Super Immunity: The Essential Nutrition Guide for Boosting Your Body's Defenses to Live Longer, Stronger, and Disease Free – From a Bestselling Doctor (Eat for Life, 5)

Dr. Fuhrman's latest book is a great resource for getting healthy and staying healthy. This book contains a lot of useful information that is presented in an intelligent and clear manner. I appreciate that this book is concise and easy to understand. I was also pleased to see that Dr. Fuhrman backs up all of his claims with multiple scientific studies that prove his point. I read his other book, "Eat to Live" this summer and have since lost 65 pounds by employing the "nutritarian" diet recommended by Dr. Fuhrman. I look and feel better now than I have since I was in my early 20's (I am now 35). Super Immunity contains some of the same information as "Eat to Live", but I felt it was presented in a more concise and clear manner in Super Immunity. This is the book I would give my friends and family who I know won't be motivated to make a change just to lose weight. Super Immunity gives them the same information, but with a focus toward helping to keep your immune system strong. I know a lot of people who are struggling with sick kids regularly and presenting the information in this context may be a stronger motivation for them to make some of the lifestyle changes recommended by Dr. Fuhrman. I can't say enough good things about the resources that Dr. Fuhrman has provided. Excellent nutrition as the solution to so many of our health and weight issues is so simple, yet there are very few people talking about it. I am indebted to Dr. Fuhrman for opening my eyes to this. I know my family is on a track toward lifelong health as a result of this information! This book is an excellent and quick read and this is the perfect time of year to be thinking about how to strengthen our immune systems. If you are looking for some practical ideas for getting healthy and feeling better, I highly recommend reading this and "Eat to Live".

I am an avid fan of Dr. Fuhrman ever since I came across him on PBS one sleepless night! His diet has changed my life! Super Immunity only builds on that knowledge reinforcing for true health reasons why in the world you would choose to eat this way. There are no gimmicks, no supplements, no weird food to eat. You can choose to be vegan or not. It is completely up to you. Studies show and the results of his 20+ year practice of thousands and thousands of patients prove that nothing is more nutritious or nurturing for your body that whole produce, and especially the leafy greens and cruciferous veggies. Fresh whole fruits, nuts & seeds and cooked dried beans are the basis of the "diet". It is actually a healthy lifestyle and once I started adding these things to my diet I soon found out that I felt just completely rotten eating "the old way". The energy I have, the easy weight loss, loss of joint pain, and feeling of well being are priceless to me. I have Dr. Furhman to thank for that. I share this information with anyone who shows interest in improving their health or losing weight. People who will turn up their noses at the diet may be interested to know that your tastes will change over time if you give it a chance. I now rarely miss salt in my food, find processed food too salty and sweet, and regular salad dressing on my salad is just too greasy and unappealing. All of this from a 55 year old woman who once weighed 205 pounds and wore size 16 most unattractively. Today I am 135 pounds and a size 4! Never thought I could do that in a million years and without starving. I have no cravings for junk and I am never hungry until it is time to eat! If you are sick and tired of being sick and tired, give it a try. Just the information alone on what the food can do for you is compelling enough. The bonus of healthful eating aside from decreasing your chances of developing cancer, heart disease, and autoimmune diesases over time is weight loss!

I've read dozens of books, mostly by physicians, on what to eat. Dr. Fuhrman's books are sensible and specific, recommending not only what to eat but also how much and how to prepare. His prescription even describes how much and what kinds of foods are best to eat if not following the recommendations and having a little cheat. While he is by no means alone in recommending a similar diet, plant based and avoiding refined, processed ingredients, his specific suggestions seem easiest to follow and most healthy. As a physician myself, I've found Dr. Fuhrman's eating style to be closest to the one I've come to follow after years of experimenting. I've tried the range from Atkins style to the 10% fat vegan style eating. I feel best with more fat, mostly from raw or dry roasted nuts and seeds, avocado, and some olives. And I feel best when I get a small portion of daily calories (10-15% of daily total) from animal products, mostly non-fat yogurt but also limited fowl and fish. I lost weight on Atkins but after two years of following, I was short of breath with exertion and finding my exercise tolerance decreased. This is no longer an issue since stopping Atkins. Super Immunity has a number of delicious recipes, though more sweets (fruit based) than I eat, I suppose to help those who could not follow such a diet without sweets. I mostly eat my fruit plain or mix it in a fruit salad, or salad mixed with cucumber and celery. Over many years, I've gradually transitioned to simpler, more whole food meals, fewer ingredients and less processed (I strive to use whole, minimally processed foods and to prudently use grinding, blending, pressing, and prolonged cooking with high heat.) These foods are delicious and and have helped me to lose weight and feel better even as I am becoming a senior citizen. I've also found this has decreased inflammation in my body (previously had arthritis symptoms as young as 35, which has since resolved and mild rosacia, also resolved. I rarely get sick with any kind of illness and have minimal need for medication. So I suspect Dr. Fuhrman's claims regarding super immunity stand to be substantiated. I would caution that some physicians claim one can prevent chronic disease with the right eating plan. I think it better to say you can decrease the likelihood or extend the time before developing disease. In my experience, many people will live about the same life span regardless of lifestyle. The difference is how they will live, debilitated on multiple medications for the last 20-30 years of life, or healthy and active with minimal health problems.

Dr. Joel Fuhrman is the one true voice to listen to when it comes to diet and nutrition. He is thorough in his research and with the success stories of his patients is proving that his beliefs are not only sound but work. When you read his words you just know that it all makes sense. I love Eat To Live and and am thrilled with Eat For Health and thought what could be new in Super Immunity? Let me just say- LOTS. He has done it again! After reading this book, I feel like I have a clear picture of where disease comes from, what to do to prevent it and how to go about reversing it in it's tracks. Every thing from colds and flus and what to do about them, including a thoughtful and scientific overview of vaccines, so that people can make their own INFORMED decisions about these, to where cancer comes from and how to halt it's progression and even prevent it. Cancer is not something that strikes people out of the blue or a rogue gene that needs tons of money to investigate. It is instead a direct result of processed and packaged foods being introduced and accepted as food in our society along with the lack of nutrients that the body needs for protection. If you are not eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables and super foods, you are walking around in a body with no "force field" against illness and disease. It's just a matter of time before disease and illness comes to call, unless you take proactive steps to stop it. This book should be required reading for everyone as a user's manual for the body. Not only does it provide the science behind what is happening in the body, it spells out what foods to focus on and recipes on how to incorporate them into your daily lifestyle. We as Americans are so out of touch with how to support our health and the real crime is that we are spreading our poisonous lifestyle and diet-born illnesses to the world around us. Wake up people, put down your cheeseburger, fries and soda and take charge of your own health and life. I highly recommend this book! Another home run Dr. Fuhrman!

You may have read Dr. Fuhrman's other book "Eat to Live" and wonder what's new in store with Super Immunity, or is it just a rehash of the same information. While you will not find radically different information in Super Immunity -- it's the same good Fuhrman diet philosophy -- this book covers critical information about your health that I've personally never seen before in such an easy-to-digest format. It would be easy to summarize the book by saying "Eat your vegetables!" but Super Immunity goes beyond that. Yes, there's a ton of research that shows that phytochemicals found in certain vegetables have literally boost our immunity and can fight off cancer. The top foods recommended to add to your diet are: - Kale, collards, mustard greens - Arugula, watercress - Most greens and cabbage - Broccoli, brussel sprouts - Carrots, tomatoes - Onion, garlic - Mushrooms - Pomegranates - Berries of all kinds - Seeds (like sesame, flax, etc.) The book covers a lot more information, such as: - The pros and cons of certain vaccines. Why most people would not be advised to take a flu shot every year. - How diet alone can not only prevent but help reverse cancer - How exactly nutrition can increase our immunity and help us avoid contagious diseases - Simple tips I found very useful to further improve our immunity and avoid viral illnesses. - The controversy on being a complete vegan or not, what the science actually says about it The recipes are excellent but similar to what's found in other books by Fuhrman. What I like about Dr. Fuhrman is that he's obsessed about optimal nutrition, but he's also a scientist. Some radical natural hygienist claim that the entire germ theory is a scam and that viruses never cause illnesses, but those claims are not supported by science. Furhman shows you how you can dramatically increase your immunity so that' you'll never catch a flu, even when a lot of people are sick. I've lived something close to the recommended lifestyle for over 12 years and although I occasionally got a cold, I've never had a flu in all that time and the more closely I followed the recommendations, the healthier I've become. It's not an "all or nothing" lifestyle. You can pick and choose what you incorporate in your life. If you've read other books like those by Dr. McDougall or Esselstyn, the Furhman books, including Super Immunity, are great additions.

Readers of Dr. Joel Fuhrman's “Super Immunity” will find that it repeats much of the message of his other books, but it does extend in depth the implications of his research to the area of the immune system. He deserves credit for repeating tirelessly the themes of micronutrients, empty calories, cruciferous vegetables, etc. (and I always underline these once again in my copies also). For new readers of Dr. Furhman , this book will be a stunning eye-opener, full of appalling new information about the misuse of vaccines and antibiotics. Such medications can degrade the body's ability to protect itself. He describes the sad paradox of how symptom reducers such as decongestants can extend the illness by fighting the body's natural ability to combat illness. He also cites unintended consequences: chemicals used to remove caffeine from coffee may be hazardous. As always, he has plenty of striking lines, such as “...a piece of chicken is like a cookie; they are both foods without a significant antioxidant or phytochemical load.” (chapter 1) In Dr. Furhman's books, you know he is a medical expert by the authentic terminology he shares with the reader: “endothelial cells”, “apoptosis”, “angiogenesis”, “anti-aromatase activity”, “anorexia of infection”, etc. This book has a sweeping range, from “The failure of Modern Medicine” to mundane advice such as “chew cruciferous greens well and undercook when steaming so not too mushy.” As always, the book includes handy page-size summary charts of best and worst foods, etc. Somewhat surprisingly, he writes in chapter five “In general try to eat not more than one or two foods a day that are not health-supporting. (!) My only other critical remark is perhaps less use of “super”, e.g. super immunity, super foods... nowadays if the the media is to be believed, it seems every food is a super food and the term has become a cliche'.

Ok if you are like me...not a total beginner and with quite a bit of self learned health knowledge you'll probably not find this book to be a total gem. It is full of water amongst some good advice. I can completely honestly say that the main message of this book can be put in 10 sentences or less and a few good facts to fill the rest of one or two pages plus the chapter with recipes. Now if you have read the reviews you will know most of the message. And will be basically reading about why the message is what it is. However some of that good advice may change your life..it depends on the depth of your existing knowledge. For example..eat cruciferous veggies rather than other veggies because their phytochemicals supply our bodies with necessary ammo to fight cancer and many diseases. Now that means that it's no longer just "eat your veggies!" It's more like " pick the best most powerful ones!" just like you would when getting gas for your car... There are a couple of more things and the rest is a 200 something page attempt to explain why and convince you to do it for your own good. He uses chemical terminology in a simple enough manner to explain why and some people may like that. Some people like testimonials and this book has a few, not many and that was ok for me. Although I like facts about clinical trials to prove a point I found that not only there was an excessive amount for me so I caught myself skipping lines He does talk about separate random things like soy, salt, oil, vitamins that you may find useful.. cold remedies that he finds likely to be waste of time in speeding recovery like vitamin c and sailine ( I wish you didn't Dr Fuhrman because you had no real basis for those few statements and furthermore I hope moms don't listen to you because Sailine works for me and my kids most of the time. It depends on some factors like dryness of the air etc...) Now I am 5"6 female and currently at 148lb with probably about 15 extra pounds on my waistline. For someone like me this book may become an aid to lose those last most stubborn pounds and be healthier but I will tell you right now that I am and will be using olive oil or maybe some other oil I decide on because I simply am in no such rush to lose those at once and I see weight coming off gradually even with quite a few changes implemented. Now if you are someone that is maybe over size 12 and eat et Mc Donnalds at least once a week I'd say you probably need a good quality blender ( I have nutri billet) and start off with one tasty no dairy smoothie for breakfast and that alone will change your life forever. After having a taste of that and shedding some pounds you will naturally be looking for healthier ways to eat because you will see and feel the benefits of that. Than by all means buy one of his books, I would buy another one because now I see how little advice was here although valuable. I wish I had gotten the Eat to live or the cookbook instead. If you are like me you won't like making a fake meatloaf with mushrooms and beans and all that but will likely be ok to just stack all of that on your plate along with salad and just eat it. Or you may be able to eat water based oatmeal like I do on regular basis ( I believe it is a big reason for my weight loss ) you will hate the thought of putting walnuts and blueberries in your plain oatmeal but will not mind eating the oats followed by nuts and berries.. So therefore this protocol may not be quite for me. But it has inspired me to create better recipes myself.. I like simple food if I am going to go as far as I have come with this....... I also did not see anything about aloe vera although he mentions turmeric. No word on sugar...unless I missed it in my horrible kindle version. ( wish I bought paper back) Since a short amount of time that I have owned this book I have made changes to my already extreme diet. I keep eating my green salads every day.. I now have beans in my fridge that I precooked and add in foods I make like salad, shake or even meatballs for kids...my toddler loved this bean recipe I came up with inspired by Dr Fuhrman... One banana, 2 mejool dates pitted, cup of boiled and cooled Azuki or other beans. Blend.. Tastes fantastic. Just use a spoon. She eats it like ice cream. Never thought I'd come up with this stuff..... I also have been eating mushrooms and onions more and much less meat. I used to eat meat once a day. I will say that cooked onions, beans and mushrooms aren't easy on my stomach but I will stick through it and see...may be because of that resistant fiber that author talks about that helps promote weight loss.. I do still use salt but small amount.. I also bought vitamins for kids that just came in the mail today. Quite pricey but they contain folate instead of follic acid that dr advises against and the better kind of vitamin A.. Pixie vites by dr Fuhrman. By all means buy one of his books.. Who knows a single advice from this book may prolong someone's life and that may be worth every penny.

First, I'd like to disclose that I became a proponent of Dr.Fuhrman's eating style about eight months ago after reading Eat To Live and a couple of his other books. Eat to Live, the best of his previous books, was primarily targeted toward those with significant weight issues, or those currently eating a standard American diet. None of that applied to me. I was already eating a plant based diet (except fish or eggs up to twice per week). I had already given up refined carbohydrates (i.e., sugar and refined grains). And I almost never consumed oils. In addition to that, I've engaged in 45 minutes of daily aerobic activity for many years, and I've also engaged in modest but regular weight lifting. I had never really had a significant weight issue, but in my early 60s I discovered that i needed to lose about 5-8 pounds. Unfortunately, I doubted that there was anything additional that I could do. As an active person, I've always enjoyed very large quantities of healthy food, and I wasn't about to change that. After reading Dr. Fuhrman's books, however, I discovered one simple but important fact - I wasn't eating enough vegetables, especially leafy greens. Although I consumed at least some vegetables every day, after reading reading Dr. Fuhrman's books I began to add more and more vegetables, especially dark greens. I began to add them to every meal, and I made at least one of my meals a huge delicious salad sprinkled with fruits and nuts or seeds. Vegetable consumption displaced much of the vast quantity of whole grains that I had previously eaten. Within a couple of months I effortlessly dropped the 5-8 pounds that I didn't think was possible. Super Immunity, Dr. Fuhrman's new book, emphasizes the protective benefits of the same diet (i.e., lots of vegetables, fruit, and legumes; some nuts, seeds, and whole grains; and very little of anything else. With extensive credible references, he makes the case that this diet can protect you against colds, the flu, cancers, heart and vascular diseases, and autoimmune disorders. He presents the current medical shortcomings in dealing with these same conditions. And finally, he presents common super foods that are readily available and delineates their protective attributes. I learned a lot from the book and definately recommend it.