“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well” – Virginia Woolf 

“Sex is good, but not as good as fresh sweet corn.” – Dr. Ruth Westheimer (who I’m guessing is speaking of organic corn)

“The doctor of the future will no longer treat the human frame with drugs, but rather will cure and prevent disease with nutrition.” – Thomas Edison

“It’s bizarre that the produce manager is more important to my children’s health than the pediatrician.” – Meryl Streep

“I cook with wine.  Sometimes I even add it to the food” –  W.C. Fields

“Food is the fuel that will keep us on the go.  You got to eat right if you want to grow.” – Slim Goodbody

Food has always fascinated me. The more I learned about living a healthier, greener life, the more I realized how little I actually knew about what I was eating.

Around that time I picked up a copy of The Food Babe Way by Vani Hari.

Now let me start by saying opinions are like taints (look it up). Everybody has one, and it’s rare anyone actually wants yours. You can find people on the internet who think Vani Hari is changing the world, and you can find people who think she’s completely wrong. My advice is the same advice I always give: read with an open mind, ask questions, and make your own decisions. If you disagree with me, feel free to email me for a full refund for this free article.

What I appreciated most about the book wasn’t that it gave me all the answers.

It made me ask better questions.

I already considered myself a healthy eater. I bought organic whenever I could. I was paying attention to labels. Or at least I thought I was.

After reading the book, I realized I had been looking for a handful of buzzwords instead of really understanding what was in my food. I started slowing down in the grocery store. I read ingredient lists instead of just the front of the package. I became more curious about where my food came from and how it was made.

Did I agree with every single thing in the book?  Probably not.  But I didn’t have to.

A good book doesn’t always have to convince you. Sometimes it just gets you thinking in a different way, and that’s exactly what this one did for me.

One of my favorite parts was that it didn’t simply tell readers what to avoid. It also offered recipes, substitutions, and practical ideas that made healthier eating feel possible instead of overwhelming. My younger daughter became a huge fan of the homemade ginger dressing recipe because it tasted just like the one from our favorite Japanese restaurant. The difference was I knew exactly what had gone into it because I’d made it myself.

Like I tell my family all the time, getting healthier starts with getting educated. Read labels. Ask questions. Learn where your food comes from. You don’t have to overhaul your entire kitchen overnight. Just make one better choice today than you made yesterday.

Living healthier isn’t about being perfect.  It’s about paying attention.

I’ll leave you with one final quote from someone who was never afraid to put in the work.

“Number one, like yourself. Number two, you have to eat healthy. And number three, you’ve got to squeeze your buns. That’s my formula.” — Richard Simmons.

Words to live by, Richard. Words to live by.

I received a complimentary review copy of this book. No other compensation was provided, and all opinions are my own.

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