Good Decisions... Most of the Time: Because Life Is Too Short Not to Eat Chocolate

Readers looking to lose weight—or just eat more healthily—will enjoy this well-organized and educational approach to making better nutritional choices. Nutritional therapist Brooks uses the image of “the hallway of life,” which we can use to walk toward either illness or health. According to her, by incorporating the “nutritional foundations” described here, everything else will fall into place. Brooks provides information about simple carbohydrates and outlines the no-sugar challenge, the book’s first nutritional foundation. Other sections feature complex carbs such as legumes (regarding vegetables, Brooks said, “Eat as many as you like”), healthy fats and oils, and water and electrolytes. Brooks also covers recipes such as vanilla rum-soaked pineapple, roasted garbanzo bean snacks, and an herbal brain booster. Each section has a simple homework assignment and lesson about the psychology of food. Those lessons cover awareness of choices, heeding your inner voice, and even meditating your way out of eating French fries. Brooks bolsters her insights with “nutritional nuggets” (fish oil might help achy legs; seafood eaters should add dandelions to their diets). Even with all the information imparted, the book’s most appealing aspect is Brooks’s patient, authoritative voice—no preaching, no cheerleading, just an informed guide sharing useful advice. [em](BookLife) [/em]