613. Books about personal health and safety

Further Reading

Portia Page Pilates Illustrated, 2010.

Pilates is a unique exercise method that aims to lengthen and strengthen the muscles using small, controlled movement. Regular practice will improve posture, flexibility, and balance. Instructor Portia Page demonstrates how to perform individual exercises with and without equipment. She also offers thirteen routines to help with everything from posture to evening relaxation.

Michael Pollan In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto, 2008.

After publishing The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Michael Pollan presents a way to enhance our health while honoring the planet. His solution involves three guidelines: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” Following these simple rules can make eating a joyful activity once again.

Nina Teicholz The Big Surprise: Why Butter, Meat, and Cheese Belong in a Healthy Diet, 2014.

For more than half a century, we were told that fat, especially saturated fat, was bad for us. Nina Teicholz shares how this dietary dogma took hold and reveals the damage following it has done to our health. She gives the scientific evidence that dietary fat is actually good for us after all.

John Whyte Is This Normal? The Essential Guide to Middle Age and Beyond, 2011.

Changes come to us all in middle age. But while there are plenty of books and classes on the changes our bodies go through in childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood, there is very little available information on the changes we can expect as we navigate our 50s and 60s. John Whyte explains weight gain and memory loss, as well as what’s normal and what’s not, in this reassuring guide.

For more books on personal health and safety, see Part 1.

For more information on the Further Reading series, see Further Reading: Start Here.