Eating Smart: ABCs of the New Food Literacy

Though the bookshelves may be brimming with healthy, low-fat, low-calorie cookbooks, this no-nonsense approach by syndicated columnist Jones might just make a dent in the nation's bulging midsection. Essentially more essay than cookbook, her rather diminutive volume is loaded with practical suggestions for rethinking the way we shop, cook and eat. At its heart is an eating plan that suggests we ``eat at least five times as much carbohydrate foods as animal protein,'' a theory that dovetails nicely with the American Dietetic Association's new ``food pyramid'' nutrition guidelines. The few recipes included are good low-fat ideas for breakfasts, entrees and snacks featuring a raspberry walnut vinaigrette dressing with negligible fat, and no-fat refried beans. Part of the book's value, too, is the author's use of catchy and all-too-true phrases--admonishments like ``Fat is an accessory. If you eat it you wear it.'' On so-called nutrition information, she comments: ``Remember that the word label rhymes with fable , and you'll find a wealth of storybook nutrition on the labels.'' Her wisest advice on supermarket shopping: ``As soon as you have everything on your list that's in the middle of the market where the prepared food is sold, run for the wallssic !'' These walls represent today's safe, and nutritionally smart, haven: produce, dairy and breads. BOMC and HomeStyle alternates . (June)