The Starch Solution by Dr. John McDougall tells you that historically slim cultures around the world have had complex carbohydrates as their main source of calories. And they have far fewer cases of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, etc. The book goes into the science as well. Part III of the book is "Living the Solution", which gives about 100 recipes and "The 7-Day Sure-Start Plan".

I was very excited to order this when it first came out and it is a most valuable book.

Whole is by Dr. T. Colin Campbell.

What happens when you eat an apple? The answer is vastly more complex than you imagine.

Every apple contains thousands of antioxidants whose names, beyond a few like vitamin C, are unfamiliar to us, and each of these powerful chemicals has the potential to play an important role in supporting our health. They impact thousands upon thousands of metabolic reactions inside the human body. But calculating the specific influence of each of these chemicals isn’t nearly sufficient to explain the effect of the apple as a whole. Because almost every chemical can affect every other chemical, there is an almost infinite number of possible biological consequences.

And that’s just from an apple.

Nutritional science, long stuck in a reductionist mindset, is at the cusp of a revolution. The traditional “gold standard” of nutrition research has been to study one chemical at a time in an attempt to determine its particular impact on the human body. These sorts of studies are helpful to food companies trying to prove there is a chemical in milk or pre-packaged dinners that is “good” for us, but they provide little insight into the complexity of what actually happens in our bodies or how those chemicals contribute to our health.

In The China Study, T. Colin Campbell (alongside his son, Thomas M. Campbell) revolutionized the way we think about our food with the evidence that a whole food, plant-based diet is the healthiest way to eat. Now, in Whole, he explains the science behind that evidence, the ways our current scientific paradigm ignores the fascinating complexity of the human body, and why, if we have such overwhelming evidence that everything we think we know about nutrition is wrong, our eating habits haven’t changed.

Whole is an eye-opening, paradigm-changing journey through cutting-edge thinking on nutrition, a scientific tour de force with powerful implications for our health and for our world.

Based on the groundbreaking results of his twenty-year nutritional study, Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease by Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn illustrates that a plant-based, oil-free diet can not only prevent the progression of heart disease but can also reverse its effects. Dr. Esselstyn is an internationally known surgeon, researcher and former clinician at the Cleveland Clinic and a featured expert in the acclaimed documentary Forks Over Knives. Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease has helped thousands across the country.

The proof lies in the incredible outcomes for patients who have followed Dr. Esselstyn's program, including a number of patients in his original study who had been told by their cardiologists that they had less than a year to live. Within months of starting the program, all Dr. Esselstyn’s patients began to improve dramatically, and twenty years later, they remain free of symptoms.

Complete with more than 150 delicious recipes perfect for a plant-based diet, the national bestseller Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease explains the science behind the simple plan that has drastically changed the lives of heart disease patients forever. It will empower readers and give them the tools to take control of their heart health.

The China Study is a work produced after looking at 1,700 studies on diet and health.

Dr. T. Colin Campbell details the connection between nutrition and heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. The report also examines the source of nutritional confusion produced by powerful lobbies, government entities, and opportunistic scientists. The New York Times has recognized the study as the "Grand Prix of epidemiology" and the "most comprehensive large study ever undertaken of the relationship between diet and the risk of developing disease." Compelling conclusion: people in cultures with diets high in whole foods with no more than 5% of their calories coming from meat were much more healthy (very low rates of diabetes, cancer rates, heart disease) relative to those of the same genetic makeup who lived in areas where their diets were high in richer foods.

Original compelling reason: Animal issues
While I had no problem becoming and remaining a vegetarian, becoming a vegan was tough. I prefer to limit my role in animal suffering, which is why I became vegetarian years ago. When alerted to conditions for animals in the egg and dairy industries, I did some research. What I found was disheartening and I did not want to be a participant in the chain of animal suffering based on my diet choices.

I decided to try going vegan as a 30 day experiment
I put off going on a plant-based diet for months, because I was busy busy busy. But finally I decided to get serious.

I wasn't getting enough calories at first, though I didn't know it at the time. Just knew I was miserable.
I began by going to Pete's Fresh Market, a store that has a lot of fruits and vegetables at lower than average prices, and bought a lot of fruits and vegetables. I was clueless. I soon found myself hating my decision and my life. After three days I thought, soy milk! I never thought of myself as someone who would drink soy milk and hadn't thought of that. Even though I went through at least a gallon of milk a week before that. Once I had soy milk I decided I could survive a month on the diet.

Finally, learned of a new way of eating: Everything healthy! No processed food. No added sugars or oils.
After being vegan for a few months, I learned of the work by Caldwell Esselstyn, Jr. and T. Colin Campbell and so I checked out some videos and their books. After that I knew how to eat 100% healthy: Get calories from starches – high carbohydrate whole foods. Get vitamins from green leafy vegetables and other vegetables and fruits. Add to that a single supplement: Vitamin B12.

Outcome
After five years on this diet, my weight has been down at least 20 lbs, and is on an average down 25 lbs. This helped me in soccer as I am able to pivot faster, move faster, and it is easier to bring explosive competitive intensity when you weigh less. Also I know I am on a healthy diet.

Last words
For a healthy life-style, both a healthy diet and exercise are important. I try to do Jillian Michaels – 30 Day Shred a few times a week for general fitness and I walk about 2 miles a day as well in addition to playing soccer at least once a week. Before going on a whole food plant based diet I was gaining weight even though I exercised, walked and played soccer, unless I was doing the Shred several times a week, in which case the trend was down.

My Typical Meals for a Day

• Home-made soy milk (made with a Soyajoy G4 Soy Milk Maker using barley, chick peas and soybeans) on dry old fashioned oats, topped with Grape Nuts or shredded wheat or similar whole grain cereal, and with fruit such as a cut banana, or blueberries, or strawberries, or cut pear.
• Sandwich: toasted sprouted wheat bread, Mexican hot sauce or horseradish mustard or similar, a slice of red onion, thin slices of avocado, sometimes oregano or curry powder, microwaved potato slices, sliced tomato, thin slices of extra-firm tofu, and fresh spinach leaves. To drink: water.
• Dinner:
  
  Two potatoes (I microwave separately from the rest and mix in at the end); this is right for me at 175 lbs. Or rice.
  
  Then microwave the following (I use a Pyrex 7-cup round dish):
  
  A nice amount of bok choy or kale or broccoli
  Tomato
  Chopped onion
  
  Mix with the potatoes and add:
  
  1/3 can of garbanzo beans
  
  Lime juice
  Curry powder
  Oregano
  
  Sometimes I add Lowry's lemon pepper or equivalent. Or a low sodium soy sauce. Especially if I am about to play soccer in warm weather.