The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Neal D. Barnard M.D. (Introduction)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

In The Kind Diet, actress, activist, and committed conservationist Alicia Silverstone shares the insights that encouraged her to swear off meat and dairy forever, and outlines the spectacular benefits of adopting a plant-based diet, from effortless weight loss to clear skin, off-the-chart energy, and smooth digestion. She explains how meat, fish, milk, and cheese—the very foods we’ve been taught to regard as the cornerstone of good nutrition—are actually the culprits behind escalating rates of disease and the cause of dire, potentially permanent damage to our ecology.

Yet going meat- and dairy-free doesn’t mean suffering deprivation; to the contrary, The Kind Diet introduces irresistibly delicious food that satisfies on every level—it even includes amazing desserts to keep the most stubborn sweet tooth happy. Alicia also addresses the nutritional concerns faced by many who are new to a plant-based diet, and shows how to cover every nutritional base, from protein to calcium and beyond.

Alicia knows that changing life-long dietary habits is a process, and that each person progresses at a different pace. For that reason, The Kind Diet encompasses 3 separate levels, from Flirting to Superhero. Flirts learn to dip a toe into the vegan pool, reducing their meat-eating and swapping out a few key foods for plant-based substitutes to see quickly how even small changes can reap big results. Vegans get to experience the life-altering effects of forgoing animal-products entirely, while still enjoying many convenience foods and meat substitutes in addition to the wonderful grains, vegetables and fruits that form the core of that diet. True enlightenment comes with the Superhero program, based on the principles of macrobiotics and built on a foundation of whole grains, vegetables, and other yummy foods that Alicia describes in detail.

Whether your goal is to drop a few pounds, boost your energy and metabolism, or simply save the world, Alicia provides the encouragement, the information, and the tools you need to make the transition to a plant-based diet deliciously empowering.

About the Author

Alicia Silverstone, perhaps best known for her generation-defining turn in Clueless, continues to work steadily in film, television, and theater. A dynamic fixture in the acting, political, and scientific communities, she is a dedicated advocate on behalf of the planet and its animals, and was voted "Sexiest Vegetarian Alive" in 2004. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Christopher, and their four rescued dogs.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Rodale Books (October 13, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1605296449
• ISBN-13: 978-1605296449
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #269 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #2 in	Books > Cooking, Food & Wine > Special Diet > Low Fat
  #2 in	Books > Cooking, Food & Wine > Vegetables & Vegetarian > Vegan
  #6 in	Books > Health, Mind & Body > Diets & Weight Loss > Diets > Weight Loss

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

100 of 118 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Winner!, October 13, 2009

By	Eco-Friendly Feng Shui Designer - See all my reviews

The title: The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet, by Alicia Silverstone, says it all. The plant-based diet, according to Silverstone (and a few doctors quoted) will improve your health, help prevent disease, improve the environment and help you lose weight.

The book begins with Silverstone's personal story. It includes her early attempts at not eating meat, and an unhealthy period when she ate only raw foods.

Then the book discusses the "nasty foods"--meat, dairy, white sugar and processed foods. We learn the many reasons these foods are unhealthy, bad for the planet and bad for animal's welfare.

Next, we learn what the "kind foos" are--notably, whole grains, new proteins, veggies and healthy desserts.

There is a chapter on nutritional FAQ's.

Silverstone gets we are not all ready for a vegan diet, especially if we are used to a diet heavy in meats, dairy and processed foods. So, she presents three levels: flirting, vegan and superhero.

In flirting, she makes recommendations like: go to a vegetarian restaurant and order a dish, buy some vegan products from her "Transitional food chart", and simply recommends we start adding vegan meals into our diets.

In vegan, she presents a plan on how to build a meal and a vegan meal plan.

Finally, the superhero level is loosely based on the macrobiotic diet (minus fish,) and features fresh, local and seasonal fare.

Silverstone adds helpful tips, like chew your food really well, what to do about detoxing and cravings and more.

There is a chapter on tips when away from home.

Lifestyle tips is a very short chapter, mentioning things like the importance of reusing and buying secondhand. I would recommend HARMONIOUS ENVIRONMENT: BEAUTIFY, DETOXIFY & ENERGIZE YOUR LIFE, YOUR HOME & YOUR PLANET to learn how to make your entire home green and beautiful for optimal health.

The book concludes with fantastic looking recipes (I'm a pretty good cook, I can always tell.) They recipes are divided into vegan and superhero.

Even if you are not committed to a full time vegan diet, I highly recommend this book--just start with the flirting and see where it takes you.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Kindest Thing You Can Do, November 20, 2009

By	T. Szefler (Blaine, WA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I got interested in reading The Kind Diet soon after reading the book written by Jonathan Safran Foer titled "Eating Animals". Foer really made me think and I decided to research the idea o vegan living. In the chapter about "Nasty Foods" Alicia Siverstone's observations about meat industry were in line with those of Mr. Foer. And she does a good job of backing her statements with well-conducted studies from reputable sources.

According to Alicia, in addition to meat, Nasty Foods include also dairy, refined sugar, and processed foods. These are the foods that we have to avoid in our daily diet. However, she realizes that it is very hard, if not impossible, for most people to just drop their normal nutritional habits and go totally vegan from one day to another. Therefore she suggests three levels of changing into Living in the Kind Life - from Flirting, via Going Vegan, to Becoming a Superhero.

Alicia insists that by eliminate harmful foods like meat, dairy, refined sugar and processed products, and enjoying an endless variety of deeply nourishing grains, vegetables and other delectable whole foods, you will live in agreement with nature and get rid of obesity problem that plagues the modern societies. By changing your eating habits and becoming vegan you will say good-bye to dieting once for all. And that's while enjoying "irresistibly sweet treats, you can eat every single day, forever."

I recently verified Alicia's statement on my recent trip to Central Europe. I discovered a restaurant chain called "Green Wave" that was serving plant foods only. Throughout the whole week I was consuming a variety of delicious meals not even once missing my traditional North American Big Burger.

By the end of the book Alicia provided some good (and some not so good) recipes of vegan meals. I suggest trying most of them to decide which ones suit you best. Keep in mind that you need to eat what's indigenous to the area to avoid stressing your body. This isn't a totally novel idea. The author of a great health/longevity book titled "Live 150 Years - Your Body Maintenance Handbook" is also a great proponent of living in agreement with nature and eating indigenous foods. If you check this book out, make sure to also read the chapters about obesity causes, and proper food combination.

TO SUMMARIZE: Plant-based diet is just about the greenest thing you can do. It requires less fuel, water, and other precious resources. It can also be the secret to your health, slim physique and radiant beauty. Enjoy the ride.

151 of 197 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Good for some, not practical for me, October 19, 2009

By	Claire k "cook book fanatic" (ohio) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

I was excited to get this book, but when I started looking at the ingredients in the recipes, I decided it was NOT the book for me.

lotus root rounds
daikon rounds
shoyu
unflavored mochi
jijiki
mirin
burdock
hemp seeds
umeboshi vinegar
dandelion
brown rice mochi
mellow white miso
dried wakame
fennel bulb
umeboshi plum paste


I could go on and on........I just pulled those from random recipes.

If you want to constantly be buying rare ingredients, it might be worth it for you...but I think it would not be very practical for me because I live in a remote area and my local stores do not carry these things.

People who love this book may disagree, but for my family and the practicality of our limited grocery selections, I am returning this book.