The old adage of you are what you eat is a valuable reminder when choosing what to eat against goals for disease prevention. Author Bonnie Juettner examines how a person's diet impacts disease. Readers will learn about four diseases that a good diet can prevent. Teens who are making a difference through diet are presented, as well as what the government is doing in efforts to help us understand the importance of dieting.
Grades 6-9. The attractively designed title in the Nutrition & Health series will help middle-grade and high-school students make good decisions about the food they eat. Unlike some nutrition books, the tone remains mostly positive, informing readers about the negative effects of poor choices such as obesity and disease while also encouraging them to take control of their own decisions by reading nutrition labels. Although it uses the nutrition pyramid, recently put aside for the newer “plate” model, the information remains very current, and each book highlights recent scientific studies. Diet and Disease discusses the food choices that lead to the “big four” diseases of cancer, heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes and shows how good nutrition can help prevent deadly disease. Each volume is clearly written, addressing real-life concerns with solid information and perspective, and includes color photographs, notes, and lists of further resources.
Plenty of valid research studies are cited in this series. Though information that a poor diet can lead to stroke and heart disease may not resonate with teen readers, current trends, such as energy drinks and celebrity endorsements of junk food products, are covered and may spark some interest. Stock photos, useful sidebars, and "Nutrition Fact" trivia support the main texts. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind. [Review covers these Nutrition and Health titles: Diet and Disease, Junk Food Junkies, and Food Myths and Facts.]
Gr 6-10-While the old food pyramid, retired in 2005, might have been a better-looking graphic, using it in current publications is unacceptable; the USDA daily food guide changed to a new graphic titled "My Plate," but these books feature the 1992 graphic. While large, colorful photos of food tend to be enticing, the dated photos of people cause one to question the currency of the information. These are attractive books, but when reading about food groups such as carbohydrates or insoluble fiber, the target audience would benefit from specifics rather than generalities that do not name what foods fall under these categories. Close-ups of obese adults, such as the hairy torso of an adult male, are missing the target audience. Despite the dated food pyramid featured, Kathlyn Gay's The Scoop on What to Eat (Enslow, 2009) is a better option for clear and specific information that relates directly to the lives of young people.-Janet S. Thompson, Chicago Public Library (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.