What Would Jesus Eat? The Ultimate Program for Eating Well, Feeling Great, and Living Longer (Hardcover)

~ Don Colbert M.D. (Author) "PERHAPS THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP IN LEARNING how to follow Jesus' example and eat the way He ate can be summed up in two important..." (more)
Key Phrases: adequate water intake, divine health, olive oil dressing, United States, Middle East, Breakfast Four (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In What Would Jesus Eat? The Ultimate Program for Eating Well, Feeling Great, and Living Longer, Don Colbert, M.D. makes a compelling case for Christians to use the blueprint of this appetizing spin on traditional faith-based diet books to develop a healthier lifestyle using foods available today. "If you truly want to follow Jesus in every area of your life, you cannot ignore your eating habits," postulates Colbert. He examines America's alarming addiction to fast food, explores Old Testament Jewish dietary laws, and takes a comprehensive look at foods mentioned in the Bible, from herbs to bread to meat. To this information Colbert adds a healthy serving of Scripture references, mixes in a few anecdotes, and finishes the book with an easy-to-follow weekly eating guide. Colbert also tackles the subject of drinking red wine as part of a healthy lifestyle, something often ignored in Christian-based health books. Readers looking for spiritual reasons to make dietary changes will discover excellent justification here to take the plunge. --Cindy Crosby

From Publishers Weekly

After the goose has been gobbled and the cookies consumed, Americans' thoughts turn toward their ever-expanding waistlines. 'Tis the season for diet books, especially in the Christian market. Thomas Nelson, capitalizing on the What Would Jesus Do? phenomenon, presents What Would Jesus Eat?: The Ultimate Program for Eating Well, Feeling Great, and Living Longer. Author Don Colbert, a family physician, urges readers to examine and emulate Jesus' simple diet. The nutritional information, overall, is quite sound: Colbert encourages the consumption of fish, the use of olive oil in cooking and an exercise regimen of daily walking. He discusses the "hidden dangers" of pork, condemns refined white flour and warns against the excessive consumption of red meat. This "all-natural diet from biblical times" promises readers fitness and longevity. Although it should be recalled that longevity was not exactly a hallmark of many biblical characters after the early chapters of Genesis, this is a solid addition to the Christian diet shelves.

Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (March 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0785265678
• ISBN-13: 978-0785265672
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (60 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #308,559 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

61 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best diet book out there, October 16, 2002

By A Customer

Most diet books are aimed at weight loss. This is not one of them, but weight loss will result from following what is outlined in it. This is THE best diet book I have ever seen, in that it changes the way you think about food for your entire life. The main focus of the book is showing you what a toxic lifestyle most Americans lead, and how specific things in our "normal" diets are literally killing us.

Dr. Colbert explains the toxicity of the foods we consume and also explains the benefits of "whole" foods. (Whole grains, unprocessed foods, etc.) The diet itself is basically a "Kosher" diet that shuns highly processed foods and fatty or toxic meats in favor of a diet heavy in whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meats, fatty fish, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and natural sugars and sweeteners.

He also does a wonderful job of making foods that we normally eat sound utterly repulsive. His description of what happens to processed white bread in your intestines makes you hate the stuff. Since I read his section about hot dogs, I have never had another one. Yuk.

Weight loss is not the primary goal of this book, but if you follow the diet you WILL loose some weight. I lost almost 40 pounds in a period of under 3 months just by using the knowledge in this book to reduce the ammount of sugar I take in.

The beauty of this "diet" is that it is not a diet. It is a fundamental shift in your attitude about the food you eat. You can still have sweet and rich foods, but only occasionally. If your diet is mainly whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meats, and extra virgin olive oil, then an occasional plate of 3 cheese ravioli is no big deal.

I am much healthier since I read this book. My whole family has begun to adopt some of the parts of the diet and they are loosing weight as well.

Read this book with an open mind and I think you will find it valuable as well...

117 of 127 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars FOOD FOR THE SOUL...AND YOUR BODY., March 28, 2002

By	Sandra D. Peters "Seagull Books" (Prince Edward Island, Canada) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

What would Jesus eat? Well, it definitely wasn't "Moma-Mia's pizza", "Greasy Joe's burgers", or nuked cardboard containers filled with overcooked, under-valued processed...food(?) Have you ever noticed, that all those microwaved containers seem to taste the same; the only difference is the colour of the sauce.

Readers will find not only thought-provoking references from the Scriptures throughout this book, but some interesting facts leading to a more nutritious way of eating and a healthier lifestyle. This book can be likened to "getting back to the basics" - good food based on fish, olive oil, grains, etc. Enjoy the red wine; in moderation, it is actually good for you. I enjoyed the book for the easy to follow weekly eating guide and some of the anecdotes proved to be "food for the soul."

This is an excellent book, particularly for those who want to nourish body soul at the same time. There is something to be said for eating in a time when dinner was more than a quick trip to the nearst fast food outlet and nourishing our soul was not a trend, but a way of life.

70 of 75 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Colberts not fond of the dishes you find at church socials!, March 26, 2002

By	David J. Gannon (San Antonio, TX USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Let's be honest here--there's no magic bullet out there for weight loss-if there were, there wouldn't be as many weight loss and diet books in the Amazon 1000 top sellers.

What Would Jesus Eat? The Ultimate Program For Eating Well, Feeling Great And Living Longer doesn't really say anything new in terms of dietary regimens. Dr. Colbert recommends what you would expect-a lot of whole grains, fruits and vegetables along with limited consumption of meat-particularly red meat-and other fatty foods.

What's interesting here is that he explains the benefits not only in the general terms of "good eating habits" as medically established but through an examination of the foods we know-and can reasonably infer-Jesus consumed. "We follow Jesus' dictates and example in all other facets of our life", says Colbert, "why not in our eating habits as well"?

The book has two unique features beyond the above-cited encouragements.

The first is that he presents an excellent examination of the ins-and-outs of ancient Jewish dietary law along with very clear explanations of why those laws were so sound nutritionally.

The second-and this is truly unique for such a faith based text-Colbert explains the benefits of moderate alcohol intake-especially as regards red wine. This is not going to be popular in some more conservative Christian circles, but the fact he takes the time and effort-and displays the courage-to do so in a faith based text certainly adds credibility to the authority of his narrative and recommendations.

The second half of the book is primarily recopies and a practical guide to adopting and implementing this diet. Nothing extraordinary but very thoughtfully constructed and presented-one of the best I've seen

As Orson Wells once observed, "Gluttony is not a private sin." The real question is not whether this is a good book with good advice-it is both-it's weather the spin of the WWJ Eat concept is sufficiently motivating to actually get people to get on-and stay on-the program. Perhaps so-a lot of people find willpower in faith where they cannot find it in reason. Even if that's not the case, at least the reader will have learned quite a bit about their dietary traditions and heritage, so everybody who reads the books stands to be better off in one way or another.