Food and Healing (Paperback)

by Annemarie Colbin (Author) "Some of the best years of my life were those I spent in high school in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina..." (more)
Key Phrases: contractive foods, expansive foods, macrobiotic regime, New York, George Ohsawa, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Ten years ago, Colbin's Food and Healing stood at the forefront of the food revolution, exploring the link between diet and health. In this anniversary edition, she provides updates on recent dietary systems, including low-fat, food combining, and alternative medicine.

From the Inside Flap
Ten years ago, Colbin's Food and Healing stood at the forefront of the food revolution, exploring the link between diet and health. In this anniversary edition, she provides updates on recent dietary systems, including low-fat, food combining, and alternative medicine.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (July 12, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345303857
• ISBN-13: 978-0345303851
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #17,293 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating look at nutrition - and not just for the sick, March 13, 2001

By	Carol S. (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews

Although I don't necessarily agree with everything Annemarie Colbin has to say about food & health (for example, I believe that certain immunizations are a critical part of one's health care and not unnecessary or harmful), "Food and Healing" is an excellent and thoughtful treatment of a complex subject. The title may erroneously give the impression that the book is just for those who are ill. In fact, the book has a lot to offer to anyone who is interested in learning more about nutrition, and how what we eat can make us feel better or worse. We know that caffeine can give you energy or make you nervous, and that a high-fat diet can cause heart disease; Colbin theorizes that other kinds of food, food ingredients and even methods of preparation affect the body in different but no less profound ways. Particularly intriguing are Colbin's musings on "food philosphy": e.g., multi-faceted comparisons of different diets; how different thinkers approach food in a different philosophical way; various ways to look at food choices and their effects on the body. I was impressed by the breadth of the sources Colbin cites (although occasionally one finds an outdated reference, like the ones to the now-debunked Tasaday "tribe") and how she weaves everything together into a coherent and readable book. What really won me over, however, was Colbin's insistence on taking a flexible approach to eating. Colbin emphasizes that no diet should remain static, and we need to choose different kinds of diets to reflect and address what is going on in our lives at different times. She is remarkably open-minded and tolerant of all points of view, allowing the reader to take away nuggets of wisdom from unlikely sources. If some of the opinions expressed seemed a bit too airy-fairy for me (e.g., auras, and her apparent rejection of the germ theory of disease transmission), even these sections were interesting and thought-provoking. Required reading for anyone who has "food issues," wants to improve her diet, has a chronic health problem, or works in the nutrition field.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A healthy approach to eating for wellbeing, January 13, 1999

By	PB - See all my reviews

Annemarie Colbin lays out a myriad of information as to how foods affect your mood, energy and overall wellbeing. She describes in detail what happens when we eat certain foods, particularly in combinations which may explain why many of us can't lose weight or remain sick and tired. The descriptions of various popular diets is enlightening.

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Low Fat Eating, May 27, 2000

By A Customer

If you missed Annemarie Colbin's fine book, Food and Healing, the first time around, it's back in a revised edition. First published in 1986, it rapidly became a classic exploration in detail of why and how we are what we eat. Reissued in 1996 by Ballantine with a new preface by the author, Food and Healing now incorporates the latest on low fat eating, findings on food combinations and new alternative medicine paths into what remains the Bible of the holistic view of food and health.

Ms. Colbin's view is thoroughly common sensical. She recognizes the fact that we are each individuals, and that once we have digested the facts, theories and proposals in her book we must make decide on what eating choices are best for us.

This is a thoughtful but not didactic book, solid and grounded in research, yet written with an entertaining touch. Rarely have we encountered a book that so well explains the nutritive quality of food, and its effects on body, mind and spirit. Don't miss it.

Review by Meredith Sayles Hughes