Scan barcode
erika_is_reading's review against another edition
3.0
The first half is fascinating (although it's worth reading some of the criticism from the scientific community -- e.g., http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/?p=3... -- as well as his responses). The second half is too shrill, and some of it is simply wrong. Worth reading, without a doubt, and he makes a compelling argument at least about casein.
abbymars's review against another edition
5.0
Reading this at the same time as Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer. After reading both of these books, the case for eating animals becomes indefensible.
kait_lost_in_books's review against another edition
4.0
One that’s been on my TBR pile for a decade! Oops!
The China Study is billed as one of the world’s most comprehensive studies in nutrition. It’s a little heavy on the medical jargon but worth pushing on with. The main theme of the book is diet as the main indicator of diseases of affluence ie type 2 diabetes, asthma, coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, peripheral vascular disease, obesity, hypertension, cancer, alcoholism, gout, and some types of allergy, depression as well as some mental health conditions. This book not only examines what causes these diseases but also what we should be eating to prevent them and attempts to sort through and explain some of the mixed nutritional messaging we’ve been getting.
It is big. It is heavy. It’s hard going so for those that want the answers:
The China Study is billed as one of the world’s most comprehensive studies in nutrition. It’s a little heavy on the medical jargon but worth pushing on with. The main theme of the book is diet as the main indicator of diseases of affluence ie type 2 diabetes, asthma, coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, peripheral vascular disease, obesity, hypertension, cancer, alcoholism, gout, and some types of allergy, depression as well as some mental health conditions. This book not only examines what causes these diseases but also what we should be eating to prevent them and attempts to sort through and explain some of the mixed nutritional messaging we’ve been getting.
It is big. It is heavy. It’s hard going so for those that want the answers:
thebigemmt505's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
3.75
“Yes, that’s right. I’m about to tell you that if you eat animal foods instead of plant foods, you just might go blind.”
The quote is regarding macular degeneration, but it feels broadly applicable given not only the health, but the environmental and moral implications of eating animals.
The China Study is a an influential book about health and nutrition that deserves the praise it gets, especially for what it brought to the table at the time it was released. The study itself is a landmark in how we understand the way our diet impacts or health and our disease development. It’s well researched, thorough, and well-intentioned. Despite already knowing a lot of the science in this book, I still learned plenty of new information and I’m appreciative of that. The part about industry players and the hostility towards such a simple solution as diet was especially pertinent for me, as I’m always surprised by the extent of it.
All of that said, I found the writing a bit repetitive and sometimes disorganized. It flipped between general to detailed very quickly, which made the layout jarring to me. The semi-conspiratorial writing (no matter how justified in this case), especially before a case was presented about the corruption of the medical industry, turned me off as well. Most of my issues come down to preference, as I prefer a structure that’s detailed information -> general conclusion and I dislike hyper-conspiratorial, “they’re out to get us” rhetoric that can both be used by well meaning people who observe legitimate corruption and crazy conspiracy theorists drawing conclusions where there aren’t any.
Of course, T. Colin Campbell is a lot more level headed, but it’s still something that stood out to me. That being said, the writing wasn’t bad per-se, and I enjoyed a lot of the anecdotes and bits of humor thrown in.
Also, admittedly, there’s some dated information in here now, which I can’t blame the book for, but GOD can we PLEASE stop using BMI for any measure of anything! Thank you 🫶
Anyways, it was a must read for nutrition nerds like me. Vegan ones, at that. It dragged a bit and was dense but I don’t regret reading it. Give it a read, it’s a “classic” in a way. At the end of the day, beyond all of the science, beyond the intrigue of everything we have and will learn about nutrition, for now we must do what is tried and true: eat our vegetables.
The quote is regarding macular degeneration, but it feels broadly applicable given not only the health, but the environmental and moral implications of eating animals.
The China Study is a an influential book about health and nutrition that deserves the praise it gets, especially for what it brought to the table at the time it was released. The study itself is a landmark in how we understand the way our diet impacts or health and our disease development. It’s well researched, thorough, and well-intentioned. Despite already knowing a lot of the science in this book, I still learned plenty of new information and I’m appreciative of that. The part about industry players and the hostility towards such a simple solution as diet was especially pertinent for me, as I’m always surprised by the extent of it.
All of that said, I found the writing a bit repetitive and sometimes disorganized. It flipped between general to detailed very quickly, which made the layout jarring to me. The semi-conspiratorial writing (no matter how justified in this case), especially before a case was presented about the corruption of the medical industry, turned me off as well. Most of my issues come down to preference, as I prefer a structure that’s detailed information -> general conclusion and I dislike hyper-conspiratorial, “they’re out to get us” rhetoric that can both be used by well meaning people who observe legitimate corruption and crazy conspiracy theorists drawing conclusions where there aren’t any.
Of course, T. Colin Campbell is a lot more level headed, but it’s still something that stood out to me. That being said, the writing wasn’t bad per-se, and I enjoyed a lot of the anecdotes and bits of humor thrown in.
Also, admittedly, there’s some dated information in here now, which I can’t blame the book for, but GOD can we PLEASE stop using BMI for any measure of anything! Thank you 🫶
Anyways, it was a must read for nutrition nerds like me. Vegan ones, at that. It dragged a bit and was dense but I don’t regret reading it. Give it a read, it’s a “classic” in a way. At the end of the day, beyond all of the science, beyond the intrigue of everything we have and will learn about nutrition, for now we must do what is tried and true: eat our vegetables.
niniane's review against another edition
3.0
It sounds reasonable, and follows a guideline of every other nutrition book: "The experts are wrong and have been bamboozling the country in an irresponsible manner. I've run actual studies and the results say X." In this case, X is to eat no meat.
yatosuz's review against another edition
4.0
I'm already a vegetarian, though there's enough information - and opinion - in this book to convince me that the push toward veganism isn't that far off. Campbell flat-out states that his research did not look at a completely vegan diet - or a vegetarian diet, for that matter - but rather a very low animal-protein diet, and the findings are very eye-opening. Based on the results of his studies, and studies by others, he surmises that a completely vegan diet would reap even greater health benefits.
This is definitely dense reading, though it could have been far denser had more study details been provided. However, for those looking for that kind of information, there's a nice reference section at the back of the book that points you to all kinds of papers, articles, etc.
This is definitely dense reading, though it could have been far denser had more study details been provided. However, for those looking for that kind of information, there's a nice reference section at the back of the book that points you to all kinds of papers, articles, etc.
anneduff's review against another edition
5.0
It's a thick book and at first glance it looks as if it might be a burden to plough through but it's actually very interesting and easier to read than I expected.
There appears to be a lot of evidence to suggest that animal proteins are not very good for us in the amounts that we tend to eat. Whether or not you agree with the research, it certainly gives you good cause to rethink your diet.
As a result of reading this book, I have now made considerable changes to my diet
There appears to be a lot of evidence to suggest that animal proteins are not very good for us in the amounts that we tend to eat. Whether or not you agree with the research, it certainly gives you good cause to rethink your diet.
As a result of reading this book, I have now made considerable changes to my diet