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Food and health misinformation
B
o o K
S
Chicago, IL 60605, 1975, 354 pp., $19.50. Gastronomy is highly recommended reading. Part of the World Anthropology series which grew out of the 1973 IXth International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences, this volume includes 22 papers whose common thread is the study of food and food habits. The book is organized in six sections. The first section focuses primarily on prehistoric changes in human dietary patterns; section two on "Dietary Change" includes papers on contemporary populations, with papers by Jerome and Wilson being particularly relevant to those working in the U.S. The section on "Tropical Foods" contains three excellent papers: an overview of the ecology of cassava as a staple, a description of indigenous food processing in Oceania, and a historical and prehistorical account of the domestication of yams in Africa. Two short papers on Cherokee Indian food comprise the whole of the section on "American Indian Food." The section on "Food in Tradition" reflects the editor's primary interest in bread and its uses, with five papers on bread in different cultures, as well as an amazingly detailed description of the folk beliefs associated with the European practice of boiling blood sausage. Also included is an excellent paper by KatonaApte on Hindu food habits. The somewhat uneven quality of the contents is more than compensated for by the rich detail and the breadth of coverage. The price is relatively high, but Gastronomy would make a wonderful gift, to yourself or to a colleague interested in food habits. Gail G. Harrison, Ph.D., R.D., Department oj Family and Community Medicine, College oj Medicine, UniversityoJArizona, Tucson, Ariz.
FOOD AND HEALTH MISINFORMA nON
The Health Robbers, Barrett, S. and G. Knight, Eds., George F. Stickley Company, 210 W. Washington Square, Philadelphia, PA 19106,1976, 340pp., $10.50. There is no doubt that millions of individuals in this country make decisions on their personal health believing anything is worth a try. The term "rob" is defined as "to deprive of something due, expected, or desired." This book graphically describes how the public is literally being "robbed" of its health and money through unproven methods of cancer management, patent medicines and remedies for conditions which do not exist, "amazing" diets for weight control and other "wondrous" discoveries. It also describes the efforts of individuals, organizations and agencies to protect the public's money and health. 84
Journal of Nutrition Education
Vol.9
No.2
The Health Robbers was sponsored by the Lehigh Valley Committee Against Health Fraud, Inc. The editors are Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Committee and Executive Assistant for the American Institute of Nutrition. The 23 authors who have contributed chapters to this book present facts based on valid evidence in a direct and practical manner. Several chapters should interest nutrition educators, namely chapters on weight control diets and fads, food quackery, "health" and "organic" foods, and confused nutrition "crusaders" and misguided professionals. The belief in magic is still a major factor in the success of health fads and cults in spite of the fact that the miracles of modern medicine are much more impressive and deserving of the public's confidence. The American people continue to feed billions of dollars annually into the tills of the health cultists. When one considers that approximately $485 million is spent annually on useless products in the treatment of arthritis and the estimated yearly income in cancer quackery alone runs to billions of dollars, I believe these figures are self-explanatory. Many people believe that health frauds are so preposterous that any thinking person could easily spot them. This is a fallacy; if there are any doubts that quackery is thriving in this age of enlightenment, this book is a must on your reading list. It clearly depicts how, in the face of pain and anxiety, individuals will turn to ineffectual and potentially dangerous devices, treatments and/or products that are promoted by unqualified practitioners as a cure or a palliative. The Health Robbers was written to inform the public and thus protect it from being a victim of health frauds. It also provides the incentive to press for stronger consumer protection laws and better health education. We have been presented with the facts and the challenge-the rest is up to us. Therese Mondeika, R.D., Assistant Director, Department oj Foods and Nutrition, American Medical Association, Chicago, Ill.
PLANNING AND POLICY
Nutrition Planning in the Developing World, Proceedings of regional workshops held by CARE in India, Kenya and Colombia, CARE, 660 First Ave., New York, NY 10016, 1976, 267 pp., softcover, free to nutrition professionals, limited quantities available. This book is a distillation to material presented at three regional workshops planned primarily for the instruction of CARE personnel working in the field and already involved in nutrition-related programs. Guidelines are given for the planning process, including identification of April-June 1977
the specific nature and causes of malnutrition, assessment of its extent and severity, methods of assessing nutritional status, the design of nutrition surveys and techniques of program evaluation. The recommended approach is in every case practical and based on a real situation. Several chapters describe current or recent nutrition projects as relevant case studies, and three are concerned specifically with nutrition education. There is also an excellent and provocative chapter on "The Political Parameters of Nutrition Planning." Because of its relatively simple and nontechnical language, the book should be useful to all readers involved in the planning and implementation of community nutrition programs in the developing world, whether or not they have had formal training in nutrition. Margot Higgins, B.A., Nutrition program consultant, Washington, D.C.
People and Food Tomorrow, HoIlingsworth, D. and E. Morse, Eds., Applied Science Publishers, Ltd., Ripple Rd., Barking, Essex 1011 OSA, U.K., 1976, 173 pp., $20.00. Through the review papers of 15 expert contributors from the U.K., Europe and India, this book presents a stimulating overview of some nutrition policy questions. It is the proceedings of the British Nutrition Foundation's Second Conference, held in 1976. Its themes were the scientific, economic, political and social factors affecting food supplies in the last quarter of this century. The papers cover diverse subjects, including food quantity and quality; social changes and diet; future nutrient needs; national nutrition policies; food production and processing; new food sources; and economic, physical and political constraints on meeting food needs. Problems of both developing and industrialized countries (with emphasis on the U.K.) are covered, and throughout, the need for interdependence in a world community is stressed. The book is recommended as a supplementary reference for college-level applied nutrition courses and interdisciplinary studies or for organizations concerned with future food and nutrition policies. M. c.P.
WEIGHT CONTROL
Eating Is Okay! A radical approach to successful weight loss, Jordan, H.A., L.S. Levitz, and G.M. Kimbrell; Gelman, S., Ed., Rawson Associates Publishers, 630 Third Ave., New York, NY 10017, 1976, 180pp., $7.95. Eating is OK, and weight loss is possible once you can accept the fact that permanent loss is linked to every aspect
o o K
S
Chicago, IL 60605, 1975, 354 pp., $19.50. Gastronomy is highly recommended reading. Part of the World Anthropology series which grew out of the 1973 IXth International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences, this volume includes 22 papers whose common thread is the study of food and food habits. The book is organized in six sections. The first section focuses primarily on prehistoric changes in human dietary patterns; section two on "Dietary Change" includes papers on contemporary populations, with papers by Jerome and Wilson being particularly relevant to those working in the U.S. The section on "Tropical Foods" contains three excellent papers: an overview of the ecology of cassava as a staple, a description of indigenous food processing in Oceania, and a historical and prehistorical account of the domestication of yams in Africa. Two short papers on Cherokee Indian food comprise the whole of the section on "American Indian Food." The section on "Food in Tradition" reflects the editor's primary interest in bread and its uses, with five papers on bread in different cultures, as well as an amazingly detailed description of the folk beliefs associated with the European practice of boiling blood sausage. Also included is an excellent paper by KatonaApte on Hindu food habits. The somewhat uneven quality of the contents is more than compensated for by the rich detail and the breadth of coverage. The price is relatively high, but Gastronomy would make a wonderful gift, to yourself or to a colleague interested in food habits. Gail G. Harrison, Ph.D., R.D., Department oj Family and Community Medicine, College oj Medicine, UniversityoJArizona, Tucson, Ariz.
FOOD AND HEALTH MISINFORMA nON
The Health Robbers, Barrett, S. and G. Knight, Eds., George F. Stickley Company, 210 W. Washington Square, Philadelphia, PA 19106,1976, 340pp., $10.50. There is no doubt that millions of individuals in this country make decisions on their personal health believing anything is worth a try. The term "rob" is defined as "to deprive of something due, expected, or desired." This book graphically describes how the public is literally being "robbed" of its health and money through unproven methods of cancer management, patent medicines and remedies for conditions which do not exist, "amazing" diets for weight control and other "wondrous" discoveries. It also describes the efforts of individuals, organizations and agencies to protect the public's money and health. 84
Journal of Nutrition Education
Vol.9
No.2
The Health Robbers was sponsored by the Lehigh Valley Committee Against Health Fraud, Inc. The editors are Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Committee and Executive Assistant for the American Institute of Nutrition. The 23 authors who have contributed chapters to this book present facts based on valid evidence in a direct and practical manner. Several chapters should interest nutrition educators, namely chapters on weight control diets and fads, food quackery, "health" and "organic" foods, and confused nutrition "crusaders" and misguided professionals. The belief in magic is still a major factor in the success of health fads and cults in spite of the fact that the miracles of modern medicine are much more impressive and deserving of the public's confidence. The American people continue to feed billions of dollars annually into the tills of the health cultists. When one considers that approximately $485 million is spent annually on useless products in the treatment of arthritis and the estimated yearly income in cancer quackery alone runs to billions of dollars, I believe these figures are self-explanatory. Many people believe that health frauds are so preposterous that any thinking person could easily spot them. This is a fallacy; if there are any doubts that quackery is thriving in this age of enlightenment, this book is a must on your reading list. It clearly depicts how, in the face of pain and anxiety, individuals will turn to ineffectual and potentially dangerous devices, treatments and/or products that are promoted by unqualified practitioners as a cure or a palliative. The Health Robbers was written to inform the public and thus protect it from being a victim of health frauds. It also provides the incentive to press for stronger consumer protection laws and better health education. We have been presented with the facts and the challenge-the rest is up to us. Therese Mondeika, R.D., Assistant Director, Department oj Foods and Nutrition, American Medical Association, Chicago, Ill.
PLANNING AND POLICY
Nutrition Planning in the Developing World, Proceedings of regional workshops held by CARE in India, Kenya and Colombia, CARE, 660 First Ave., New York, NY 10016, 1976, 267 pp., softcover, free to nutrition professionals, limited quantities available. This book is a distillation to material presented at three regional workshops planned primarily for the instruction of CARE personnel working in the field and already involved in nutrition-related programs. Guidelines are given for the planning process, including identification of April-June 1977
the specific nature and causes of malnutrition, assessment of its extent and severity, methods of assessing nutritional status, the design of nutrition surveys and techniques of program evaluation. The recommended approach is in every case practical and based on a real situation. Several chapters describe current or recent nutrition projects as relevant case studies, and three are concerned specifically with nutrition education. There is also an excellent and provocative chapter on "The Political Parameters of Nutrition Planning." Because of its relatively simple and nontechnical language, the book should be useful to all readers involved in the planning and implementation of community nutrition programs in the developing world, whether or not they have had formal training in nutrition. Margot Higgins, B.A., Nutrition program consultant, Washington, D.C.
People and Food Tomorrow, HoIlingsworth, D. and E. Morse, Eds., Applied Science Publishers, Ltd., Ripple Rd., Barking, Essex 1011 OSA, U.K., 1976, 173 pp., $20.00. Through the review papers of 15 expert contributors from the U.K., Europe and India, this book presents a stimulating overview of some nutrition policy questions. It is the proceedings of the British Nutrition Foundation's Second Conference, held in 1976. Its themes were the scientific, economic, political and social factors affecting food supplies in the last quarter of this century. The papers cover diverse subjects, including food quantity and quality; social changes and diet; future nutrient needs; national nutrition policies; food production and processing; new food sources; and economic, physical and political constraints on meeting food needs. Problems of both developing and industrialized countries (with emphasis on the U.K.) are covered, and throughout, the need for interdependence in a world community is stressed. The book is recommended as a supplementary reference for college-level applied nutrition courses and interdisciplinary studies or for organizations concerned with future food and nutrition policies. M. c.P.
WEIGHT CONTROL
Eating Is Okay! A radical approach to successful weight loss, Jordan, H.A., L.S. Levitz, and G.M. Kimbrell; Gelman, S., Ed., Rawson Associates Publishers, 630 Third Ave., New York, NY 10017, 1976, 180pp., $7.95. Eating is OK, and weight loss is possible once you can accept the fact that permanent loss is linked to every aspect