Jess' Picks: 3 Anti-Diet Summer Reading Recommendations
- jesskelly
- Jul 15
- 2 min read
As a non-dietitian it may seem strange to read anti-dieting and other scientific health and wellness literature, but we encourage everyone to do so to fight back against the vast amount of dieting propaganda being produced and published every single day.
There are multi-billion dollar industries that are constantly marketing and creating content in order to further the harmful and short-term aesthetic centered view of personal health and fitness that they profit from.
Reading up and expanding your scientific knowledge in this space is the only way you'll quickly see who is recommending genuine health advice vs. harmful non-productive diet culture philosophies.
Here's three books that our founder Jess Cannon recommends you add to your summer reading list.
Anti-Diet
By: Christy Harrison, MPH, RD, CEDS
Anti-Diet by Christy Harrison, MPH, RD, CEDS first hit shelves in 2019 and quickly grabbed readers attention by being unafraid to call out the short-comings and contradictions of rampant diet culture.
From Christy Harrison's website, "Drawing on scientific research, personal experience, and stories from patients and colleagues, Anti-Diet provides a radical alternative to diet culture, and helps readers reclaim their bodies, minds, and lives so they can focus on the things that truly matter."
If you want a fact based takedown of the diet culture that reads like a hard-hitting exposé Anti-Diet should definitely go to the top of your summer reading list.
Intuitive Eating, 4th Edition
By: Evelyn Tribole, MS, RDN, CEDRD-S and Elyse Resch, MS, RDN, CEDRD-S, FAND
Intuitive Eating, 4th Edition by Evelyn Tribole, MS, RDN, CEDRD-S and Elyse Resch, MS, RDN, CEDRD-S, FAND is the original anti-dieting book. In fact the ten principles of intuitive eating inform and influence our clinical views of nutrition at Nutrition That Heals. This revolutionary text was one of the first that encouraged people to reconnect with themselves and what they know to eat as part of their human nature and instinct.
If you want to start your nutrition and wellness reading this summer with the same text that many health-centered dietitians first interacted with, you want to start with Intuitive Eating.
Sick Enough: A Guide to Medical Complications of Eating Disorders and Undernutrition
By: Jennifer L. Gaudini, MD
Sick Enough, 2nd Edition by Jennifer L. Gaudini, MD is the newest book on our summer reading list and it's made for anyone affected by eating disorders, whether you're experiencing it yourself, or as a family member, friend, or clinician.
If you've ever wanted to learn more about eating disorders and the medical effects of undernutrition in an approachable tone and writing style there really isn't a better place to start.
Mind Your Media Consumption
Even if you don't get around to reading any of these texts this summer, at least try to keep yourself honest with your media consumption. Harmful fitness and dieting content, videos, and challenges all rise during the summer to try and capitalize on "the beach body" fantasy.
If you're finding yourself watching more and more fitness or wellness gurus pushing fast result boot camp fitness and crash diet plans, it may be time to prune your feed, swap to a book from a reputable source, or both!
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