Gene Stone

Michael Greger, MD

From the physician behind the wildly popular website NutritionFacts.org, How Not to Die reveals the groundbreaking scientific evidence behind the only diet that can prevent and reverse many of the causes of disease-related death. The vast majority of premature deaths can be prevented through simple changes in diet and lifestyle. In How Not to Die, Dr. Michael Greger, the internationally-renowned nutrition expert, physician, and founder of NutritionFacts.org, examines the fifteen top causes of premature death in America — heart disease, various cancers, diabetes, Parkinson's, high blood pressure, and more — and explains how nutritional and lifestyle interventions can sometimes trump prescription pills and other pharmaceutical and surgical approaches, freeing us to live healthier lives. The simple truth is that most doctors are good at treating acute illnesses but bad at preventing chronic disease. The fifteen leading causes of death claim the lives of 1.6 million Americans annually. This doesn't have to be the case. By following Dr. Greger's advice, all of it backed up by strong scientific evidence, you will learn which foods to eat and which lifestyle changes to make to live longer. History of prostate cancer in your family? Put down that glass of milk and add flaxseed to your diet whenever you can. Have high blood pressure? Hibiscus tea can work better than a leading hypertensive drug-and without the side effects. Fighting off liver disease? Drinking coffee can reduce liver inflammation. Battling breast cancer? Consuming soy is associated with prolonged survival. Worried about heart disease (the number 1 killer in the United States)? Switch to a whole-food, plant-based diet, which has been repeatedly shown not just to prevent the disease but often stop it in its tracks. In addition to showing what to eat to help treat the top fifteen causes of death, How Not to Die includes Dr. Greger's Daily Dozen — a checklist of the twelve foods we should consume every day. Full of practical, actionable advice and surprising, cutting edge nutritional science, these doctor's orders are just what we need to live longer, healthier lives.

Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease

How Not to Die

Michael Greger

Why rely on drugs and surgery to cure you of life-threatening disease when the right decisions can prevent you from falling ill to begin with? 'How Not To Die' gives effective, scientifically-proven nutritional advice to prevent our biggest killers - heart disease, breast cancer, prostate cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes - and reveals the astounding health benefits that simple dietary choices can provide.

Sam Skurka

For example, until recently, we assumed plants and plantlike organisms were the only ones that could directly capture and utilize the energy from the sun. Plants photosynthesize. Animals don't. That's because plants have chlorophyll and animals do not. Well, technically, you do have chlorophyll in your body-temporarily, at least-after you eat greens. But it would seem there's no way the chlorophyll that enters your bloodstream after that salad could react with sunlight. After all, light can't penetrate through your skin, right? Wrong. Any kid who's ever shined a torch through her or his fingers could have told you that.

The red wavelengths of sunlight do penetrate into your body." In fact, if you step outside on a sunny day, there's enough light reaching your brain that you could actually read this page inside your skull. Your internal organs are bathed in sunlight, along with any chlorophyll circulating in your bloodstream. Although any energy produced by the chlorophyll would be negligible," it turns out that light-activated chlorophyll in your body may help regenerate a critical molecule called coenzyme Q10.

The choline in eggs, like the carnitine in red meat, is converted into a toxin called trimethylamine" by bacteria that exist in the guts ofthose who eat meat." And trimethylamine, once oxidized in the liver, appears to increase the risk of heart attack, stroke, and premature death.

They found out that people who drank two or more cups of coffee daily appeared to have about only half the suicide risk compared to non-coffee drinkers." What about drinking more than four cups a day? A Kaiser Permanente study of more than one hundred thousand people found that suicide risk seemed to continue to drop with increases in coffee dose. People who drank more than six cups a day were 80 percent less likely to commit suicide, though drinking eight or more cups a day has been associated with increased suicide risk.

They found out that people who drank two or more cups of coffee daily appeared to have about only half the suicide risk compared to non-coffee drinkers." What about drink ing more than four cups a day? A Kaiser Permanente study of more than one hundred thousand people found that suicide risk seemed to continue to drop with increases in coffee dose. People who drank more than six cups a day were 80 percent less likely to commit sui cide, though drinking eight or more cups a day has been associated with increased suicide risk. 49

So why are vegetable nitrates and nitrites okay but the same compounds from meat are linked to cancer? Because nitrites themselves are not carcinogenic; they turn into carcinogens. Nitrites only become harmful when they turn into nitrosamines and nitrosamides. For them to do that, amines and amides must be present, and amines and amides are found in abundance in animal products. This transformation can happen in the meat itself or in your stomach after you eat it. In the case of plant foods, the vitamin C and other antioxidants that are found naturally in them block the formation of these carcinogens in your body. This process would explain why intake of both nitrate and nitrite from processed meat has been linked to kidney cancer, but no increased risk was found for nitrate or nitrite intake from plant sources.

Those who eat plant-based diets may even have an 11 percent higher resting metabolic rate. That means vegetarians could be burning more calories even in their sleep. Why? This could be because vegetarians have a higher gene expression of a fat-burning enzyme called carnitine palmitoyltransferase, which effectively shovels fat into the mitochondrial furnaces in your cells.

Not all fats affect our muscle cells in the same way. For example,palmitate, the kind of saturated fat found mostly in meat, dairy, and eggs, causes insulin resistance. On the other hand, oleate, the monounsaturated fat found mostly in nuts, olives, and avocados, may actually protect against the detrimental effects of the saturated fat. Saturated fats can wreak all sorts of havoc in muscle cells and may result in the accumulation of more toxic breakdown products (such as ceramide and diacylglycerol) and free radicals and can cause inflammation and even mitochondrial dysfunction-that is, interference with the little power plants (mitochondria) within our cells."This phenomenon is known as lipotoxicity (lipo meaning fat,as in liposuction).“ If we take muscle biopsies from people, saturated fat buildup in the membranes of their muscle cells correlates with insulin resistance. Monounsaturated fats, however, are more likely to be detoxified by the body or safely stored away.

This discrepancy may explain why individuals eating plant-based diets are better protected from diabetes.

The Washington, D.C., Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the meat industry's position, asserting that the USDA can allow potentially deadly Salmonella in meat because "American housewives and cooks normally are not ignorant or stupid and their methods of preparing and cooking of food do not ordinarily result in salmonellosis That's like saying minivans don't need airbags or seat belts, and kidsdon't need car seats, because soccer moms don't ordinarily crash into things.

The Washington, D.C., Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the meat industry's position, asserting that the USDA can allow potentially deadly Salmonella in meat because "American housewives and cooks normally are not ignorant or stupid and their methods of preparing and cooking of food do not ordinarily result in salmonellosis." That's like saying minivans don't need airbags or seat belts, and kids don't need car seats, because soccer moms don't ordinarily crash into things.

Nearly three-quarters of all emerging and reemerging human diseases arise from the animal kingdom.

The U.S. health care system runs on a fee-for-service model in which doctors get paid for the pills and procedures they prescribe, rewarding quantity over quality.

Why rely on drugs and surgery to cure you of life-threatening disease when the right decisions can prevent you from falling ill to begin with? How Not To Die' gives effective, scientifically-proven nutritional advice to prevent our biggest killers - heart disease, breast cancer, prostate cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes - and reveals the astounding health benefits that simple dietary choices can provide.

Amena Elkayal

4 out of 5....
This is really so helpful! A lot of information but not absolutely boring. I LOVE IT!

Eine Mode-Diät jagt die nächste. Doch unterm Strich bringt keine den gewünschten, dauerhaften Gewichtsverlust. Wer eine Zeitlang auf einzelne Nahrungsmittel verzichtet, nimmt vielleicht kurzfristig ab, produziert auf Dauer jedoch Mangel - und Hunger. Michael Greger geht es ganzheitlich an: Er schlüsselt das komplexe Thema Ernährung bis ins kleinste Detail auf. Und zieht seine Erkenntnisse aus schließlich aus evidenzbasierten Fakten. Vom Aufbau eines gesunden Mikrobioms, über einen verbesserten Stoffwechsel mittels Chronobiologie, bis hin zum Einfluss von Gewürzen liefert Greger Tipps und wissenschaftlich belegte Techniken wie jeder mühelos sein Idealgewicht halten kann. Verabschieden Sie sich endgültig von Kalorienzählen und Verzicht. Michael Gregers Empfehlungen machen nicht nur schlank, sondern garantieren eine starke Gesundheit. Mit 21 ultimativen Abnehmboostern zur Beschleunigung der Fettverbrennung

Gesund abnehmen und dauerhaft schlank bleiben dank neuester wissenschaftlich bewiesener Erkenntnisse

How Not to Diet

matej yangwao

** spoiler alert **
           Today I slept less than usual, so my review is bit biased. 

Books shows you with some scientific based studies what's best to control your diet and regulate your weight even w/o gym

Regarding slow eating, learned there is 21 minutes rule to eat your food, no less with reducing bite size or increase number of chews.

I'm taking away that plant based diet has lack of palatability.


≥There are various health benefits of fiber, but here are the two major benefits. Number one, fiber is an appetite suppressant, which means when you take adequate fiber, you won't feel the usual urge to consume too many calories than you can burn. Secondly, fiber serves as nutrients to the mutual bacteria in your gut. These bacteria help facilitate processes like body vitamin production, while they are in turn fed and sheltered by the body.

≥Some even believe fiber can be taken from steaks and other animal sources. But the truth is, plants are the only genuine sources of fiber. Fruits, legumes and whole grains are wonderful sources to consider.

≥water rich foods “add bulk to food without adding calories.” Foods like vegetables and fruits which have high water content will get you satisfied easily, and reduce your appetite for any high calorie food.

≥You should also consider foods that are low in fat and added sugar. Foods like leafy greens (spinach, lettuce and kale are good examples), beans, legumes, and fruits.

≥Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

≥The top seven water–rich foods are cucumber, tomatoes, spinach, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, oranges, and apples.

≥we have two appetite control systems: the homeostatic system (which seeks to maintain weight balance) and the hedonic system (which responds to pleasure and palatability). When food appeals strongly to our senses of sight, taste and smell, then the hedonic system kicks in immediately, making us eat as much as — or even more than — our stomach can take.

≥Chronobiology is a branch of biology that studies how rhythms of the sun, moon and seasons may affect our natural — physical, mental and emotional — cycles.

≥Matter of fact, if you're going to skip any meals regularly, it should be dinner because most foods we eat late into the night have difficulty digesting before morning.

≥Here are some chronobiological tips that encourage weight loss:
• Sleep at night so you can be active during the day
• Sleep 6–7 hours a night
• Go to bed early
• Don't go to bed immediately after dinner; dinner should be served at least two and a half hours before going to bed

≥Firstly, Dr. Greger recommends drinking two cups of (unflavored) water before you begin eating. This should be followed by “negative calorie foods” — foods like fruits and veggies that fill you up easily without adding calories.

≥Try hard not to rush your eating. Studies show that the more time people spend eating, the less their chances of overeating. So, drop distractions and eat slowly. You could increase the number of chews before you swallow, or decrease the bite size, whatever you want to do. Just don't rush the meal. Greger calls this“the 21 minutes rule.” As much as possible, don't take less than 21 minutes to eat.

≥The reason many people find it hard to follow through on purely plant based sources is the lack of palatability.

This is an impressive resource for nutrition knowledge; some recommendations probably should be taken with a grain of salt (pun intended re: Dr. Greger's anti-salt crusade) but ultimately will be helpful to many in changing their dietary habits. Plus, it's an easy read and the puns are not half bad!

Olga V

Entdecken Sie Nahrungsmittel, die Ihr Leben verlängern - und bewiesenermaßen Krankheiten vorbeugen und heilen

Cheri Fuller

Accessible and super informative. Science heavy and interesting. If you have any interest in how what you put into your body does and what we really need and should avoid, give this one a shot.

Sarah Morris O’Keefe

This book is the primary reason my husband and I decided to try going vegan, and we've been ~90% vegan since then (1.5 years since reading the book). It has a wealth of knowledge and is convincing if you're moved by data!

Izza

Carol Bailey

Much of the info is something I was aware of peripherally but this helped put several things in perspective as it relates to my specific health.

McKlayne Marshall

There are some great nuggets in this book. We spend so much of our time eating, thinking about eating, and preparing to eat; however, how much time do we spend learning about what we eat. Great read.

Thea MacDonald

Michael Greger, M.D., FACLM

Discover the cutting-edge science behind long-term weight loss success, in this powerful new book from the New York Times bestselling author of HOW NOT TO DIE Every month seems to bring a trendy new diet or weight loss fad—and yet obesity rates continue to rise, and with it a growing number of diseases and health problems. It’s time for a different approach. Enter Dr. Michael Greger, the internationally-renowned nutrition expert, physician, and founder of Nutritionfacts.org. Author of the mega bestselling HOW NOT TO DIE, Dr. Greger now turns his attention to the latest research on the leading causes—and remedies—of obesity. Dr. Greger hones in on the optimal criteria to enable weight loss, while considering how these foods actually affect our health and longevity. He lays out the key ingredients of the ideal weight-loss diet—factors such as calorie density, the insulin index, and the impact of foods on our gut microbiome—showing how plant-based eating is crucial to our success. But HOW NOT TO DIET goes beyond food to identify twenty-one weight-loss accelerators available to our bodies, incorporating the latest discoveries in cutting-edge areas like chronobiology to reveal the factors that maximize our natural fat-burning capabilities. Dr. Greger builds the ultimate weight loss guide from the ground up, taking a timeless, proactive approach that can stand up to any new trend. Chock full of actionable advice and groundbreaking dietary research, HOW NOT TO DIET will put an end to dieting—and replace those constant weight-loss struggles with a simple, healthy, sustainable lifestyle.

How Not to Die Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease

Reviews

Highlights