Author of The Blackout Book and the online course Bloom Where You’re Planted
I have a new favorite book on nutrition to recommend to anyone who wants to easily and painlessly make the change to eating whole, high-quality food. You can be a fly on the wall and listen in on a fascinating, enlightening conversation between everyone’s favorite libertarian farmer, Joel Salatin, and Dr. Sina McCullough, a nutritionist, food activist, and international author.
It’s called Beyond Labels: A Doctor and a Farmer Conquer Food Confusion One Bite at a Time.
I received an advance copy of this book at no cost for review purposes. If you’ve been around for a while, you know that I simply don’t review books I don’t enjoy. I loved this book with every fiber of my being and whole-heartedly endorse it. It helped me get back the healthy food mojo that has slipped a bit during the pandemic.
Is this book for you?
Whether you new to clean eating or processed food never crosses your lips, you’ll find there’s so much to learn in this book. It’s the kind you read over more than once. The authors’ approach is so warm that it feels like you’re sitting down with friends.
The title of their book, Beyond Labels, is a brilliant understatement. Joel and Sina take you through the grocery stores and back to the farms so you can learn more about where your food does (and should) come from. They break it down into more than 70 “practical bites” in which they provide simple action items for any person who wants to change their health and their life through eating better food. Here’s the blurb from Amazon:
In Beyond Labels, Joel Salatin, a farmer who is blazing the trail for regenerative farm practices, and Sina McCullough, a Ph.D. in Nutrition who actually understands unpronounceable carbon chains, bring you on a journey from generally unhealthy food and farming to an ultimately healing place.
Through compelling discussions leavened with a dose of humor, they share practical and easily doable tips about:
- What to eat
- How to find it and prepare it
- How to save money and time in the kitchen
- How to stay true to your principles in our modern culture
Whether you are just starting your health journey or you grow all of your own food, this book is designed to meet you where you are and motivate you to take the next step in your healing journey – ultimately bringing you closer to health, happiness, and freedom. (source)
I’ve followed Salatin’s work for years, using many of his farming philosophies when we had our little homestead in California. The food we raised using this guidance was truly the very highest quality. During the process of reviewing the book, I had the pleasure of getting to know Dr. McCullough, and she’s just as warm, friendly, and brilliant as she seems in the book.
And you don’t have to have a mini-homestead to eat farm-fresh food. This new book will show you how to get healthy, nutritious, delicious food as locally as possible.
Don’t expect a book that will lecture you or make you feel badly about your current eating habits. Joel and Sina offer budget-friendly tips and break down the choices into easily manageable changes that anyone can make. They know that Rome wasn’t built in a day and your new lifestyle won’t be either. You won’t be overwhelmed by confusing technical jargon or grim warnings that you’re going to die if you don’t throw away everything in your kitchen right this very moment. Instead, you’ll be warmly encouraged to nurture and heal yourself with high-quality food.
It may seem financially out of reach to eat healthy these days.
Currently, a lot of folks are struggling financially. Many jobs have been lost to the pandemic and the economic problems that happened afterward. Going to the store and purchasing organic whole foods and GMO-free corn tortillas ground with only the finest volcanic stones is pretty out of reach.
The good news is, this book makes healthy whole food a lot more accessible. It provides you with good, better, and best options that can fit nearly any budget. The way the suggestions are broken down will help you make simple and gradual changes at a reasonable price.
I have also found that when I eat highly nutritious food, I eat far less food. A lot of folks find this to be the case. My theory is that your calories are more nutrient-dense, so your body isn’t having to struggle to get the appropriate nutrients from processed food that has been stripped of its wholesome origins. You get more nutrients in less food, so you’re satisfied with less food. Your body isn’t screaming at you, “FEED ME! I’M STARVING OVER HERE!”
This can definitely balance out some of the expense of better quality food.
The other thing is that processed food doesn’t necessarily mean “cheap” food. I can cook a hearty meal from scratch far less expensively than getting that meal from the freezer section of my local Kroger. And it’s going to taste a lot better, too.
I love that the authors are living in the real world and provide such a wide range of options.
A nutrition book combined with libertarian philosophy? Sign me up!
The book is educational yet entertaining. And it’s the first of its kind that I can recommend without reservation because it fully aligns with my own libertarian philosophies of a free-market economy and personal responsibility.
If you think it’s the government’s job to “fix the food supply” this may not be the book for you. But if you’re ready to take full responsibility for your health through what you put in your body, then Beyond Labels will be the best possible investment you can make to guide you on your way.
Check it out and let me know what you think. I look forward to hearing your thoughts.
I love Joel Salatin and am looking forward to helping make this book a best seller.
I can’t remember where I first encountered it, but a good saying to remember is:
If it COMES from a plant – eat it.
If it’s MADE in a plant – don’t eat it.
In overseas travels, I’ve had an opportunity to see just how much of a difference a change in diet can make. For example, in Asia, fruits, vegetables and fish left me and my family with more energy than we’ve ever had back in the good ole USA. There was very little in the way of factory processed foods.
Books like these are good, but still it requires a person to actually make the changes – and that’s often hard when a body is used to all the high fructose corn syrups, colorings and additives. I hope lots and lots of people will at least take a step in the direction of healthy eating habits.
I’m in the middle of reading now, and yes, every bit as good as expected! Love the way it’s divided into “bites.”
I’ve made a lot of pretty sweeping changes to my diet over the last six months so I think I’ll actually buy a copy of this book soon. I don’t do that often but this looks like a good one. I keep thinking about joining an agricultural cooperative as well but don’t want to waste the food!