|
A Life Better Than I Deserve
Sep. 20, 2009
Review: Nutrition 101: Choose Life!
Recently I was delighted to receive the Nutrition 101: Choose Life! E-book from Growing Healthy Homes. When I downloaded and opened this text I was immediately impressed by the quantity of information as well as the beautiful illustrations. This e-book, which is also available as a printed book, is a well-organized, well-researched and well-written resource.
Overall I was quite impressed by the quality of information included in this 448 page volume which has been co-authored by four talented Christian homeschooling mothers who have backgrounds in the diverse fields of home economics, dietetics, naturopathic medicine, communications, herbalism, aromatherapy, and nutrition counseling. Far exceeding my expectations, this resource covers a wide array of important health topics as well as some surprisingly good recipes.
It could easily be used as a high school level health plus home economics curriculum. Yet it can also be read by the homeschooling parent and then summarized for elementary children and then followed by the discussion questions, hands-on activities, and even additional optional resources included at the conclusion of each chapter. In fact, I recommend it for this purpose, as developing a lifelong habit of healthy eating will be easier to instill the earlier you begin teaching and training your children. Don’t forget to have fun experimenting with these recipes in the kitchen and then sampling at meal times. Our own family has already discovered a couple of new favorite meals!
Now, this comprehensive book does contain some information and insights which may be new to the average homeschooling family, for it relies on some recent nutritional research which is not in the “politically correct” nutritional mainstream. For example, this book does propose a different food pyramid which is likely a much healthier one than the current FDA’s suggested pyramid–yet it may be more time-consuming and possibly more expensive to follow.
Yet if you are concerned about your family’s overall health and decreasing your own and your children’s likelihood of developing disease while increasing your overall quality of life, this resource would be a wonderful addition to your home. What I really like about this book is that enough diverse and appetizing recipes are included to actually make it possible to strive toward its proposed food pyramid and healthy eating goals–while enough support is given for its theories to inspire the average family to try out a new way of eating–and living.
This book contains six comprehensive units focusing on:
- the brain and nervous system
- the digestive system
- the respiratory, olfactory, auditory, visual systems
- the muscular and skeletal systems
- the cardiovascular and immune systems
- and the endocrine system and emotions
These six units comprise nearly 300 pages of the text. 31 appendices covering such diverse topics as how to select healthy produce, choose healthy fats, use spices to boost health, select nutritional supplements, develop healthy sleep patterns, and how to clean your house without toxins round out the 126 pages of appendices. This book also includes a detailed index to help you easily locate information easily.
Strengths:
- comprehensive
- well-researched
- the recipes complement the recommendations
- mouth-watering, satisfying recipes further encourage a move toward more healthy food choices
- the book can form the basis for a health course credit as well as a nutrition/home economics course credit
Weaknesses:
- the recipes may be more expensive to create than many are used to spending
- the text does contain some typos, which although not uncommon in first editions and not detracting from the information it contains, can be distracting
- the book itself is somewhat expensive–though justified in regard to its comprehensive nature and ability to improve your family's health--consider setting aside funds over time if the cost is prohibitive for your family!
Nutrition 101: Choose Life! is available for $99.95 as a physical book, or for $79.95 as a CD-Rom e-book product. You may also choose to purchase the book and CD-Rom combination for $129.95. Highly recommended. If you'd like to read some other reviews of this resource, please see the Homeschool Crew blog.
|
| • Post A Comment! • Send to a Friend!
|
Comments
|
