I've recently started working towards eating a vegetarian diet for most of the week. It feels quite daunting after a lifetime of meat eating, so as I start down this journey I wanted to read a book that would break down the nutritional requirements of a plant-based diet so I can try and eat in a balanced way, and get advice on any supplements required.

This book is a fantastic read, and I would thoroughly recommend it to everyone vaguely interested in healthy eating, even if you've no intention of becoming vegan or vegetarian. In the first part of the book, Hill has done a lot of legwork in reviewing the often conflicting studies on the effects of omnivore versus vegan diets on health, particularly in the areas of cardiovascular issues and cancer. He also examines the drivers behind many foods subsidised by governments in different countries, and the notion of our healthcare systems being hijacked by big Pharma, etc. to be more focused on disease / condition management than actual 'health care' (that's something that I'm quite passionate about - I hate that in the UK the focus is on symptom management rather than root cause identification. Not necessarily driven by the big Pharma companies, but certainly driven by monetary factors).

Even if none of the above floats your boat, the chapters looking at healthy eating are fantastic. For someone like me going down the plant route for the first time he really helps to explain how to eat a balanced vegetarian diet, but moreover he provides excellent information on individual foods, which are nutritionally the best bang for the buck in different food groups and how to prepare different food to get the most benefit from them (I never knew that cooked spinach is more nutritious than raw, for example).

5 stars - hugely informative. I'll be referring back to this regularly. ( )

A great book that brings together all the science that supports a plant-based diet. The book is easy to read and accessible with lots of good analogies. Plant foods are great for you and the planet and you can read about the science that backs that up. The book pushes a mostly plant-based diet. It doesn't push vegan or vegetarian. Being mainly plant based is the aim. The more the better. Highly recommend the book. I follow the Plant Proof podcast - thanks Simon for all the wonderful work that you do in sharing the science. ( )