treated humanely. It's not just good for you, but it's the right thing to do. He also says to mix it up and eating something new from time to time, including wild game that you hunt yourself. And that includes the "oily little fishes." Stocking up on this kind of quality meat is an important part of absorbing all of the lessons of Food Rules .
One of my favorite rules is #37: "The white the bread, the sooner you'll be dead." HA! I like that and it's so true. Pollan explains that white flour is a health risk we've known about for ages and he notes that the body treats it "not much different from sugar." YES! He does tend to favor whole grains and I suppose they are better than the refined ones. But I tend to lean on the side of NO grains instead.
Finally, on the subject of how to eat, Pollan was hoping to help people "foster a healthier relationship to food." That's always a good thing because our culture has so jaded us to the idea that food has to be dirt cheap to be worth it. But you'll learn that when you "pay more" you "eat less." I don't think calorie-restriction just for the sake of cutting calories is a smart idea. Yet if you are choosing more satisfying calories coming from fat and protein sources and less from carbohydrates, then you will consume the right amount of nutrition for your body. Pollan even notes to "stop eating before you're full" and "eat when you are hungry, not when you are bored."
Although he's all about using smaller plates, taking smaller bites, and the like, I think his overall message in Food Rules is solid: get back to real, whole foods, avoid the artificial garbage that you've become addicted to, and make this a permanent and healthy lifestyle change you can live with and enjoy for the rest of your life! Despite my disagreements with a few of his positions on what all of that entails, I do think Michael Pollan has emerged as a great leader in the movement to bringing real food back to the forefront of American culture. If we are going to get a handle on obesity and chronic diseases of modern man under control, then we need a lot more people like him out there carrying the torch and leading the way.
Great purchase May 30, 2010
Sandra L. Parsons (California USA)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Book was as described, and what a great read! Now I just have to follow the rules set out in the book:)
 Great book if you're new to Pollan May 29, 2010
Linda Wightman (Florida, USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Food Rules is a condensation of what journalist Pollan has learned from his investigation of what's wrong with the American diet and how it can be improved. If this is the only Pollan food book you will read, or if you want to introduce his ideas to a skeptical friend with a short attention span, it rates five stars. Half of the 140 pages are merely pictures, and the other half are short and very easy to read.
I enjoyed reading through it, but am glad I borrowed it instead of buying it, as for my purposes The Omnivore's Dilemma and In Defense of Food are better. (On the other hand, at $6.50 from Amazon, the book costs no more than one of those fast food meals Pollan wants us to avoid.)
From #1 Eat Food (as opposed to edible food-like substances), to #63 Break the Rules Once in a While, following these succinct suggestions would go a long way towards improving most people's diets. Best of all I like Pollan's relaxed attitude, which reminds us that eating well isn't rocket science, nor is it onerous. It's a basic birthright that we have lost and must reclaim for ourselves and our children.
How to eat properly May 20, 2010
snow bird (FL, NJ)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Truly a new way to look at food. We have to get back to basics as best we can. Good book to read just to remind what food is really for and that you can enjoy good food that does not contain added sugar or salt or both. I may even try organic!!
Showing reviews 16-20 of 231
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