4.09

5

Mar 29, 2009

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I love, Love, LOVE this book! If you know me, don't be surprised if you get a copy of this from me at some point. The purpose of the book is to uncover the marketing ploys that make you think you're eating healthy food when it's just an excuse to charge you more. This book speaks to me for so many reasons... Allow me to name a few:

I've been lucky enough to travel to foreign countries. Each time I would feel like I only needed to eat half of what I'm used to in order to be satisfied. I've had a I love, Love, LOVE this book! If you know me, don't be surprised if you get a copy of this from me at some point. The purpose of the book is to uncover the marketing ploys that make you think you're eating healthy food when it's just an excuse to charge you more. This book speaks to me for so many reasons... Allow me to name a few:

I've been lucky enough to travel to foreign countries. Each time I would feel like I only needed to eat half of what I'm used to in order to be satisfied. I've had a sneaking suspicion it was because the food I was eating back home was not as healthy and nutritious as in these other countries.

Ever since I became a mom, I've taken providing nutritious food to my family very seriously.

The obesity epidemic scares me to no end nowadays. (Perhaps this can be attributed to becoming a mom as well.)

This book makes simple comparisons between everyday foods and gives advice on what not to eat and what to substitute in its place. Examples from the back of the book:

* A cup of Quacker 100% Natural Granola Oats, Honey, and Raisins contains more calories than 8 chicken wings
* Choosing Rice Krispies Treats over Nutri-Grain Cereal Bars will cut your sugar and calorie intake nearly in half (With this switch, you could lose a pound every 7 weeks!)
* Regular bacon is actually better for you than turkey bacon

While some "don'ts" break my heart (What!? No Oreos!? at 160 calories, 7g fat, 14g sugar), they give equivalents that taste good (Late July Organic Dark Chocolate Sandwich Cookies at 150 calories, 6g fat, 9g sugar, 2g fiber). They don't judge your sinful ways, but they help you make better choices. Another example... BAD: Haagen-Dazs Mint Chip at 300 calories and 19g fat... GOOD: Breyers All Natural Mint Chocolate Chip at 150 calories and 8g fat.

The first part of the book is readable -- about 10-20 pages of important information and research. The rest of the book (300+ pages) is meant to be used as a reference. The chapters are broken out logical sections (snacks, pantry, meat, etc.) for quick reference. ...more

5

Feb 07, 2009

I love this book series. I own this one and the fast food guide. Not everything suggested in this book is healthy, just healthier. Basically, these books aren't necessarily about eating healthy because some things will just NEVER be healthy, but it helps you make the BETTER choice. For instance, in the supermarket guide for cereals they have a section for grain cereals and one for sweet cereals. They mention that sweet cereals aren't ideal for everyday, but IF you're going to eat it, "this what I love this book series. I own this one and the fast food guide. Not everything suggested in this book is healthy, just healthier. Basically, these books aren't necessarily about eating healthy because some things will just NEVER be healthy, but it helps you make the BETTER choice. For instance, in the supermarket guide for cereals they have a section for grain cereals and one for sweet cereals. They mention that sweet cereals aren't ideal for everyday, but IF you're going to eat it, "this what you should eat". That's basically what the whole series is about... making the better choice. After cutting the extra calories/sugar/etc AND WORKING OUT I see how this book can be helpful ...more

3

Apr 02, 2014

The second book I've read in this series. Interesting, but I won't remember all this info at the store. (Granted, I could just read the labels.) Makes you think about what you buy.

4

Mar 23, 2009

The most helpful of these books, for me. I admit I was happiest when I saw something I dislike in the "Not That" column and stuff I love in the "Eat This" column. It's easy for me to compare calories, but the book shows others reasons why things may be less healthy, such as amount of sugars, or lack of fiber. Some of the Not That things weren't necessarily bad for you, just empty calories, which I kind of don't find bad enough to warrant this, if my husband wants to eat 190 calories of Eggo The most helpful of these books, for me. I admit I was happiest when I saw something I dislike in the "Not That" column and stuff I love in the "Eat This" column. It's easy for me to compare calories, but the book shows others reasons why things may be less healthy, such as amount of sugars, or lack of fiber. Some of the Not That things weren't necessarily bad for you, just empty calories, which I kind of don't find bad enough to warrant this, if my husband wants to eat 190 calories of Eggo waffles, it's not hurting anything.

The foods are, for the most part, paired up well for swaps, two caramel flavored ice creams, for example, or two vegetarian lasagnas. Orville Redenbacher's Movie Theater Butter Microwave popcorn has less calories, fat, trans fat, and even sodium than PopSecret's Movie Theater Butter Microwave Popcorn. Easy swap! But there was still the occasional "swap corned beef hash for some chicken in a can" silliness, or "switch a pizza pocket for a spinach feta pocket" where I would definitely argue that they aren't the same or fill the same craving. In the same vein, some of the results were surprising (I'm killing myself over not being able to find it in the book right now, but there was something where the diet version was much MUCH worse than the non-diet version of the EXACT same product, brand and all.) and I was glad to have the book to help me, but some of the comparisons were DUH. Really? Vegetables are healthier than meat? Alfredos are usually worse than marinaras? A Honeybun is worse than an oatbar? (not real examples from the book).

All together, I made a great list of things to check out from the grocery store next shopping trip, and I have an awareness of some particularly bad things that I will keep with me after I return the book to the library. ...more

4

Apr 13, 2009

This sort of book may be what the average American stuck in a food rut needs! My husband is a somewhat picky eater, and what he likes, he LIKES. This book may be just what we need to help us stick to our habitual meals, and just make small changes over time to help us eat more healthy.

To those people giving this book low ratings because a doughnut is still a doughnut and still bad for you... You must not give the reader of this book much credit. Of *course* people know that doughnuts are still This sort of book may be what the average American stuck in a food rut needs! My husband is a somewhat picky eater, and what he likes, he LIKES. This book may be just what we need to help us stick to our habitual meals, and just make small changes over time to help us eat more healthy.

To those people giving this book low ratings because a doughnut is still a doughnut and still bad for you... You must not give the reader of this book much credit. Of *course* people know that doughnuts are still bad for them, and that magically changing brands of doughnuts won't be a miracle weight loss cure. But there are many people out there who are in serious ruts, and need gradual help to overcome their food habits. As Zinczenko says in the book...suggesting spinach instead of chips for a snack just isn't going to work with most people...the spirit is willing to diet, but the flesh is weak. Slowly changing over your existing food habits into more healthy options of the *same foods* will more easily assist the average person into adopting healthier habits at a pace they can tolerate. It's not just kids who sometimes have to be tricked into eating healthy food...sometimes adults too can benefit from slowly tricking themselves into eating better and better without even realizing it.

That, to me, was the point of this book, and why I want to buy my own copy for reference. ...more

4

Nov 21, 2013

It is not my aim to lose weight. It is my aim to eat healthy and when organic is not an option, I find this book (as well as the others in the series) VERY helpful. It answers questions of "this or that?" quite easily as well as "Okay, so use this coupon or toss it?". We enjoy this colorful alternative now and then to our norm: standing in the aisle, leaning on the grocery cart and avidly reading labels.

3

Jan 19, 2014

I think this book is helpful. It lets you know what to eat, especially if you eat out a lot. I was hoping it would be more from the perspective of actual foods to cook in your kitchen as opposed to eating out and decoding menus.

3

Mar 13, 2014

I thought it was just going to be a quick look through, but there was some detailed, good information at the beginning of each chapter. I realized those Marie Callender chicken pot pies I've been depending on for "homemade" meals when I don't have the time are one of the most calorie filled items I could get at the grocery store. I'm going to have to be more conscious about those kinds of items I buy at the store.

5

Oct 27, 2009

On the NOT THAT list: Kelloggs Raisin Bran, Multi Bran Chex, Oscar Mayer Deli Fresh Chicken Breast strips, Hunts Crushed Tomatoes, Progresso Tomato Basil Soup, Newmans Own Tomato & Basil pasta sauce, Mission Multi Grain Wraps, Sara Lee Heart Healthy 100% Whole Wheat Bakery Buns, Arnold Double Fiber 100% Whole Wheat bread

Now don't you want to know what's on the EAT THIS list?

I love that he even includes junk food, sugar cereal, chips, and ice cream. So if you want to eat junk, at least you're On the NOT THAT list: Kelloggs Raisin Bran, Multi Bran Chex, Oscar Mayer Deli Fresh Chicken Breast strips, Hunts Crushed Tomatoes, Progresso Tomato Basil Soup, Newmans Own Tomato & Basil pasta sauce, Mission Multi Grain Wraps, Sara Lee Heart Healthy 100% Whole Wheat Bakery Buns, Arnold Double Fiber 100% Whole Wheat bread

Now don't you want to know what's on the EAT THIS list?

I love that he even includes junk food, sugar cereal, chips, and ice cream. So if you want to eat junk, at least you're not eating the worst of the worst. ...more

4

Apr 21, 2010

Love this book! It's chock full of information to help brave the supermarket aisles. The photographs are wonderful, featuring different types of food under the "Eat This Not That" banner. The amount of sugars and sodium in our food is astounding and this book brings to light the amounts of those elements in hundreds of foods that we put into our bodies everyday.
This is not a health food or a diet
book, but instead a guide to help us live healthier. If we follow only half the recommendations, Love this book! It's chock full of information to help brave the supermarket aisles. The photographs are wonderful, featuring different types of food under the "Eat This Not That" banner. The amount of sugars and sodium in our food is astounding and this book brings to light the amounts of those elements in hundreds of foods that we put into our bodies everyday.
This is not a health food or a diet
book, but instead a guide to help us live healthier. If we follow only half the recommendations, our diet would be 50% healthier.
The only reason I gave this book 4 instead of 5 stars is that is isn't longer. ...more

3

Mar 26, 2009

This fab little book is a must for everyone, whether you are trying to lose weight or just eat healthier. Not only does it give great tasting, healthier substitutions for all your favorite food items, it is jam-packed with shopping tips, great advice and money saving schemes.

Learn the tricks supermarkets use to make you buy certain items. Find out which veggies and fruits are in season and how to store them to get the best and freshest taste. Discover what to look for on food labels and what to This fab little book is a must for everyone, whether you are trying to lose weight or just eat healthier. Not only does it give great tasting, healthier substitutions for all your favorite food items, it is jam-packed with shopping tips, great advice and money saving schemes.

Learn the tricks supermarkets use to make you buy certain items. Find out which veggies and fruits are in season and how to store them to get the best and freshest taste. Discover what to look for on food labels and what to avoid. Get info on how to pick the best and tastiest meat cuts and determine what those weird items on the ingredients list really are.

The easy-to-use book features pictures, detailed break downs of the calorie, fat and sodium content on colour coded tags that correspond to the healthier options making shopping a breeze.
...more

4

Jan 09, 2009

For fear of only thumbing through and looking at the fun facts and pictures, I vowed myself to read this book cover to cover. I will never grocery shop the same again! I thought I did a good job at looking at the nutrition and ingredient labels, until I read this book. I'm not that huge on always buying organic, but I've always wanted to buy food items with very little or no preservatives (although sometimes organic and no preservatives go hand in hand). When you read the labels on some For fear of only thumbing through and looking at the fun facts and pictures, I vowed myself to read this book cover to cover. I will never grocery shop the same again! I thought I did a good job at looking at the nutrition and ingredient labels, until I read this book. I'm not that huge on always buying organic, but I've always wanted to buy food items with very little or no preservatives (although sometimes organic and no preservatives go hand in hand). When you read the labels on some high-processed food items like soda or poptarts it seems like those items aren't even food at all. This book motivated me into thinking of food as fuel, and not just empty calories to feed my cravings. I especially loved the produce section and learning what items and spices contain what type of nutrient for your body. What a fun book! ...more

4

Jul 15, 2009

This is a great book. I love how it compares all kinds of everyday items that I would pick up at a grocery store. But, I also love how it has recipes at the back so you can make some entrees at home without losing the taste of the restaurant dish that they are emulating. I didn't end up trying the recipes (time factor before the book was due at the library)...but the idea is great. The only thing is that there is SO much information, that you really have to buy a copy for yourself if you are This is a great book. I love how it compares all kinds of everyday items that I would pick up at a grocery store. But, I also love how it has recipes at the back so you can make some entrees at home without losing the taste of the restaurant dish that they are emulating. I didn't end up trying the recipes (time factor before the book was due at the library)...but the idea is great. The only thing is that there is SO much information, that you really have to buy a copy for yourself if you are going to be able to remember more than a dozen "better" choices. Some brands are on the "eat this" side for some products but the "not this" side for others (depending upon nutritional values for each individual item). So, there is no possible way to remember it all. If you really want to use this as a guide...just go buy it and save yourself the library overdue fines. ...more

4

Apr 05, 2012

When I mentioned to a friend that I was reading Eat This, Not That! she said, "That sounds like a bossy book!" She's right, but I quite like the bossy title. The whole package is excellent: design, layout, size and content. I checked the book out from the library, but have since bought a copy to keep: it is a great reference guide for shopping and eating. I am an inveterate food label-reader, so am familiar with a lot of the sneaky tricks of the food industry, but the authors provide tons of When I mentioned to a friend that I was reading Eat This, Not That! she said, "That sounds like a bossy book!" She's right, but I quite like the bossy title. The whole package is excellent: design, layout, size and content. I checked the book out from the library, but have since bought a copy to keep: it is a great reference guide for shopping and eating. I am an inveterate food label-reader, so am familiar with a lot of the sneaky tricks of the food industry, but the authors provide tons of information I didn't know. Some of it is jaw-dropping. Despite the bossy title, they share their extensively researched information in a fun and lively way, not at all preachy. I particularly like how they use comparisons to drive home facts: a cup of Quaker Lowfat Granola with Raisins cereal - a "good for you food" - contains 27 grams of sugar, or more than a packet of Peanut M&Ms. Whoa.They also don't tell you NOT to eat packaged or processed foods (although they do maintain throughout the book that eating whole and natural foods is the best practice) but they tell you which ones to avoid and which make better alternatives. The book is small and compact, making it a convenient size to carry with you to the supermarket so you can refer to it as you shop. Important to know information presented in a fun, friendly, easily digestible ;-) format. ...more

3

May 22, 2011

An easy guide to buying healthy food at the store. Because healthy food can be expensive, I liked the many money-saving tips. The book is more focused on the foods than the nutritional science behind their recommendations, but there are plenty of short tips and explanations. It’s packed with photos of food, so read on an empty stomach at your peril!

I skipped through a few of the sections, such as many snacks, candy, frozen meals, and energy drinks, since I rarely if ever consume those. The book An easy guide to buying healthy food at the store. Because healthy food can be expensive, I liked the many money-saving tips. The book is more focused on the foods than the nutritional science behind their recommendations, but there are plenty of short tips and explanations. It’s packed with photos of food, so read on an empty stomach at your peril!

I skipped through a few of the sections, such as many snacks, candy, frozen meals, and energy drinks, since I rarely if ever consume those. The book recommends against eating most of these things regularly, but points out the healthier, lesser-of-two-evils options if you must indulge.

The book’s very helpful for decoding marketing labels and ingredients to help you recognize what’s healthy. The general advice: the simpler the food and the fewer the ingredients, the better. Choose natural over artificial ingredients.

Notes
Save money by buying canned, store-brand fruits and vegetables. Watch out for added sugar and sodium.
For canned meat and fish, choose packed in water, not oil.
Steam vegetables instead of boiling them.
Avoid pickles; they come from nutritionally weak cucumbers and are packed with sodium.

Food recommendations
Fish: chunk light tuna, shrimp, wild (not farmed) salmon, tilapia, catfish
Dairy: reduced fat or skim milk, yogurt, and cheese
Apples: Red Delicious
Bread: whole grain pita, whole wheat, rye. Look for more fiber than sugar, and few ingredients.
Deli meat: fresh roasted turkey (from deli), Hillshire Deli Select turkey
Cheese: mozzarella, Pepper Jack, goat, Swiss, feta, ricotta
Accents: salsa, pesto, cranberry sauce, hummus, guacamole
Spreads: Smart Balance Omega Spread, whipped butter. Butter is better than margarine, because margarine usually contains trans fat.
Peanut butter: should have 2 ingredients max: peanuts and salt
Fruit spreads: fruit should be 1st ingredient; no corn syrup
Pasta sauce: low sugar and fat
Pizza: Margherita, many vegetables, thin crust ...more

2

Oct 21, 2017

A book much like the Standard American Diet (SAD)- some nutrients with a lot of junk. While there are some good nuggets of information, this is throughly old school nutrition with very little understanding of hormonal/endocrine system and evolutionary adaption.

For example, high sugar is rightly noted is bad, but without any insight as it why. It also omits to mention that many of the simple, refined, and complex carbs are sugar. This all grain products and fruits.

Fails to mention the harm from A book much like the Standard American Diet (SAD)- some nutrients with a lot of junk. While there are some good nuggets of information, this is throughly old school nutrition with very little understanding of hormonal/endocrine system and evolutionary adaption.

For example, high sugar is rightly noted is bad, but without any insight as it why. It also omits to mention that many of the simple, refined, and complex carbs are sugar. This all grain products and fruits.

Fails to mention the harm from processed seed oils. Confused about harmful oxidized fats such as Canola oil and good saturated animal fats, and fats overall.

Fails to mention critical impact of the microbiome on nutrient extraction, satiety, intestinal permeability, immune system and hormones.

Skip this junk.
...more

5

Jul 11, 2017

I checked this book out from the cardio rehab program that my husband is currently participating in. As I learn more about what is in my food, I continue to be surprised. Why does one type of rice have almost 30% of my salt intake for the day in a serving when the package sitting next to it has no salt? I have recently become an avid reader of food labels. This book helped me by making me think about several ways to read the label. I did not read it to diet or loose weight, but rather to improve I checked this book out from the cardio rehab program that my husband is currently participating in. As I learn more about what is in my food, I continue to be surprised. Why does one type of rice have almost 30% of my salt intake for the day in a serving when the package sitting next to it has no salt? I have recently become an avid reader of food labels. This book helped me by making me think about several ways to read the label. I did not read it to diet or loose weight, but rather to improve my knowledge about what is really in my food as I work to decrease sugar and salt. I enjoyed it so much that I bought my own copy. ...more

5

Jun 27, 2017

SO much to learn about food, the food industry and grocery stores. A must read for anyone that appreciates good food, cooking, and restaurants. Eye-opening, surprising, and had me running back and forth to the fridge to check out what it is that I bought, and what I should be changing to. Cannot highly recommend enough!!

4

Jun 26, 2018

This is a quick look at the "healthy" parts of a supermarket. You can lose weight just by making healthier choices. Filled with color photos and name brand comparisons. Quick read.

3

Dec 27, 2009

Eat This, Not That: Supermarket Edition / 978-1-60529-838-2

If you don't know the first thing about trans fats, or the difference between organic produce and non-organic product, or how to read nutrition labels in general, then this is a really wonderful place to start. The format is engaging and easy to digest - you can parcel this out in small reading chunks, or just consume it from front to back, with a notepad handy to take notes.

However, for veteran foodies, there's literally nothing new Eat This, Not That: Supermarket Edition / 978-1-60529-838-2

If you don't know the first thing about trans fats, or the difference between organic produce and non-organic product, or how to read nutrition labels in general, then this is a really wonderful place to start. The format is engaging and easy to digest - you can parcel this out in small reading chunks, or just consume it from front to back, with a notepad handy to take notes.

However, for veteran foodies, there's literally nothing new here. Nothing shown or discussed in this book couldn't be gotten from old fashioned label-reading (the kind my mother has drilled into me from my earliest days in the supermarket with her), and some of the advice is a bit conflicting - for instance, some of the "Eat This" items appear as "Not That!"s in the original book in the series. A lot of the advice is less than healthful and more interested in simply shaving calories - the drinks section, for instance, recommends loading up on aspartame over sugar, since there is "little evidence to support cancer-causing claims" and sugar has more calories, after all.

Come to think of it, a lot of the "nutrition" baggage has been tossed over-board for morally-loaded weight-loss words. Whatever else donuts might be, for instance, I don't really think it's healthy to call them "evil" - a term this book slings around frequently, along with the usual "good", "bad", and "naughty" terms that cause an HAES-believer like me to wince. Whatever, guys, I'm here for the nutritional facts alone, not the commentary.

If you've never learned how to read a nutrition label before, this book may help you, but you're just as likely to do well enough with an internet search. The best this book can do is give you a starting point for your grocery lists, but most of even the "good" food listed here was way more "junky" (by the authors' terms) than what I normally eat, so it wasn't much help to me.

~ Ana Mardoll ...more

4

May 12, 2012

Dieting triggers some of my worst compulsive tendencies, but I am trying to live with a little more respect for my body and eat more responsibly. (Yes, those of you who have seen me with Hostess, pepperoni, and cracker packs are thinking I have a long way to go, and you are right.) ETNT books are bright and simple, and hammer a few points home. Eat unprocessed foods, read labels, don't believe package claims. Everything we know, but don't always do. The core of ETNT books are photo spreads of Dieting triggers some of my worst compulsive tendencies, but I am trying to live with a little more respect for my body and eat more responsibly. (Yes, those of you who have seen me with Hostess, pepperoni, and cracker packs are thinking I have a long way to go, and you are right.) ETNT books are bright and simple, and hammer a few points home. Eat unprocessed foods, read labels, don't believe package claims. Everything we know, but don't always do. The core of ETNT books are photo spreads of five or six sets of similar foods, the better choices on the left (eat this!), poorer choices on the right (not that!). The authors assume you will buy convenience foods, and aim you toward those lower in fat, sugar, and sodium and higher in fiber and more nutrient-dense. I'm still much too fat to be a good advertisement for these books, but I can honestly say that I've made painless permanent changes through them. (We've permanently switched our everyday bread choice, changed ketchups, and I'm slowly trading in favorite snacks, or at least having them less often.

Surrounding the photo spreads are articles on marketing, supermarket design, and a closer look at some of the most common food additives and their origins. There is a lot of repetition among different editions of these books, and you may not always be able to find their recommended products at your local grocery. Still, this book in particular would make a good (if somewhat unusual) gift for graduates who are just learning to cook and shop for themselves. ...more

2

Aug 01, 2010

I think I'm somewhat ambivalent about this one. On the plus side, it's an organized study of which supermarket brand of a type of product is healthier than an other. The graphic design is bright and catching with photographs of every single product mentioned. It really must have taken a lot of work to confirm nutritional information for so many items and then compare them against each other. On the other side, the book really had too much information to be immediately useful. It's not the type I think I'm somewhat ambivalent about this one. On the plus side, it's an organized study of which supermarket brand of a type of product is healthier than an other. The graphic design is bright and catching with photographs of every single product mentioned. It really must have taken a lot of work to confirm nutritional information for so many items and then compare them against each other. On the other side, the book really had too much information to be immediately useful. It's not the type of book where you can go to the store, look up two items and have it spit back which one you should by, because it only has sample products of many, many different categories. I really would have appreciated more effort to create simple rules or even a cheat sheet that could be cut out and taken to the store with you. I did end up learning that looking at the nutritional information is very important, as even the best brands have some bad products mixed in with the good ones. I really liked the recipes and meal planning advice at the end of the book, because it seemed to encompass all of the book's ideas. ...more

3

Dec 03, 2009

This was my favorite of the series. Unfortunately, the series is VERY repetitive so just read the one you think is most applicable & skip the others. I think this version (supermarket guide) or the general one is the best unless you really eat out tons (then read the restaurant guide).

Quick, brisk reading with mostly pictures. A lot of it was obvious or expected, but there were a few surprises on certain processed items that are really bad. (Basically look at sugar, salt & trans fat). I This was my favorite of the series. Unfortunately, the series is VERY repetitive so just read the one you think is most applicable & skip the others. I think this version (supermarket guide) or the general one is the best unless you really eat out tons (then read the restaurant guide).

Quick, brisk reading with mostly pictures. A lot of it was obvious or expected, but there were a few surprises on certain processed items that are really bad. (Basically look at sugar, salt & trans fat). I definitely will be reading labels on certain items rather than just going with general assumption as it is sometimes very wrong--ie a nutrigrain bar has WAY more sugar than a rice krispy treat bar. Obviously fresh fruits, veggies, frozen veggies, & whole wheat grains are the best but as we do eat like & some of the processed things so was very enlightening. Well worth the hour or so it took to go thru this book. ...more

4

Jul 07, 2016

I've enjoyed flipping through the pages of this easy read to see how my choices stack up with their healthier swaps. The graphic-focused style helps to put their points into better perspective with what you already have on your shelf at home. I especially enjoy the "Label Decoder" sections of each chapter that help to explain some of the industry lingo.

My only beef with this book is that the author often chooses higher-calorie foods over low-calorie foods because of various other nutrients found I've enjoyed flipping through the pages of this easy read to see how my choices stack up with their healthier swaps. The graphic-focused style helps to put their points into better perspective with what you already have on your shelf at home. I especially enjoy the "Label Decoder" sections of each chapter that help to explain some of the industry lingo.

My only beef with this book is that the author often chooses higher-calorie foods over low-calorie foods because of various other nutrients found in the high-calorie foods. Personally, I would choose the low-calorie option regardless of the additional benefits of the high-calorie foods, but that simply comes down to personal preference.

I already follow a very healthy, ingredient-conscious diet, but I am sure that the average person could lose a few pounds by following the suggestions in this book. Whether you plan to change your shopping habits or not, it's definitely worth a look-through. ...more

2

Jun 01, 2013

Frankly, I was disappointed. I've read several articles from "Eat This, Not That" on various websites so when I came across the book in the library, I thought I would try it out. Most of the time the authors are giving the reader the lesser of the two evils and they admit that ice cream bars aren't really healthy. They also compared items like Cliff bars and Lara bars. I am sure the average consumer is "that" dumb and doesn't realize that these particular foods are NOT meant for everyday Frankly, I was disappointed. I've read several articles from "Eat This, Not That" on various websites so when I came across the book in the library, I thought I would try it out. Most of the time the authors are giving the reader the lesser of the two evils and they admit that ice cream bars aren't really healthy. They also compared items like Cliff bars and Lara bars. I am sure the average consumer is "that" dumb and doesn't realize that these particular foods are NOT meant for everyday consumption and are specially made with a mix of carbs and fat for hikers/bikers/athletes who are using them for a specific purpose and not for a snack. I did learn more about different fruits and vegetables and how to know if they are ripe, what to store together and what to keep apart. This book just didn't turn out to be what I was looking for. ...more