Book Review: Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon Morell
1 Part Science, 1 Part Traditional Wisdom, 2 Parts Cookbook
If you have yet to question what you have always been told about food, now is the time to start.
Low-fat, high carb, gluten free, organic, natural, low cholesterol, whole grain, natural flavorings, colors and preservatives…. The world of food comes with its very own language; except that the terms change meaning. Organic is not what organic was. Neither is natural or the whole in “whole grain”.
Do you remember the Jetsons? So futuristic, to eat processed chemicals in pill form than to eat food. Who would do a think like that?
Even still, we often know that what passes for food at the grocery store is not really food, but with so many conflicting t.v. doctors and bestselling nutritional and diet books…how does one move forward?
You do not . . . You move backward. Move backward into history. What has the sum total history of humankind thrived upon? Enter Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon (Morell). You might know Sally Fallon Morell as the president of the Weston A. Price Foundation, a non-profit organization that seeks to educate others regarding the marks of good nutrition as found throughout human civilization, resulting in health and strength. Dr. Weston Price, for whom the organization is named, was a dentist in the 30’s and 40’s who traveled the world to remote villages in study of proper nutrition. He discovered that villages with no outside processed foods had very distinct physical characteristics of health. Those same villages then faced the incoming illnesses associated with processed foods once “progress” hit. You can find more information about his research through the Weston A. Price Foundation (or WAPF).
Nourishing Traditions is best known as a cookbook with delicious, gourmet recipes that feature traditional foods and cooking methods. I think of it as a “how-to”, an essay on “why care?”, and Biology 101. Oh yeah, and there are recipes too. Really, the book is a great read for learning how the human body functions…what role do fats play, and how do I process proteins? What are the interactions of vitamins, and what foods contain healthy enzymes? And while we’re asking questions—who knows a good recipe for a cream cheese pastry?
______________________
The other day I was helping my son build a lego kit. He got the wrong piece in the wrong place, and he found that nothing else worked properly from there. He tried to force it, but eventually he took the pieces apart until he found where things went wrong, and he built up from there. Human beings were also well designed to function optimally with good food building blocks. If you use poor building blocks, you are going against the blueprint that the architect originally designed.
______________________
We learn in Nourishing Traditions that the #1 industry left in America is food processing, and yet we know that our cancer, diabetes, neurological defects, nervous disorders, psychiatric and psychological disorders and heart disease rates have never been higher. Could there be a connection? Sometimes, you have to take a step back to the place it all started going wrong. How do we move forward from the data? I suggest we move backward.
–Chaya
We do not sell Nourishing Traditions, nor were were paid in any way to review this book. We just think you should have it on your shelf. Interested in cooking whole foods? Check out these other wonderful books that we do sell:
Fresh From the Garden Cookbook
Photo Credits:
Food Industry by Pantry Paratus
No Labels by Pantry Paratus
The Jetsons® is a registered trademark used for and owned by Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc.