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National Geographic Foods for Health: Choose and Use the Very Best Foods for Your Family and Our Planet
For health-conscious cooks, clean eaters, and smart consumers, National Geographic introduces a science-based guide to healthy, everyday eating for your whole family -- and the planet. Featuring dozens of tips, food pairings, and sample menus, this attractive book is a culinary tour of the 148 foods that have huge nutritional value with the least environmental impact. This guide explores food and its place in cultures around the world; highlights what it adds to healthy menus today; and advises consumers on what to look for, how to choose, how to prepare and what to avoid in order to make best choices for the table and for the planet. Barton Seaver, acclaimed chef and author of For Cod and Country and Where There's Smoke, and nutritional scientist P.K. Newby, have created the ultimate shopping and cooking guide to help you nourish your family while you sustain the planet.
320 pages, Paperback
First published September 9, 2014
5 people are currently reading
60 people want to read
About the author
Barton Seaver
15 books8 followersBarton Seaver is a chef who has dedicated his career to restoring the relationship we have with our ocean. It is his belief that the choices we are making for dinner are directly impacting the ocean and its fragile ecosystems.
Seaver has manned the helm of some of Washington, D.C.’s most acclaimed restaurants. In doing so, he brought the idea of sustainable seafood to the nation’s capitol while earning Esquire magazine’s 2009 “Chef of the Year” status from acclaimed food writer John Mariani.
A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Seaver has cooked in cities all over America and the world. Having been bitten by the travel bug, Seaver found work in southern Spain at a small family restaurant. Their casual, ingredient-based cooking style would prove to be an important influence in his perception of food as an essential part of community. When the off-season arrived, Seaver hopped on a boat to Morocco and landed in the small seaside village of Essaouira. There, he took part in generations-old fishing methods, becoming a part of a community whose survival was directly linked to the oceans. This had a huge impact on his belief that sustainability is, at its root, not only an ecological matter, but also a humanitarian one.
While sustainability has largely been assigned to seafood and agriculture, Barton’s work expands far beyond the dining table to encompass socio-economic and cultural issues. Locally, he pursues solutions to these problems through D.C. Central Kitchen, an organization fighting hunger not with food, but with personal empowerment, job training, and life skills.
Barton has been lauded as a leader in sustainability by the Seafood Choices Alliance and was named a fellow with the Blue Ocean Institute. Barton has joined the board of Harvard Medical School's Center for Health and the Global Environment. Together with National Geographic, the Center is partnering with hospitals and health care providers in the Greater Boston area to educate them about healthier and more sustainable food service opportunities.
He is the author of For Cod And Country (Sterling, Spring 2011), a book of recipes that inspires ocean conservation through the experience that we all share—dinner. In addition, Barton is working on television and online shows that will engage consumers by telling stories everyone can relate to, whether they are preparing a meal or preparing to eat it.
Seaver has manned the helm of some of Washington, D.C.’s most acclaimed restaurants. In doing so, he brought the idea of sustainable seafood to the nation’s capitol while earning Esquire magazine’s 2009 “Chef of the Year” status from acclaimed food writer John Mariani.
A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Seaver has cooked in cities all over America and the world. Having been bitten by the travel bug, Seaver found work in southern Spain at a small family restaurant. Their casual, ingredient-based cooking style would prove to be an important influence in his perception of food as an essential part of community. When the off-season arrived, Seaver hopped on a boat to Morocco and landed in the small seaside village of Essaouira. There, he took part in generations-old fishing methods, becoming a part of a community whose survival was directly linked to the oceans. This had a huge impact on his belief that sustainability is, at its root, not only an ecological matter, but also a humanitarian one.
While sustainability has largely been assigned to seafood and agriculture, Barton’s work expands far beyond the dining table to encompass socio-economic and cultural issues. Locally, he pursues solutions to these problems through D.C. Central Kitchen, an organization fighting hunger not with food, but with personal empowerment, job training, and life skills.
Barton has been lauded as a leader in sustainability by the Seafood Choices Alliance and was named a fellow with the Blue Ocean Institute. Barton has joined the board of Harvard Medical School's Center for Health and the Global Environment. Together with National Geographic, the Center is partnering with hospitals and health care providers in the Greater Boston area to educate them about healthier and more sustainable food service opportunities.
He is the author of For Cod And Country (Sterling, Spring 2011), a book of recipes that inspires ocean conservation through the experience that we all share—dinner. In addition, Barton is working on television and online shows that will engage consumers by telling stories everyone can relate to, whether they are preparing a meal or preparing to eat it.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 15, 2015
This would be an excellent book to have as a reference. Sections are divided into vegetables, fruits, proteins, whole grains, fats and oils, beverages, and seasonings (or spices).
At the beginning of each section is a list (along with the page number) of each food discussed in this section. There is also a 2-3 page essay describing the item, i.e protein and why it's important.
For each food, there is the title, a picture of the food in its base form, a brief history of the food, a paragraph on "Choose and Use", "For Your Health", "For Our Planet", a "Prep Tip", and a list of the vitamins and minerals that the food provides.
There are many colorful photos throughout.
There is an index at the end.
At the beginning of each section is a list (along with the page number) of each food discussed in this section. There is also a 2-3 page essay describing the item, i.e protein and why it's important.
For each food, there is the title, a picture of the food in its base form, a brief history of the food, a paragraph on "Choose and Use", "For Your Health", "For Our Planet", a "Prep Tip", and a list of the vitamins and minerals that the food provides.
There are many colorful photos throughout.
There is an index at the end.
July 29, 2016
This is a really cool reference book -- I'm always personally pretty interested in what makes what happen with food. What do certain foods give our bodies? What vitamins are useful for what? One other cool feature of this book is that it gives information on a food's carbon footprint, or what makes it a good choice for the planet (or not). Cool book to have on hand.
February 20, 2018
I am genuinely impressed with this book. Written by credential, researched, and experience-backed P. K. Newby, Sc.D, M.P.H. and Barton Seaver (with contributions of two more writers, Monique Vescia and Katharine Greider), the text is a introductory compendium on many individual food types. This book delves into origins, main nutrients, and research explaining benefits/drawbacks of consumption of certain foods. What makes this text more powerful is that it looks at everything from a holistic perspective rather than labeling things as "good" or "bad."
This book is not exhaustive (especially evident with their seasonings section), but includes a large variety of foods in such detail in six major categories (seven if counting spices). This diversity includes several foods I was initially unfamiliar with, such as fennel, broccoli rabe, and amaranth. Information on sustainability, Fair Trade certified crops, and regional/global impacts of production & transportation of certain foods are also included and appear up-to-date at the time of the printing.
Several sample menus are included suggesting which foods might be cooked together and paired for flavor and/or nutritional value. Although certain strains might vary nutritionally in value, I wish estimated ranges of nutrition of vitamins and minerals were included to get an idea of how much might be in each food. This was my only serious complaint aside for a barely noticeable number of typos/grammar errors.
Useful for introductory familiarization of old or new food benefits/cautions, this book is significantly useful in diversifying a diet to make nutritionally diverse meals. It is exceptional for ideas and encouraging readers to eat more variety to promote better health. I strongly recommend keeping this around for reference and for creativity for your diet & exciting your palate.
This book is not exhaustive (especially evident with their seasonings section), but includes a large variety of foods in such detail in six major categories (seven if counting spices). This diversity includes several foods I was initially unfamiliar with, such as fennel, broccoli rabe, and amaranth. Information on sustainability, Fair Trade certified crops, and regional/global impacts of production & transportation of certain foods are also included and appear up-to-date at the time of the printing.
Several sample menus are included suggesting which foods might be cooked together and paired for flavor and/or nutritional value. Although certain strains might vary nutritionally in value, I wish estimated ranges of nutrition of vitamins and minerals were included to get an idea of how much might be in each food. This was my only serious complaint aside for a barely noticeable number of typos/grammar errors.
Useful for introductory familiarization of old or new food benefits/cautions, this book is significantly useful in diversifying a diet to make nutritionally diverse meals. It is exceptional for ideas and encouraging readers to eat more variety to promote better health. I strongly recommend keeping this around for reference and for creativity for your diet & exciting your palate.
April 19, 2023
I really enjoyed Foods for Health by National Geographic. I am generally a very healthy eater and love readign about food. Different foods contain a variety of nutrients and knowing which foods to focus on is key to so many aspects of your well being. I've added some grains to my grocery list for next week and am excited to use them in new recipes or simply add them to cherished ones.
March 25, 2016
Common sense scientific description of individual foods one by one. Descriptions include nutrients, preparation (use), and environmental impact. Includes meats, eggs and dairy but tilts toward whole food veggies. I learned much. This is a great book with a good balance and no snark.
August 23, 2016
Well-organized and diverse information on what we eat and how we should be eating it. Found myself wanting to research further on the ingredients and meals to make with them. Additionally, I learned a few things about the global impact of producing familiar plants.
January 21, 2015
Excellent resource
November 15, 2014
Great info about food!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews