In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto

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#1 New York Times Bestseller from the author of How to Change Your Mind, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and Food Rules 

Food. There’s plenty of it around, and we all love to eat it. So why should anyone need to defend it?

Because in the so-called Western diet, food has been replaced by nutrients, and common sense by confusion–most of what we’re consuming today is longer the product of nature but of food science. The result is what Michael Pollan calls the American Paradox: The more we worry about nutrition, the less healthy we see to become. With In Defense of Food, Pollan proposes a new (and very old) answer to the question of what we should eat that comes down to seven simple but liberating words: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” Pollan’s bracing and eloquent manifesto shows us how we can start making thoughtful food choices that will enrich our lives, enlarge our sense of what it means to be healthy, and bring pleasure back to eating.

Our Top Reviews

Reviewer: B. Case
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Omnivore’s Dilemma Updated In A Quick, Focused, Factual Form
Review: I thought I’d discovered gold two years ago when I chanced upon Michael Pollan’s “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” on the new-book shelf at my local library. I’m a health nut, and what Pollan had to say between the covers of that book was exactly what I’d been looking for. The message blew me away. I started telling all my friends, colleagues, and family about how phenomenal and groundbreaking the book was, and encouraging them to read it. I even went so far as to buy five hardbound copies to give out and loan. But in the end I don’t believe I really made any serious converts. Plenty of people wanted to listen! Telling my friends and acquaintances about the content of Pollan’s book made me a big hit in social situations, but I honestly don’t think many people took the time to read the book or, more importantly, to change their eating habits.But Michael Pollan’s book did convert me. Over the last two years, I have changed my eating habits–not as much as I hoped I would, but significantly nonetheless. The problem is, as I am sure anyone else knows who has also tried to follow his path: eating healthy in modern, urban America is extremely difficult.”Omnivore’s Dilemma” went on to become a nationwide bestseller. Thanks in part to the stir that book caused, and the many newspaper articles and television programs that followed, there has been a small but noticeable difference in the availability of healthier, more naturally produced vegetables, fruits, meats, and fish in the area where I live. Merchants now appear to be very conscious of the fact that many buyers are eager to know how and where each batch of produce was grown; whether fish is wild or farm-raised; and whether meats, dairy products, and eggs come from range-, grass- or grain-fed animals. In our area, the local farmers’ markets are thriving, and the supermarkets…well, they don’t seem to be doing so well anymore. Instead there are a number of small health food chains opening up that seem to be robbing the supermarkets of a large portion of their business. People are starting to “vote with their forks.” They are saying they want better quality food, and slowly, their voice is being heard.When I heard that Pollan had a new book out–“In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto,”–I jumped at the chance to be one of the first to buy it. It is a small book, easy and quick to read. I finished it in one enjoyable afternoon. Frankly, there is not much in this new book that wasn’t already covered in “Omnivore’s Dilemma.” However, what this new book accomplishes that the previous book did not, is to present the basic concepts–about what is wrong with the modern Western diet and what we can do to eat in a more healthy manner–in a far more concise and readable form. Gone are the stories, the humor, the horror, the amusing dialogue, and the semitravelogue–all that was, for me at least, very delightful–but it also made the book perhaps too long and chatty for some, especially those just seeking a quick, focused, factual read. This book will most certainly appeal to a wider audience. It reads more like a practical manual for the general public.I was hoping this new book might give me some further clues. It did that, but not as much as I had hoped. Nevertheless, I am happy that I purchased it, and read it. The most important thing it did for me was to reinforce all the lessons I’d learned from “Omnivore’s Dilemma,” and to present them to me with more justifications and updated scientific findings.Hopefully, “In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto” will go on to become another national bestseller, and in the process continue to spread Pollan’s healthy food revolution. A “Manifesto” sounds serious and political and Pollan speaks in the book about people “voting with their forks.” It must be working, because many of the folks in my neighborhood appear to be voting with their forks, and the local farmers, ranchers, and grocery people are listening. There is a small revolution stirring and perhaps this book will help move it along.I recommend this book highly to all who have not yet read “The Omnivore’s Dilemma,” and to those that have, I recommend this book as an inspirational updated refresher course.

Reviewer: E. Fox
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Our relationship with food, how it has changed
Review: Pollan has written a far-reaching, easy to read and very informative book that breaks through the nonsense of reductionist nutrition or what he refers to as “nutritionism.” He steps back from the Western diet to expose how science, industry and culture have created this strange departure of human beings from their historical relationship with food. A radical break from tradition began in the mid 1800’s with the ability to grind grains down to their smallest elements. At the same time as the birth of refined grains, scientists declared that metabolism could be explained in terms of a few chemical nutrients. This approach to nutrition continues today with the USDA MyPyramid nutrition guidelines.But is that how nutrition really works? Pollan exposes many scientific mistakes that have been made since the mid 1800’s. In our quest to isolate nutrients from their food, we ignore the reality that nutrition is as complex as a symphony orchestra. Rather than associating a health outcome as the result of including a nutrient in our diet, we are beginning to see that many health outcomes are due to the exclusion of another nutrient we have yet to identify! Heart disease is no longer linked to saturated fat in the diet but more likely due to the fact that the animals we eat no longer eat grass and the non-traditional use of grains.Why with all of this science and information do we see an increase in chronic degenerative disease throughout the Western world? Could our approach be wrong? What should we do? After Pollan’s in-depth look at the progression of medicine, government policy and the food industry over the past 150 years, he gives his solution. “Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.” Sounds simple and it is. Something simple for a complex problem; that’s refreshing! But, it’s not easy. It requires more time and more money for less food but greater health.Eat whole foods, traditional foods, avoid processed foods, buy from local producers, eat green (leaves) and eat foods (animals) that eat green. Eat wild foods, game and wild caught fish. Other than his omission of recommending lamb as a source of omega-3 fatty acids, his coverage of omega fatty acids, the latest nutrient `craze,’ is one of the best I’ve seen.Non-Western diets may be healthier not because of some `magic bullet’ in these diets but because they eat more variety (our refined grain diet consists primarily of wheat, corn and soy), they don’t snack, they prepare their whole food at home, they sit down together as a family to eat and most importantly… food is a tradition that they love and embrace. If we regarded food with that same joy, rather than fuss over its health consequences, we might even see a reversal in chronic degenerative disease. At the very least, we would once again have a healthy relationship with food.A good companion book for Pollan’s book is “Real Food” by Nina Plank.

Reviewer: Client d’Amazon
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Must read if you’re imterested about food and the whole world behind it. Based on research and history, this book should be on everyone’s list

Reviewer: HFB
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Ich habe das Buch erst in Deutsch gelesen und sehr lachen müssen. Humorvolle Lektüre einer traurigen Wahrheit.Ich habe es dann noch 2x in englisch für meine US Nachbarn gekauft. Von denen habe ich keine Reaktion erhalten,zumindest bisher. Aber ich wollte sie informieren über eine fundamentale Nahrungsverfälschung und deren Folgen.Es ist traurig zu sehen/lesen wie Lebens-MITTEL in chemische Keulen verwandelt werden. Also kann man sich dochnicht wundern über eine nicht gerade gesunde Bevölkerung. Das Ansteigen von Krankheiten ist eben ein Markt derauch gepflegt werden muss, zum Wohle der Hersteller. Es lebe der Mammon!!Ich habe jedoch die Hoffnung, das im Laufe der kommenden Jahre die Menschen wach werden und die vielen Koch-TV-Sendungen dann endlich ihre Wirkung zeigen und Kochen + Essen wieder zu einem schönen Ritual werden wird.Zumal es besser schmeckt! Ich kann das bezeugen.

Reviewer: Placeholder
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: I always worry about what I’m eating. But man was I right in worrying. Micheal Pollan talks about the industrial journey towards mechanized food and how it’s impacting our health. Great read for those looking to learn more about why we eat and how we should think about food

Reviewer: Laura
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Con quest’opera di Pollan si va sul sicuro, scritto benissimo, utile ed interessante.

Reviewer: Jocelyn Valdez Castro
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Me encanto este libro en el cual podemos valorar la nutrición básica, esa con la cual mucho crecimos y que de pronto se vio invadida por una gama de empresas de comida rápida que nos llevaron a el consumo barato y malo de los alimentos

Price effective as of Mar 23, 2025 09:15:53 UTC

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