Customer Reviews

Good Food for Bad Stomachs

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This new book is long overdue for those of us with digestive problems who never know what to eat and are always trying to maintain good nutrition. The first part the book reviews the elements of a realistic, reasonable diet necessary for overall good health (chapters include "Is There an Ideal Diet?" and "The Do's and Don'ts"). The larger second part of the book, looks at digestive disorders and the role of diet in preventing, causing, or treating them, including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and IBD (Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis). The central question of the book is how to treat digestive diseases, like IBS or IBD, and still eat healthy foods? The section on food and IBD, includes advice about caffeine and alcohol, lactose and dairy products, fiber (when to take it and when to avoid it), vitaman supplements, food supplements, enteral nutrition, kidney stones in IBD, and more. Dr. Janowitz's dietary recommendations are practical and should help those of us with less than stellar digestive tracts to eat better and find improved health. A superb book and sure to be as popular as his previous books, Indigestion and Your Gut Feelings.

While Janowitz covers many digestive problems in this book, I was specifically interested in Chapter 12: What Should We Feed the Inflamed Intestine? Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn's Disease. He spends a great deal of time outlining a "low-residue" diet as well as a low-oxalate diet, both of which are purported to assist persons suffering from IBD. Since both diets are quite nutritionally sound, they are certainly worth trying and his discussion on lactose sensitivity is one of the most balanced I've read. With only one chapter pertaining to IBD, it might be more practical to request this book interlibrary loan rather than purchase it, but if you have other family members with other digestive problems, the other chapters may have increased relevance and applicability!

This book addresses good nutrition in general, and then offers specifics for a variety of GI diseases. It is well-written and very understandable. But if you are buying this book for the specifics on a certain disease, you will likely be disappointed. There is not a lot of depth in the disease-specific chapters. Disease-specifc chapters range from 5-19 pages, with only one stretching over 20 pages. For example, the IBS chapter is only 7 pages.

If you suffer from many ailments or are simply looking for a general overview, get this book. Otherwise you should probably look for a more detailed, disease-specific book.

This new book is the latest offering by renown IBD gastroenterologist Dr. Henry Janowitz. This book blends both traditional and alternative approaches to the subject of digestive disorders, food and healing. I think it's long overdue for those of us with digestive problems who never know what to eat and are always trying to maintain good nutrition. The first part the book reviews the elements of a realistic, reasonable diet necessary for overall good health (chapters include "Is There an Ideal Diet?" and "The Do's and Don'ts"). The larger second part of the book, looks at various digestive disorders and the role of diet in preventing, causing, or treating them. He examines the role of food in disorders of the digestive tract, including ulcers, heartburn and GERD, gallstones, liver disease, malabsorption, food intolerance and food allergies, diarrhea and constipation, intestinal gas, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and special emphasis given to IBD (Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis). The central question of the book is how to treat digestive diseases, like IBD, and still eat healthy foods? The section on food and IBD, includes advice about caffeine and alcohol, lactose and dairy products, fiber (when to take it and when to avoid it), vitaman supplements, food supplements, enteral nutrition, kidney stones in IBD (how to avoid them), and more. Dr. Janowitz's dietary recommendations are practical and should help those of us with less than stellar digestive tracts to eat better and find improved health. A superb book and sure to be as popular as his previous books, Indigestion and Your Gut Feelings

In Part I of _Good Food for Bad Stomachs_ begins with the elements of a realistic, reasonable diet. Dr. Janowitz suggests that most of us need to increase our intake of fiber dramatically, and this is especially true for people with most gastrointestinal disorders. We should also lower our consumption of fat, avoid obesity at all costs, reduce our reliance on caffein, alcohol and tobacco, and supplement our daily diet with vitamins. In Part II, the book turns to examine specific gastrointestinal disorders and the role of food and healing. Covering the full spectrum of gastrointestinal ailments from esophagitis and swallowing disorders to colon cancer and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis). He describes symptoms and causes, recommends foods we should eat to avoid the disorder or heal them, and outlines dietary and medical approaches to treatment. He talks about inflammation and ulcers, gastritis, gallstones, pancreatitits, and liver disease; discusses dietary allergies and food intolerance, and the problems of digestion and aging; deals with complaints such as intestinal gas, diahrea, constipation; and gives special attention to inflammatory bowel disease or IBD, including ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, on which he is a renowned expert. The book covers everything from gluten-free diets to the fiber content of common fods, includes easy to follow charts and tables to help you plan a healthy diet. _Good Foods for Bad Stomachs_ is a dependable guide to healthy eating written by one of the most respected experts in gastroenterology today. Dr. Janowitz is Clinical Professor of Medicine at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine and is past president of the American Gastroenterogical Association

The author discusses the all-important food pyramid consisting
of fats & oils used sparingly, milk, yogurt, cheese (2-3 servings), vegetable soup (2-4 servings) and pastas/breads.
Nuts may be eaten to lower cholesterol. Approximately 70 grams a day of unabsorbed carbohydrates enter the colon absorbed by colonic bacteria. The absorption is into methane, hydrogen and
CO2. Antioxidants fight free radicals. The ideal diet seeks to
have the patient limit coffee and most alcohol drinks except for
an occasional wine.The book has value in the arsenal of weapons
in the health care reference library. I would supplement this work with research applicable to grains for celiacs and persons
who do not process grains efficiently in the body.

Janowitz performs a real service with his books. Good Food is an accurate, detailed discussion of IBS and diet. It covers a lot of ground so it probably cannot be easily read in one sitting. It's the kind of reference book that you'll go back to time and time again. The index is very well done so it's very useful.

Really a well done book on IBS and diet.