Dr. McDougall's Online Discussion Board

"Mastery: The keys to Success and Long-term Fulfillment" by George Leanord.
"Changing for Good" by James Prochaska.

Both of these books have been and continue to be helpful for me to change for the better in all aspects of my life.

Michael

debbie wrote:

Carroll wrote:

Letha wrote:The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less by Barry Schwartz:

I love this... it made me realize I'm not crazy, ha!

I had a really good reminder of this recently when we did the elimination diet... we had rice, sweet potatoes, tapioca, winter squash, kale, spinach, chard, mangoes, blueberries, cherries, pears and dates and that's it to choose from and my daughter actually said, "I'm eating like a queen!" and I got zero issues with the 4yo and toddler, they ate a lot, they ate at meal times and they never once fussed or complained about there being 'nothing' to eat and although I was very busy in the kitchen (with everything needing to be cooked) it definitely made meal time easier for me having very limited options... which of course, begs the question, why'd we ever stray from that?

This book I am going to have to get. I can eat pretty much the same things day in and day out. My hubby on the other hand cant. He can do leftoevers as long as it is not 2 nights in a row. I can have the dinner then have it for lunch and dinner and lunch the next few days ( usually till its gone) but he is only good for about 3 meals and not in a row.

And he is trying to turn the kids that way too. Not conscitously mind you. They have eaten the same thing for lunch since they started table foods. And every so often they wont eat or eat very little. And he tries to tell me that "they are getting tired of it". I think he is tired of making it.
I try to tell him that they cant be tired of something, when they know nothing else.

Deb

The author of this book talks about how if you go into a store that only has one kind of bread, you may feel dissatisfied with your options. When you are then given a choice of 3 or 4 kinds of bread you will likely feel more satisfied. However, there is a point where additional choices do not provide additional satisfaction. In fact, additional choices require additional decisions, time to evaluate, and potential regret as you contemplate whether you’ve made the best possible choice.

In our culture having unlimited choices (at least in theory) and personal freedom are seen as unquestioningly good. The author of this book argues that you can actually increase your personal satisfaction and happiness by limiting your own choices. I think one suggestion he made was always buying the same brand and variety of grocery items to simplify your life.

I found contemplating these concepts interesting in terms of dietary choices. When starting the McDougall program we may wonder if we’ll somehow experience less satisfaction/happiness eating McDougall food. Following the argument of this author, eliminating large numbers of food choices will actually free up our time and energy for more meaningful pursuits which would theoretically lead to greater satisfaction/happiness.
Letha

deleted by alias

Carol wrote:Sorry that this post is repetitive and doesn't offer new information. The China Study would be my No. 1 suggestion. Second would be The Pleasure Trap and third Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease. I found them all complementary.

It was exactly 2 years ago today that I read The China Study and changed my diet forever. I haven't looked back, either.

Happy Anniversary to me!!!

Happy, happy! Way to go, Carol!

Why We Buy (link is to a review of the book) is more about retail in general than food, but has a lot of information about what gets people to part with their money. I'm prone to food impulse buying so seeing it all as a big manipulation helps me think "naaah"

In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan. He's not a vegetarian or vegan, but his mantra is "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."

The book is fascinating and well written. You'll never look at a grocery store the same way, and for sure you'll become a compulsive label reader if you aren't already.
http://www.michaelpollan.com/indefense.php
Martha

Carol wrote:It was exactly 2 years ago today that I read The China Study and changed my diet forever. I haven't looked back, either.

This is exactly what happened to me. The book changed me overnight and I've never looked back. I read it about 19 months ago.

vgnwitch wrote:
Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser ... an eye-opener.

This is a good book. I use it in my English 101 class. I've had some students become vegan after reading it.

I agree with everybody's suggestions. "The China Study" was my "breakthrough" book, also. I read it two years ago, and positively persuaded me to avoid animal-derived foods.

"The Last Lecture" is a great book, too.

Caffeine Blues: Wake up to the hidden dangers of America's #1 drug by Stephen Cherniske, M.S. This was the book that finally got me off coffee.

The First 30 Days by Ariane de Bonvoisin For dealing in an emotionally and psychologically healthy way with changes that have been thrust upon you, as well as for making desired changes.

Karen

The author notes, The foods from a SAD diet are like fertilizer to cancer

Now that i will agree with !! (see Jeff i do understand "some" things

Wow, thanks again everyone!

Yes, thanks very much! I have a list to take to Half Price Books this weekend!

Just to chime in- "the China Study" is what made me go back to being vegan. I read it on night shift at work, which esp. made an impression since (sadly) I nearly always have at least one patient with metastatic cancer.

I just requested The China Study, The Pleasure Trap and Mad Cowboy from my library's inter-library loan serive. I will continue the list of books after I finish these 3. Thanks again!