Books to LEARN nutrition?

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ItsTheBTG
ItsTheBTG Posts: 1 Member
in Food and Nutrition
What's up fellow fitness freaks?
As I've gotten more serious with fitness and becoming healthy in recent months, I have decided that I want to truly LEARN about nutrition. Micros, macros, proteins, fats, carbs, all of it. I want to learn the benefits of each and the cons as well. Any suggestions on books that will teach me that rather than just give me a meal plan or recipes?

Any and all suggestions are much appreciated.

Replies

  • Mycophilia
    Mycophilia Posts: 1,225 Member
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    I wholeheartedly recommend this eBook from the guys over at Renaissance Periodization. Covers everything you need to know.
  • shagerty777
    shagerty777 Posts: 185 Member
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    Michael Matthews has some free Kindle books available that are pretty informative. There are some great bloggers out there too, the price is right also. I stumbled across Lyle McDonald's blog Body Re-composition the other day and it has some great articles. Darebee.com has some nice nutrition resources too.
  • Susieq_1994
    Susieq_1994 Posts: 5,361 Member
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    I don't know of any free ones, but when I took a college course my textbook was called Discovering Nutrition, the authors are Paul Insel, R. Elaine Turner, and Don Ross. Publisher is Jones and Bartlett. I haven't a clue how much it costs, because my textbook fee was included in the course fee, but I loved the book. :)
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
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    If you want to explore some of the LCHF ideas and science I recommend Dr Bernstien's Diabetes Solution, The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Living and The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance, and possibly Keto Clarity.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,009 Member
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    National Academies of Science has a series of books ("Dietary Reference Intakes for ..." various macros and micros) that explain what purpose the various macros and micros serve in your body, and offers science-based information on the basis for the recommended amounts of each macro and micro (where a recommended amount has been determined). They're available free to read online or download, although they're fairly pricey (think college textbook) to order hard copies.

    This link will take you to a page listing some of the books, but if there's a specific macro or micro you're interested in that you don't see, I recommend searching for "dietary reference intake for X" where X is the nutrient you're interested in.
  • espressoshotsnheavysquats
    espressoshotsnheavysquats Posts: 54 Member
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    The internet... I wanted to learn about nutrition as well, so I started googling things. There are actually free nutrition courses you can do online as well. I would save my money and check out your free resources first. :)
  • SueSueDio
    SueSueDio Posts: 4,796 Member
    edited December 2016
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    espressoshotsnheavysquats wrote: »
    The internet... I wanted to learn about nutrition as well, so I started googling things. There are actually free nutrition courses you can do online as well. I would save my money and check out your free resources first. :)

    Yes, I plan to start studying these free courses I found a little while ago... it's a set of three, one on macros, one on micros and one on food safety. You can pay a fee if you want a certificate at the end of it, and with some of their courses you miss out on having assignments marked, but I can live without that for free education! :)

    I can't speak to how good these courses are since I haven't started yet, but many of their courses get good reviews and at least I won't have wasted any money if I don't enjoy it.


    For info, some other online study sites I've found with a selection of free courses (varying subjects are offered) are:

    khanacademy.org
    udacity.com
    coursera.org
    gcflearnfree.org
    duolingo.com
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
    edited December 2016
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    SueSueDio wrote: »
    espressoshotsnheavysquats wrote: »
    The internet... I wanted to learn about nutrition as well, so I started googling things. There are actually free nutrition courses you can do online as well. I would save my money and check out your free resources first. :)

    Yes, I plan to start studying these free courses I found a little while ago... it's a set of three, one on macros, one on micros and one on food safety. You can pay a fee if you want a certificate at the end of it, and with some of their courses you miss out on having assignments marked, but I can live without that for free education! :)

    I can't speak to how good these courses are since I haven't started yet, but many of their courses get good reviews and at least I won't have wasted any money if I don't enjoy it.


    For info, some other online study sites I've found with a selection of free courses (varying subjects are offered) are:

    khanacademy.org
    udacity.com
    coursera.org
    gcflearnfree.org
    duolingo.com

    I took two free nutrition courses through Coursera, both of which were very good - Intro to Human Nutrition (Florida State University), and Nutrition and Physical Activity for Health (University of Pittsburgh). No textbook purchase was required - the professors' video lectures and study materials were provided with the courses. It involves more commitment than buying a textbook and reading through it at your leisure, but both courses were very informative and educational.

    Somebody upthread mentioned Lyle McDonald's website (bodyrecomposition.com). I'd strongly agree with that recommendation. His site has tons of great reading on nutrition, fitness, dieting, training, etc., all completely free and with no requirement that you sign up for anything, provide an e-mail address, etc. There is several months' worth of good reading on his site. Here are two very good articles from his site to start with regarding nutrition:

    Calories, Nutrients or Food?

    Nutrient Intake, Nutrient Storage and Nutrient Oxidation
  • rks581
    rks581 Posts: 99 Member
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    The most reliable source I've ever encountered is William D. McArdle, Frank I. Katch - Essentials of Exercise Physiology. It's a college level textbook. It's well-written, supported by lots of scientific references, and it covers everything from nutrition to exercise to supplements. It's not for everyone, since it's a college textbook rather than a bookstore book, but it's worthwhile for all the myths it shatters and all the truth it contains. :)
  • ModernRock
    ModernRock Posts: 372 Member
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    In my early twenties I bought two used college-level nutrition text books and read them many times. That set a foundation upon which the few things that have changed over the years could be built. I've never read any popular diet or nutrition book (e.g., South Beach, etc...) or even gone to those websites.
  • HeidiCooksSupper
    HeidiCooksSupper Posts: 3,831 Member
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    I would start at Harvard's NutritionSource online to get some of the basics. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource

    Remember, the date of the book is very important. Our understanding of nutrition is changing constantly. A college-level nutrition textbook from 5 years ago would still be recommending low fat based on a previous understanding of nutrition. The Harvard site, on the other hand, is constantly updated to reflect the most recent knowledge. It is sponsored and written by faculty and researchers in the Harvard School of Public Health, a more reliable source than anyone who's trying to sell a book.
  • LilacLion
    LilacLion Posts: 579 Member
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    Clinical Nutrition for Dummies is a pretty good "how it works" book. Nutrition Facts: The Truth About Food
    by Karen Frazier was printed last year and is also more of a manual about your body on food.




    - this is a playlist of TedTalks on YouTube with up to date nutrition--some of them have silly titles. The Ted Talks series has some great short videos on nutrition. I think they get people thinking about what is important about being a "Nutritarian." (Someone who cares about Nutrition)


    Nutritionfacts.org is an up-to-date research website run by physicians that don't accept corporate funding like Harvard Medical and many of the nutrition sites out there. The Journal of Nutrition prints research documents and provides the research writer's affiliations (if any) to lobbyists or corporations. I prefer to get unbiased trial test reports and then decide for my self.

    WARNING: If you are like me, the more you know, the more you want to know. Then you can make informed decisions about your health for yourself.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    I agree that the Harvard site is a good one, and that an up-to-date nutrition textbook is good (if likely more information than you might be looking for -- the ones I have go into great detail about digestion and so on).

    If you want more of a basic starting book, Marion Nestle's What to Eat is good.

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