Customer Reviews

American Heart Association Brand Name Fat and Cholesterol Counter, Second Edition

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Of all the fat/calorie/cholesterol count books I've seen, this has been the least helpful. The inclusion of brand names for the listed food items is nice, however the vast majority of foods are those already reduced, or naturally low, in fat and calorie content. Thus comparisons cannot be made with non-diet versions. Unless these are the ONLY foods you consume, you will still need to reference another source to calculate your fat and calorie consumption.

I should have read the cover in greater detail. Most importantly, the book contains ONLY those foods which meet ALL the AHA criteria for total fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol. So when there is no listing for scallops, is it because they exceed the guidelines, or because they are too exotic? A few items ARE included at the beginning of each section under "items you want to limit or avoid". Not the book if you are ever willing to eat something outside the guidelines (or make the best of limited choices). I prefer being able to eat a smaller quantity if I know the fat value, for example, is high. And as I should have known by the title, the focus is on brand names - ad infinitum. Editorially, it is difficult to follow the internal category indexing - would be helped by a dictionary - style reference at the top of each page giving the major index. Other problems, such as "seafood" listed after "turkey" within the "meat, poultry, seafood, and Meat substitutes" section, but NOT because the categories are separated. I think I'm going to buy the USDA Handbook No. 8 for a good generic reference book.

This is the only book I have found so far that has information on sodium in fresh food. I find the book somewhat confusing to use but it does give me the information I seek.

It was so hard to find the particular foods I was looking for that it just wasn't woirth the effort. It would be more helpful to have generic listings. Now I either look things up on the web (like the websites of restraunts) or jot down key metrics from the FDA label on the package before I throw it away.

Very informative for those needing and wanting to be healthy