five life-changing, must have books

i am not a big reader, at all actually. i never used to experience being so wrapped up in a book that i have to finish it in a day, or a week because i just can't set it down. but every once in a while, i come across a book that does that to me. these are those books. some are captivating, some are just staples that i think everyone needs to have in their home to refer to as needed, especially when you have kids showing up with symptoms of sickness or ill health. my #1 book i do that often with. here they are:

ONE: Healing with Whole Foods - Paul Pitchford

i call this my nutrition bible. this guy is radical. i feel like his knowledge is infinite and so dense in his area of expertise. the book is a comprehensive reference of both asian medicine and western research on health and nutrition to create a whole, healthy diet. what i love about this book is that i can look up any small symptom, organ, or disease in the back and it will take me right to the page that gives nutritional, herbal and lifestyle changes to make to heal your body, mind and spirit. he focuses a lot on the five elements and syndromes of the internal organs, and the six divisions of yin and yang balancing. he talks a lot about the amazing effects of a whole, plant based, vegan or vegetarian diet, but also the healing nature of small amounts of animal food products and why some bodies truly need them. there are sections on weight loss, heart and vascular renewal, female health, digestive problems, candida yeast infections, root canals, food combining, fasting, children, pregnancy, and aging, along with many more, and includes insights from Ayurvedic medicine of India. you may never get through the whole thing-it is a manual for understanding your personal relationship to food and your body. i go to it often and find much relief from the home remedies it provides. 

TWO: Nourishing Wisdom - Marc David

i have a sincere love for this dude. he is the founder and director of the school i am attending at the moment, Institute for the Psychology of Eating, which has changed my life. i believe though, that with this and his other book which i will mention next, you can get the base of knowledge i am getting through the school, with two easy, uplifting and crazy inspiring reads. this particular one describes the importance of addressing the emotional and spiritual aspects of our lives in order to truly nourish ourselves. he reminds us often that we, ourselves do not do the healing, there is a higher power that is in charge of all of that and sometimes we need to learn to let it go and give it up to the divine. this book provides practical methods for redefining the role food plays in our lives. this really is a must read for all. like i want to bear my testimony on it I'm so passionate about it. 

THREE: The Slow Down Diet - Marc David

the no-diet diet book. exactly what i think every human in america needs to read-just sayin. this book is a quick, easy read with so many great tips to slowly implement into your life over a period of 8 weeks. here are a few of my favorite tips:

• make a “pleasure inventory” list and write down the things that give you pleasure and make you feel nourished
• there is both a mental-emotional and metabolic component to eating
• to avoid reverting to old habits, embrace the fact that you are imperfect if you do happen to slip up. it’s okay to visit your old habits, just don’t live there. my mantra for when this happens is “correct and continue”
• when we are present when we eat and take pleasure in the sensation, we are less likely to overeat. ever check your email while eating and look down baffled to an empty bowl, bag, plate wondering, “who ate that?”
• why lunch is our most metabolically active time of the day, when the sun is highest in the sky, and when our “furnace” is the hottest
• if you are having trouble losing weight and you’re doing all the “right things” with your diet, it could be that your relationship with food is not where it should be (and there is likely something emotional lying underneath that)

FOUR: Nourishing Traditions - Sally Fallon

a great book for anyone wanting the scoop on what real food and health is. she presents a message that animal fats and cholesterol are vital factors in the human diet, necessary for reproduction and normal growth, proper function of the brain and nervous system, protection from disease and optimum energy levels. this cookbook includes information on how to prepare grains and enzyme-rich lacto-fermented foods, which i believe is so important and necessary to know if you don't already.

FIVE: The Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine / third edition - Michael T. Murray & Joseph Pizzorno

another one of those healing, nutrition "bibles" that is so awesome to have in the home if you are at all passionate about healing naturally without doctors care. our bodies are incredible vessels that are one with this earth, and every plant and organism placed on this earth has some tie to us and our health. the book will show you how to improve your health through a positive mental attitude, a healthy lifestyle, a health-promoting diet, and natural supplements.

my suggestion: pick one that speaks to you, and start there.