Dr. John McDougall has decades of experience treating patients with a whole food plant-based diet focused on starches. The Healthiest Diet on the Planet provides the why and the how-to in a concise and practical manner.
McDougall acknowledges that low-carb diets can lead to short-term weight loss, but this single goal ignores the endless outcomes associated with what we choose to put in our mouth. When choosing what to eat, it’s easy to get fixated on our weight. However, its clear that other factors are just as important to assess: How are my energy levels? What is my digestion like? Is my skin oily or breaking out? Do I feel bloated? Are my joints achy? How am I sleeping? Do I feel satisfied? Are my hair and nails healthy? Can I eat this food for the rest of my life? These questions don’t even begin to address the long-term health implications of diet.
The highlight of this book is the Red Light, Green Light guide presented in a picture book format. It seems to follow the KISS strategy – keep it simple stupid. Green light foods signal eat all you want, yellow light means be careful, and red light is plain and simple: don’t eat. As you can probably guess, green light foods include starches, non-starchy vegetables and fruit, yellow light consists of nuts, seeds, avocados, dried fruit, fruit juice, salt and natural soy products and red light is meat, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy and vegetable oil.
Following the fun Red Light, Green Light guide, the book concludes with tons of awesome recipes, most centering around starches. If you’re a pasta, pizza and sandwich person, the Healthiest Diet on the Planet makes whole, food plant based eating familiar and practical.
