Eat & Flourish: How Food Supports Emotional Well-Being

by Mary Beth Albright

A lively and evidence-based argument that a whole food diet is essential for good mental health. Food has power to nourish your mind, supporting emotional wellness through both nutrients and pleasure. In this groundbreaking book, journalist Mary Beth Albright draws on cutting-edge research to explain the food/mood connection. She redefines “emotional eating” based on the science, revealing how eating triggers biological responses that affect humans’ emotional states both immediately and long-term. Albright’s accessible voice and ability to interpret complex studies from the new field of nutritional psychology, combined with straightforward suggestions for what to eat and how to eat it, make this an indispensable guide. Readers will come away knowing how certain foods help reduce the inflammation that can harm mental health, the critical relationship between the microbiome and the brain, which vitamins help restore the body during intensely emotional times, and how to develop a healthful eating pattern for life―with 30-day kickoff plan included. Eat and Flourish is the entertaining, inspiring book for today’s world.

Genres: Nonfiction, Health, Food, Science, Audiobook, Nutrition, Mental Health

216 pages, Hardcover

First published November 29, 2022

Reviews

[Lori Alden Holuta · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're looking for a light and fluffy 'fix yourself with food' book, this isn't it. If you're looking for a traditional cookbook, this isn't that, either. But if you really want to learn about how your body works and how food plays into your overall physical and mental health, this one's a keeper.

While I gained a lot of knowledge from every section, the probiotics chapter was such an eye-opener for me. We've all heard of probiotics and can find plenty of sources for putting them into our bodies, but do we really understand what they are and what they do for us? Now I feel like I really understand what's going on with them - and why they aren't just a one-time, easy fix for what ails us.

The book concludes with suggested theme weeks - Microbiome, Inflammation (which includes 'Breaditation', the meditative art of making bread), Nutrients, and Pleasure. Spending a week focused on one aspect of nutrition and your body is a great way to learn, and make changes that can stay with you for the rest of your life.

My thanks to author Mary Beth Albright, W. W. Norton & Company and NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital advance review copy of this book. This review is my honest and unbiased opinion.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so great. I am not really into wellness books but this is full of science and it’s funny like a Mary Roach book. And it’s extremely accessible and easy to implement. Even the recipes are all things I know I can manage. Also this has nothing about diet culture or weight or anything. Just food for emotional well-being!! No guilt! We could all use this!!

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first 5-star read of 2023!!! I loved this book and I learned so much about how food influences our mental and emotional well-being. It was fantastically written, the chapters were the perfect length, and Albright did a spot-on job of making the science accessible. I wouldn't shut up about the things that I learned while reading this book much to my husband's probable annoyance. There's even a "meal plan" included that gives you incredibly flexible ways to eat to support your emotional well-being. This is going to be one of those books I'm going to add to my own shelves at home. I'd recommend this to anyone who borders the fence on being "crunchy", wants to learn about how food influences mental health and is interested in food science.

[Hannah Walton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book definitely made me want to reframe the way I think about food and eating! Albright's acronym PING (Pleasure, Inflammation, Nutrition, Gut-microbiome) is a helpful guideline when starting to work on eating for emotional well-being. It's so cool how our gut and brain communicate, and makes me feel empowered to change/improve my health and mood through food!

Easy to read book, interesting content, bonus for the recipes which I really want to try.

3.5/5

[Isabella Evangelista · Rating 2 out of 5]

TW: eating disorders

I was excited about this book, and I really wanted to enjoy it, but there were too many things that made it not a great read.

First, the book reads like it hasn’t been edited: the author jumps around, doesn’t have a clear vision, makes very simple grammar and spelling mistakes - which all led the book to fall flat for me. My biggest gripe is that the author referred to chewing and spitting as a diet and not as an eating disorder - any good editor should have fixed this, especially for a book written in the 2020s.

Second, the author cites studies that have been wholly debunked to prove her points (I’m mainly thinking about the two she cited regarding ultra processed foods). It made me question the rest of her research and positions- what other studies were junk science that she referenced? I fully believe it is the duty of the author to do deep research into everything they quote, and it appears this author didn’t. (Thanks, Maintenance Phase for making me look closely at this type of stuff.)

Third, the author has a section where she’s like, “I don’t want to talk about weight but we have to!” And then proceeds to talk about how being “overweight” makes people unhealthy, but ends this section saying something like “everyone, no matter their size, deserves our love.” Like girl which is it? Just don’t bring up weight if you’re going to skirt around it like that. We know how you really feel.

Fourth, I couldn’t stand the writing style. the author tried to be “cutesy” and break the fourth wall to talk to the reader, saying shit like “I know you don’t want to eat your leafy greens, butttt” blah blah blah. So juvenile for a research book.

Fifth, and I know I mentioned this above, the book was jumpy and there was no clear direction. Even within each sub-section of a chapter, I kept being like, “where is she going with this?” I couldn’t tell if she wanted this to be a respectable research book, a memoir about her own personal journey with food, a cookbook, or a cutesy food guide for girlies. Seriously, editor needed.

Coming back with a sixth thing after posting my initial review - the author is a relatively privileged woman and there wasn’t much talk (I can’t remember any) around the privilege surrounding food. the author talks about how eating a whole foods diet (lots of veggies, whole grains, fermented foods, etc) is best for our bodies and minds, without mentioning the socioeconomic factors that put some communities at a disadvantage to do this. I was skeptical of the book the first few pages in, but continued to read, when the author mentioned that a study showed that people who ate many fresh fruits and veggies were less depressed than those who didn’t - OK, well let’s think about that: people who can’t afford to eat fresh veggies and fruits may be facing economic insecurity, making them more at risk of depression. I was a bit upset the book didn’t delve into the social issues around food access- the whole point of the book is about the relationship between food and mental health; surely, societal issues around food inequality play into this as well.

All in all, I did learn a few things that were helpful to me in my chronic illness journey. But now I’m questioning all of her research… unfortunately wouldn’t recommend.

[Paul Vogelzang · Rating 5 out of 5]

A helpful book on mood and food. Loved all the examples and recipes. Thank you for the Smithsonian Associates interview, Mary Beth! https://notold-better.com/nourish-you...

[Haley Kent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Life altering! This is the best book I’ve ever read as an adult!!! Anyone who struggles with emotional eating needs to read this!

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick and easy read. I was drawn to this book at the library because I've long known and used the association between food and mental health and was hoping to find up to date information on the topic, as I'm always eager to add more to my own regimen. I've found what I eat can control my debilitating anxiety and OCD better than anything as I tried meds on and off with side effects that meant terminating their use and I really had to find something, anything, to help me function. Ultimately, I found that eating a certain way was more effective than the medicine even and as soon as I start deviating, my symptoms will come back. Therefore, it is hard for me to know how much of this is true of most people versus my own experience, but I did find the information in this book to be old news with nothing new to help me personally. However, if a person hasn't really dived into how food affects their mental health, it may be revolutionary. Also, some parts of this book had a very journalistic heavy feel, whereas I would have preferred a heavier science lean. Again, this is personal preference. She includes a lot of studies, experiments, and scientific statements, but I felt like they just hit the type of the iceberg for most topics. All this said, the book is well written and put together. I enjoy the topic, so enjoyed reading it. I would just adjust your expectations if you have previously studied the topic and be prepared more to see it as review or reinforcement of some ideas.

[Cindy(groundedinreads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

With each stage of life, I’m always looking for more awareness on nutrition. This book offers insight into how what we eat affects our emotional well-being. I was familiar with much of what was outlined in this book, but the author was able to explain it in a simple and practical manner. She gave tips and recipes to calm ourselves in hopes of preventing hormone fluctuation. This will be especially useful for me! Also included are recommendations on improving our overall physical and mental wellness. Chopping vegetables and food prep is one calming mechanism that resonated with me. With my summer garden in full bloom, I’m chopping up vegetables every day and loving it! I’m excited to have this resource to guide me.

Thank you Countryman Press & @tlcbook for the gifted book

[Natalie Greenbaum · Rating 4 out of 5]

great accessible interpretation of science-y things i wouldn’t understand. my greatest takeaway tho is more dinner parties???

[Alena Navarro · Rating 5 out of 5]

With all the noise out there about food and nutrition this book cuts through with some really smart advice. It points out how problematic diet culture is (duh) but also points out the flaws in the current trend of “nutritionalism”, and putting value on food solely for its components rather than as a part of a whole and complex system.
Making the connection between food and pleasure and eating not just for physical health, but for emotional health is so important. And understanding just how little we actually know about the science of nutrition and that anyone claiming to have answers is really just full of it.

[Sarah Gette · Rating 5 out of 5]

I normally don’t read non-fiction but this was really good!

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look at the science behind how foods impact the gut-brain connection and the different impacts of various nutrients on mental health. This isn't a self-health book per se, and it's not a cookbook either. There are a dozen recipes, and a general set of guidelines to help you eat better to reduce inflammation, improve your microbiome, eat specific nutrients to replenish those depleted by various emotions, and how to increase the pleasure you get from eating in a healthy way.

My biggest issue with this book is that while it's informative, the action plan feels incredibly difficult for the majority of Americans to follow. It kind of discounts that the reason why people here eat the way they do isn't necessarily because they don't want to cook with fresh fruits and vegetables, it's because they lack the time or money to do so. If you have a long commute, or work a physically demanding job, or are shuttling kids back and forth between school and extracurriculars, you are going to laugh your ass off at the idea of spending your time doing a "breaditation."

Also, there are people like me who have plenty of external resources to implement these suggestions, but my palate is just not ever going to allow me to eat that much fish/shellfish, kale, and fermented cabbage. I don't care how it makes me feel, that's just not going to happen. It also talks about how to create new positive associations with food to create new comfort foods (great), but it doesn't talk about how you overcome the comfort food associations you already have.

3.5 stars rounded down, because the science seems solid and I think it would be helpful for those who can implement the changes, but I'm also a little dubious about the practicality.

[Poulami · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fruitful read for my fellow depresso/IBS girlies. Chock full of fun facts about the relationship of food - body - mind and also impactful and informative on the gut microbiome, the types of food and their nutritional and mental impact, and some great recommendations on how to be more intentional about flourishing via our food choices!

[Allie · Rating 3 out of 5]

For those new to the idea of the brain-gut connection, 'Eat & Flourish' is an accessible, overall delightful starting point. It's free from the doomsday-esque language found in a the more science-y books of this genre, but I also wonder if that's because it's a little... too light on science.

I give Albright 4 stars for her approach on eating in general, and I am SO glad someone is finally bringing pleasure into the mix. But there were a few times, especially in the back half of the book, where it entered recommendation territory and was just like, "Eat this /food/nutrient! It is good for you!" without explaining why. There were also some random interjections of extreme vulnerability for Albright. I welcome these, but they felt really out of place and didn't really serve much of a purpose. My last critique is that there was absolutely no mention of the often higher monetary cost of eating healthy vs. eating convenience foods.

Overall, I think I'd have given this 4 stars if I wasn't already spending several hours a week learning about the gut-brain connection for my health coaching and functional nutrition training. But it's a nice enough read.

[Rebecca McNaughton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was well worth the read. It combined easy to understand science regarding the microbiome along with lots of useful tips to improve diet. I liked that the data was relatively new (unlike some books that were written 20 years ago). The author explains that people shouldn't be ashamed to enjoy their food, and should eat meals with others as often as possible. It also discusses the therapeutic effect of creating your own meals from scratch (growing your own food, searching stores for special ingredients, chopping vegetables etc). The recipes sound easy to prepare and interesting to try. I will definitely read this again as a refresher on all this useful information.

[Keaton Ibendahl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lollll did not like. You can tell when an author doesn’t have faith in their reader, and I was getting that vibe. I’ve also read a lot of food writing and it doesn’t particularly sound like this author enjoys cooking or food… I’m a big believer in that a “food philosophy” is not a stupid or silly thing, and that it can be as simple as wanting to enjoy your food and really, deeply care about it. Finding meaning through food through a quasi-scientific lens isn’t inspiring or encouraging to most—if someone already doesnt care about how they eat, this won’t convince them to eat better.

[Jen W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to the audio book and felt it covered a lot of components of food, health and the overall effects on our body. The science behind the relationship of food to personal health is why I picked this book and it did not disappoint. I also really enjoyed the recipe at the end of each section. The section on probiotics/prebiotics has me reconsidering a daily dose of kimchi 😁

[Joanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting and quick read. To be honest, I had not previously thought of food as connected to emotional health, and reading this has made me want to pay attention to how what I put into my body makes me feel emotionally (v. physically), as well as to spend some time thinking about how to best support my emotional health.

[Katie Bially · Rating 4 out of 5]

To sum it up: EAT WHOLE FOODS. REAL FOODS.

There is a lot more than that but thats the big message. If you are into fresh food and how it affects your mental health, this is a great resource to learn the scientific reasonings behind the why and how. At times I felt like "well duh, of course!" but overall I appreciated learning more about the studies that are happening out there!

[Anna Holt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has solidified my theory that my daughter’s Tourette’s syndrome is largely fueled by her shitty diet of mostly processed foods à la pickiness that is a daily battle. I partly blame myself for being weak in a convenience-driven society and introducing her to anything else but whole foods. She used to eat everything and well well until she turned 3 when we let her try mac n cheese for the first time. FML. Travis disagrees with me, but I partly blame him, too. (end rant)

[emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

most of the info was good for general public but as a DTR i learned nothing new. also why is she talking about “inflammatory seed oils” when there is no mention of the impact of saturated fat??? seed oils are a) the least of everyone’s problems and b) only inflammatory in exorbitant amounts.

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would love to re-read this in physical copy (this was an audio listen). Lots of rich and insightful research on the link between food and mental health, shared in a way that was useful while also recognizing the varied experiences of many people.

[Alexandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little too much science for me, but lots of great information about how and why certain foods positively impact our emotional well-being.

[Stacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eat & Flourish is an engaging, inspiring and well researched book about how what we eat connects to how we feel. Go more in depth about pleasure, Inflammation, nutrients and gut microbes, then gain practical and feasible ideas for eating and feeling better.

[Verónica Fleitas Solich · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting and with extremely clear explanations.
A topic that is valuable to learn about.
And it also provides recipes!!!

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good audiobook, probably better in print, for the few recipes and the weekly focus discussed at the end of the book. In general, sounds like a good reference, helpful in learning how what we eat affects how we behave and how we feel.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and quick lesson that supports what I know to be true - personal wellbeing involves how you fuel your body. The balance of science, stories, and recipes made this a breeze.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of course what we eat affects everything about our bodies including our mental health. Great reminder, good book.

[Sara Holland Levin · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a refreshing read! Finally a book about health and nutrition that also factors in the pleasure of food - it’s all connected