Nutrition and Physical Degeneration: A Comparison of Primitive and Modern Diets and Their Effects by Weston A. Price

Oct 15, 2007 Andrea rated it really liked it

Shelves: ideas, cooking, health

This book changed my life but each case study in the book said the same thing (and was tedious to read) thus four stars, but worth skipping to the end and here's what I learned...

The average human needs 2000-2500 calories per day. Sugar is a concentrated form of energy (carbohydrates) and can quickly fill up the body's caloric needs without providing any body-building minerals. Body-building minerals include calcium, phosphorus, iron and magnesium. These minerals may be present in food yet unus This book changed my life but each case study in the book said the same thing (and was tedious to read) thus four stars, but worth skipping to the end and here's what I learned...

The average human needs 2000-2500 calories per day. Sugar is a concentrated form of energy (carbohydrates) and can quickly fill up the body's caloric needs without providing any body-building minerals. Body-building minerals include calcium, phosphorus, iron and magnesium. These minerals may be present in food yet unusuable by the body. They must be accompanied by fat-soluable and water-soluable vitamins such as Vitamins A and E.

The modern diet is made of products that ship easily to many different areas. Canned goods, sugar, rice, jam and vegetable oils are most commonly used. Bakeries provide many white-flour products. While these products still have calories and are sufficient to produce heat and energy in a human body, the minerals originally found in them have been either destroyed or removed. “In the production of white flour approximately eighty per cent or four-fifths of the phosphorus and calcium content are usually removed, together with the vitamins and minerals provided in the embryo or germ” of the grain. (p 285) “If we are to provide nutrition that will include an adequate excess as a factor of safety for overloads, and for such periods as those of rapid growth (for children), pregnancy, lactation and sickness, we must provide the excess to the extent of about twice the requirements of normal adults. (requirements stated in his book = .68g Calcium, 1.32g phosphorus .015g iron thus doubling them would mean 1.35g calcium, 2.64 phosphorus, .03g iron)” p 275 “Extensive laboratory determinations have shown that most people cannot absorb more than half of the calcium and phosphorus from the foods eaten. The amounts utilized depend directly on the presence of other substances, particularly fat-soluable vitamins.” p.269 “It will therefore be necessary for an adequate nutrition to contain approximately four times the minimum requirements of the average adult if all stress periods are to be passed safely.

The diets of the native Eskimos contained as much as 5.4 times as much calcium as the modern diet 5 times as much phosphorus, 1.5 times as much iron, 7.9 times as much magnesium, 1.8 times as much copper, 49 times as much iodine, and at least ten times that number of fat-soluable vitamins. The diets of the native americans of Canada, the native Swiss, Gaelics in the Outer Hebrides, the Aborigines of Australia and the native New Zealand Maori was similar. (see p 275-276) Not a single primitive racial stock was found living entirely on plant foods (i.e. vegetarian). p 279

Vitamin D which is not synthesized in the human body, is not available in plants. It is only available in animal products specifically egg yolks, butter, cream, liver and fish. Primitive peoples got this vitamin in four different ways. The Swiss, Arabs and Asiatic races got it from dairy products such as milk from cattle, camels or sheep. The native americans and Andean tribes got it from the organs of animals and the eggs of birds. The pacific islanders and coastal natives got it from seafood and the Australian Aborigines and African tribes got it from small animals and insects. (p 282-3)

The problem is manifested in the oral hygiene of those on inefficient diets. The natives had no problems with tooth decay. They got enough nutrition in their foods that the saliva composition protected their teeth without brushing or modern methods of cleaning teeth. When the proper chemical content of the saliva is reinstituted, bacterial growth is stopped and the tooth will harden in the area of the cavity. (p 286) The proper chemical content of saliva is directly related the the minerals absorbed by following a proper diet. Even in natives where the tooth was worn down to the gum line, the body was protected from bacterial infection by new layer of dentine where the pulp was exposed. “Available data indicate that the blood and saliva normally carry defensive factors which when present control the growth of the acid producing organisms (bacteria) and the local reactions at tooth surfaces. When these defensive factors are not present the acid producing organisms multiply and produce an acid which dissolves tooth structure. The origin of this protective factor is provided in nutrition and is directly related to the mineral content of the foods and to known and unknown vitamins particularly the fat-soluable.” p 301

As an example, the nutrition for children living in a poor district in Cleveland, OH was improved for one meal per day. Many of the children had vary large cavities which had decalcified the tooth to the pulp chamber. After the nutrition was improved, the tissues of the pulp built in a secodary dentine thus reincasing itself and the decay was inhibited. (p288) “The nutrition provided in this one meal included the following foods. About four ounces of tomato juice or orange juice and a teaspoonful of a mixture of equal parts of a very high vitamin natural cod liver oil (Vitamin A) and an especially high vitamin butter was given at the beginning of the meal. They then received a bowl containing approximately a pint of very rich vegetable and meat stew, made largely from bone marrow and fine cuts of tender meat: the meat was usually broiled separately to retain its juice and then chopped very fine and added to the bone marrow meat soup which always contained finely chopped vegetables and plenty of very yellow carrots; for the next course they had cooked fruit, with very little sweetening, and rolls made from freshly ground wheat, which were spread with the high-vitamin butter....Each child was also given two glasses of fresh whole milk. The menu was varied from day to day by substituting for the meat stew, fish chowder or organs of animals....These meals provided approximately 1.48 g calcium and 1.32 g phosphorus.” p 290 Also of note is that “two different teachers came to me to inquire what had been done to make a particular child change from one of the poorest in the class in capacity to learn to one of the best. Dental caries is only one of the many expressions of our modern deficient nutritions.” (p 290-291)

Whole wheat breads from a bakery is not comparable to Nature's foods “because of the factors that have been removed from the wheat either mechanically or by oxidation.” p 299

Nutrient content in foods varies depending on the nutrient content of the soil and foods eaten by cattle. If cattle are in gestation too often and fed foods low in chlorophyl the nutritional value of their milk is depleted.

Summary:
Reduce intake of white flour, sugar, and over processed foods.
Increase intake of whole grains, freshly ground wheat, dairy products, fruits and vegetables. Make particular efforts to get double to quadruple the minimum daily amounts of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and iron along with natural Vitamins A, B, C, D, and E.

Proper nutrition will reduce the number of cavities, reduce risk of disease, make childbirth easier and reduce risk of mental and physical deformities in infants and adults. An example of a mental deformity in infants that is related to nutrition is the increased risk of downs syndrome for children born to parents over forty years of age. See book for an extensive look at the effects of nutrition on downs syndrome children. ...more

flag 60 likes · Like · see review

Aug 11, 2012 Roslyn rated it it was amazing

Required reading, especially for people thinking about having kids. So shocking to see such strong evidence that all orthodontic needs are NOT genetic but actually evidences of nutritional deficiencies IN UTERO. Fascinating how much effort he has to go to prove what is really common sense and yet people still don't know this stuff. Why didn't I learn about this until now? I am so angry about what a useless waste of time public education is. Why don't we learn anything useful at all?!!!! ARGH!!!! ...more

flag 15 likes · Like · see review

May 13, 2007 trevor rated it it was amazing

Shelves: nutrition

This is the best book I've ever read. The amount of research, depth of knowledge, and pictures that capture more than words can describe makes a very though provoking read. Forget everything you have head about nutrition from so called experts over the last 60 years. This is the only book you need.

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Apr 07, 2013 David Carver rated it it was amazing

Shelves: nonfiction

This book is quite simply the best and most succinct argument for a natural, non-synthetic diet. Chapter after chapter of detailed surveys, statistics, and citation establishes that diet directly influences not only the superficial problems of tooth decay, but much more serious issues of prenatal development, degenerative disease, and mental acuity. One would expect a work on dental health in primitive cultures to be dry going, but Weston Price has an eye for the beauty in Nature, especially the This book is quite simply the best and most succinct argument for a natural, non-synthetic diet. Chapter after chapter of detailed surveys, statistics, and citation establishes that diet directly influences not only the superficial problems of tooth decay, but much more serious issues of prenatal development, degenerative disease, and mental acuity. One would expect a work on dental health in primitive cultures to be dry going, but Weston Price has an eye for the beauty in Nature, especially the beauty of the unmarred and healthy physical form, and therefore he regularly interrupts the scientific narrative to discuss weird or colorful items in his journey across the world. The results of that journey, photographed regularly and precisely, can leave little doubt: the modern diet kills. Only the vitamins and minerals present in non-synthetic primitive diets can ward off such modern ills as heart disease, dental crowding, and infant deformities. In fact, it is remarkable how much of the human experience relates to this basic idea of good nutrition, a fact that appears irrefutable from the thousands of cases documented by Price.

While the claims of this book touching only on dental hygiene would make it fascinating reading in itself, other conclusions are particularly relevant to contemporary culture:
1) Vitamins do their best work when ingested as much as possible from their natural source. This means that capsules and pills are secondarily useful - much better to eat freshly-ground wheat or fish eyes.
2) Childbearing in primitive cultures is prepared for months in advance; the result is that it is often a quick and simple event, contrasted to the arduous, lengthy experience of many women in Western societies.
3) Mental disease in infants can be traced in a high percentage of cases to a lack of over-nutrition in the mother (since sufficient nutrition only takes care of her own health). And finally,
4) A good diet derives from satisfactorily answering two questions: what is my food? and where does it come from? Modern diets have tended to focus exclusively on the former, which means that the vegans are right, in a way - meat does present serious risks when it comes from the feedlot system, but a diet that contains no animal products whatsoever not only cannot deliver vitamins and minerals efficiently, but has been rejected by the primitive cultures of the world, who have not suffered tooth decay, degenerative disease, or mental retardation in the process.

I can't think of a book I'd be more likely to recommend in the near future than this one. A necessary read. ...more

flag 8 likes · Like · see review

Mar 16, 2019 Петър Стойков rated it it was amazing

В края на 19 век индустриализацията на света върви с пълна сила и индустриалните храни започват да навлизат сред все повече общества. Захар, бяло брашно, консервирани храни, хидрогенизирани растителни масла - са вече съвсем евтини и стават основни хранителни продукти на много хора, които до сега са се хранили по традиционния начин - с отгледани от тях продукти.

Авторът Уестън А. Прайс е канадски зъболекар, който забелязва, че точно в този период бизнесът му се увеличава неимоверно - водят му деца В края на 19 век индустриализацията на света върви с пълна сила и индустриалните храни започват да навлизат сред все повече общества. Захар, бяло брашно, консервирани храни, хидрогенизирани растителни масла - са вече съвсем евтини и стават основни хранителни продукти на много хора, които до сега са се хранили по традиционния начин - с отгледани от тях продукти.

Авторът Уестън А. Прайс е канадски зъболекар, който забелязва, че точно в този период бизнесът му се увеличава неимоверно - водят му деца с десетки кариеси, с маломерни челюсти и криви зъби - при условие, че родителите им, невежи селски хора, имат силни, здрави и правилни зъби.

В продължение на десетилетия, той и съпругата му обикалят света, за да изучават местните примитивни хора, които живеят и се хранят според древните си традиции и обичаи и техните сблъсъци с модерните храни (главно що се отнася до здравето на зъбите им). Двамата документират изследванията си с над 15 хил. фотографии и издават тази книга през 1939 г.

Изводите, които правят са фрапиращи - независимо дали става дума за селяни в швейцарските алпи, ескимоси, папуаси или африкански племена, туземците практически не познават кариеса и зъбните изкривявания. Зъбите им са често мръсни, изтъркани от употреба и с наслоен зъбен камък, но не са развалени. Наблюдават се кариеси между 0.09-5 на 1000 зъба.

Там обаче, дето тия местни хора вече са в контакт с цивилизацията и ядат бяло брашно, захар и производните им храни, не само зъбите им се развалят неимоверно (разбира се, за това допринася и фактът, че не ги мият), но и се наблюдават зъбни и челюстни изкривявания.

Изводът на автора от тия наблюдения, изследвания на храните и проведени клинични експерименти относно хранителното съдържание на традиционните храни са изключително интересни и полезни и някои по-късни учени наричат У.Прайс "Чарлз Дарвин на хранителната наука".

Прайс обръща голямо внимание на мазнините като основен разтворител на повечето витамини - особено кравето масло от хранени с трева крави, рибеното масло и маслото от рибен черен дроб. Описва също така и пълнозърнестото брашно, като източник на калций и фосфор (макар че племената, които се хранят с напълно животински храни - инуити в Аляска и масаи в Африка - имат всъщност най-ниски нива на кариес).

Макар в книгата да личат недостатъците на епохата (малко архаичен научен подход и език, модерните за периода расови залитания и т.н.) тя е невероятно четиво за тия от нас, които се интересуват от здравословен живот и хранене. ...more

flag 6 likes · Like · see review

Nov 01, 2017 Richard Reese rated it it was amazing

My mother, who was born in 1916, had a “sweet tooth.” When I was born, she had dentures, no teeth. White flour and sugar were common ingredients in many meals I consumed between childhood and into my 40s. She got diabetes, and I did too. My first dentist said I had teeth like a horse. They are crowded and crooked. All four of my wisdom teeth were surgically removed, because they were growing sideways, toward the molar next door. I brushed my teeth, but still got cavities.

Back in the sixteenth ce ...more

flag 5 likes · Like · see review

Nov 28, 2009 Brad Belschner rated it liked it

Shelves: health

Interesting stuff, but not as relevant to the modern reader as it might seem. There's a world of difference between being raised on whole foods in a pre-industrial environment with plenty of exercise VS. being raised on processed foods and switching to whole foods. The latter can actually be harmful, depending on the circumstances. Overall, this book is an interesting source of information, but somewhat poor source of dietary guidance. I recommend the research of Matt Stone instead (or in additi ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Oct 09, 2013 Stewart rated it it was amazing

Shelves: nutrition, farming, favorites

Most people only hear about Price from the "raw milk" crowd. That topic is only a tiny part of his work, and he talks about healthy diets that include no dairy whatsoever.

This is probably one of the most significant works on nutrition and health I have read. Price claims NO PERFECT DIET, but seeks to articulate ideal common principles of the diets he examined.

The principles of health, extracted from fine specimens of "primitive" peoples, include:

1. excluding all white flour; only including fres ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Aug 06, 2011 Jesse Barnes rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Very cool book. A cross between adventure dentistry, cultural anthropology and nutritional science. Some of the material he discovered is common knowledge now: the importance of vitamins, the role of sugar and refined flour in tooth decay. But the really interesting stuff was his data on physical development in people who had gone from traditional (aka "primitive") diets to modern diets and then back again. Children born under the primitive diets were healthier, stronger, and had resistance to c ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Dec 14, 2008 anne rated it it was amazing

Weston A. Price is a master scientist. He traveled the world with his wife, Indiana Jones style, but instead of ancient relics, he searched for ancient foods. He found the key to ending chronic disease!... but no one listens because if we were to practice what he found, food lobbyists and manufacturers, ad companies, commercial farmers, and most importantly Monsanto & Big Pharm would be out of business.

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Feb 08, 2013 Valerie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: books-that-changed-my-life

This book changed my perspective on food and dental care. Cavities can be healed (easier while young than old), teeth can be remineralized, and what we eat has a direct effect on our health (I already knew that part of course, but never read it this way before).

This book is a fascinating story of a dentist in early last century who traveled to pockets of people still eating their age-old ancestral diet. He found that their traditional diet, widely different in content depending on the area, equ ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Jan 13, 2014 Michael Hentrich rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Recently, I heard someone say that, "The more you learn, the more you realize you don't know." That was how I felt after reading this book. It opened up a whole new world of learning for me about health.

Dr. Price traveled around the world in the 1930's to find primitive societies who were as isolated as possible. He wanted to find people who weren't touched by the modern world and find out how healthy they were. His observations and clinical studies are documented in this book, and if you choos ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Feb 15, 2011 Christopher rated it it was ok

Shelves: digital-books

A sometimes racist, often subjective, occasionally factual, outdated, repetitive scientific read. This is what you get, I guess, reading 1st person biological science from the 1930s. Nevertheless, this book is fantastic in 3 ways: [1] It shows us what science used to think was correct; [2] excellent descriptions of "primitive" diets (the delight of most readers of this book); [3] Can also be read as an anecdote-filled nutritional travelogue.

Found myself skimming entire sections. Overall, an over ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Jul 17, 2018 Iona Stewart rated it really liked it

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get through this voluminous, dense book, which is a classic within the field of dentistry.

I’m not particularly interested in dentistry but have been having dental issues and thus found my way to this book.

Weston Price travelled around the world investigating the teeth of so-called primitive peoples. His focus was to find societies untouched by Western society who thus still existed totally on a diet of indigenous foods.

The prologue states that Price proved conclus Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get through this voluminous, dense book, which is a classic within the field of dentistry.

I’m not particularly interested in dentistry but have been having dental issues and thus found my way to this book.

Weston Price travelled around the world investigating the teeth of so-called primitive peoples. His focus was to find societies untouched by Western society who thus still existed totally on a diet of indigenous foods.

The prologue states that Price proved conclusively that dental decay is caused primarily by nutritional deficiencies and “that those conditions that promote decay also promote disease”.

The diets studied by Price were diverse, some being based on sea foods, some on domesticated animals, some n game and some on dairy products. Some contained almost no plant foods while others contained a variety of fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes. In some, mostly cooked foods were eaten while in others many foods, including animal foods were eaten raw.

“Price found fourteen tribal diets that, although radically different, provided almost complete immunity to tooth decay and resistance to illness.”

The book is packed with photos of people showing their teeth. In a photo of two groups, black and white, from Thursday Island, the natives have “beautifully proportioned faces” and broad dental arches (not that I know what dental arches are), while the whites have “pinched nostrils and marked disturbance in proportions of the faces” and crowded teeth (poor diet apparently deforms not only teeth but faces).

In another series of photos we see a boy aged 5 (not from any of the “primitive” societies) who suffered from inflammatory rheumatism, arthritis and “heart involvement”. “He was so badly crippled with arthritis in his swollen knees, wrists, and rigid spine that he was bedfast and cried by the hour.” After a year of improved diet where white flour products were removed, and small doses of cod liver oil were added, together with “specially high vitamin butter produced by cows pasturing on green wheat”, the boy’s pain had subsided, his appetite had improved, he slept soundly and he had gained rapidly in weight.

It’s a pity I didn’t manage to read much of the book, since it proved really interesting, and contains, as can be seen from the above, not only material about how to improve one’s teeth through good diet but also much about the improvement of general health and healing of diseases.

Being a vegetarian, aspiring to be vegan, I can’t eat many of the foodstuffs Price recommends, such as liver, whole milk and bone marrow, and wheat these days is not what it was in Price’s time (the book was written in 1939).

I found the language to be extremely dated (e.g. “bedfast”) but, of course, comprehensible. But it is not the most readable of books and its size is off-putting. So I would recommend it mostly to dentists and others absolutely interested in dental matters.

To sum up, Price’s basic tenet is that dental decay and disease as a whole are caused mainly by nutritional deficiencies. In my experience, as regards dental decay, this is not something that the dental profession is aware of.

P.S. I have just begun to read a fascinating book by a former dentist who contends that dental decay is primarily caused not by bacteria, lack of good brushing or poor nutrition, but by our feelings. So it’s all getting quite interesting. (I believe that the feelings are probably the primary cause, but everything is interconnected, and good nutrition is obviously absolutely important.) ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Jan 24, 2019 Vivian rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction

Fascinating, informative, sobering.

Studies of native diets were documented by inveterate dentist Weston A Price in a watershed time between the two world wars where there was means for diplomacy, photography, air travel, and scientific analysis of foods and soils in diverse living conditions around the globe.

Dr. Price and his wife sought out peoples where there were similar stock exposed to western foods, such as sugars and highly milled flours and other grains living in close proximity to the Fascinating, informative, sobering.

Studies of native diets were documented by inveterate dentist Weston A Price in a watershed time between the two world wars where there was means for diplomacy, photography, air travel, and scientific analysis of foods and soils in diverse living conditions around the globe.

Dr. Price and his wife sought out peoples where there were similar stock exposed to western foods, such as sugars and highly milled flours and other grains living in close proximity to the same racial stocks not yet exposed to the western diet. These places included Swiss, Gaelics, Alaskan Eskimos, Indians of Central Canada, Seminole Indians, Melanesians, Polynesians, African Tribes, Australian Aborigines, Torres Strait Islanders, New Zealand Maori, and Peruvians. He wrote of these peoples with respect, giving credit to their traditional nutritional knowledge and practices.

Many photographs document his findings as well as tables and graphs. It is indeed sobering to understand the changes in facial structure in just one generation exposed to unhealthy foods. He also documents successful treatments for nutritional diseases which can be adopted.

His concerns extended to depletion of soil nutrients, which has been addressed somewhat in recent years with artificial fertilizers. (See: The Alchemy of Air: A Jewish Genius, a Doomed Tycoon, and the Scientific Discovery That Fed the World but Fueled the Rise of Hitler
by Thomas Hager).

I found it especially interesting to learn about fat soluble vitamins, which need activators to be utilized by the body. For instance, skim milk contains nutrients but provides no delivery system. Cream provides the necessary activator.

Sadly, Dr. Price's work has been swept aside by modern dentistry and orthodontia. His work is kept alive through the Price-Pottenger Nutrition Foundation, P.O. Box 2614, La Mesa, CA 91943-2614, www.ppnf.org and info@ppnf.org which is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, tax=exempt organization. Membership includes a quarterly newsletter.

There's certainly plenty of "heavy lifting" required with the reading of this book, but it is definitely worth the journey. ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Oct 21, 2018 Beth Haynes rated it it was amazing

Shelves: nutrition-fitness, medical

Fascinating account by a dentist who traveled the world in the 1930-40s to examine communities which remained isolated from modern food and diet (refined flour, sugar, processed oils and meats). He found not only remarkable dental health (a paucity of cavities and lack of crowded teeth) he also found that heart disease, cancer and even diseases like inflamed gall bladders were rare. Within one generation of eating "modern foods" - dental health markedly deteriorated, as did general health. If yo ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

May 10, 2018 Eric rated it it was amazing

First of all, yes. This book was written in the 1930's and it is full of politically incorrect terms describing native populations (primitives, savages) as well as handicapped individuals (idiot, retarded, moron, etc.).

It also features theories that are now baseless.

Mr. Price assumed that the theory of the land bridge to north america following the ice age was infallible so all the native population were from common ancestry and therefore their regionally physical differences were entirely base ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Mar 12, 2014 Sean Michael rated it really liked it

Shelves: most-influential

This is one of the most important books on nutrition ever written. Dr. Price presents in this work documentation of the detrimental effects on health, bone structure and fertility that are seen when modern foods (sugar, white rice, white flour, canned foods, jams, lean muscle meat, vegetable oils), replace traditional foods (liberal use of sea foods, organ meats, eggs of many species of animal and fish, full-fat dairy from cow, goat and camel raised on fast growing grasses on mineral-rich soil, This is one of the most important books on nutrition ever written. Dr. Price presents in this work documentation of the detrimental effects on health, bone structure and fertility that are seen when modern foods (sugar, white rice, white flour, canned foods, jams, lean muscle meat, vegetable oils), replace traditional foods (liberal use of sea foods, organ meats, eggs of many species of animal and fish, full-fat dairy from cow, goat and camel raised on fast growing grasses on mineral-rich soil, freshly cracked and ground whole grain breads).

This book is at its best when he documents his travels in the late 1920s through mid 1930s. He traveled to isolated parts of Switzerland, northern Scottish islands, northern Canada and Alaska, the Melanesian and Polynesian islands, the Peruvian Andes and Amazon regions, throughout Central and East Africa, New Guinea and Australia. In each location he meticulously documented dental cavities and dental arch and skull deformities, plus immunity to tuberculosis and other infectious diseases. He compared groups of the same "racial stock" that had no contact with modern foods, and were still eating their traditional diet to groups where "traditional" foods had been replaced by "modern" foods. And it is not pretty. More important than the data he collected are the photos that he took. It's enlightening to see photos of so many vibrant, strong, well-developed people. People that ate exclusively traditional diets. People that never used a toothbrush, yet had no history of tooth decay. It is equally heart-breaking when you see photos of what happens when "traditional" foods are replaced with modern foods. A photo can tell a thousand words, and simply scanning the photos in this book alone is well worth the purchase price.

The last third of this book rambles along, and it is written in the 30s, so there is some language that is not politically correct now. I wish he would have spent more time rigorously documenting the exact diets of the groups he came in contact with. It also would have been great to have more data on life expectancy, as well as tumor and heart disease data on the groups he studied. For those reasons, I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Still, this book is so immensely important and influential to many, because we live in an age where there are virtually no people left on the planet that are eating completely traditional diets. The "white man's" food has replaced traditional foods for almost everyone. For that reason, most of the photos that we now see of so called current "primitive" groups, show people negatively impacted by modern foods. Dr. Price provides hundreds of photos of what these people looked like 80 years ago, before unhealthy foods were introduced. The photos of these beautiful, vibrant people will blow you away, and make you reconsider what "normal" and "healthy" really is. Sadly, it's hard to find examples of comparable levels of good health in those around us now. ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Jun 19, 2013 Deanna Miller rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This is one of the most important books ever written and should be required reading in all schools. It also should be required reading for anyone planning to have children. Although not a fast-paced or exciting read, it contains wisdom that is crucial to the health and survival of the human race.

Through the foods we eat, we have a lot more control over our health than most of us realize. Dr. Weston A. Price, a dentist and the first research director of the National Dental Association (later ren This is one of the most important books ever written and should be required reading in all schools. It also should be required reading for anyone planning to have children. Although not a fast-paced or exciting read, it contains wisdom that is crucial to the health and survival of the human race.

Through the foods we eat, we have a lot more control over our health than most of us realize. Dr. Weston A. Price, a dentist and the first research director of the National Dental Association (later renamed the American Dental Association), traveled the globe in the 1930s studying the health and diets of different races. Over and over again he found that no matter what the race, the isolated people who were eating their traditional nutrient-dense foods had excellent dental and overall health, whereas members of the same race who instead ate processed foods had poor dental and overall heath. He concluded that lack of proper nutrition is the root cause of all physical degeneration, including degeneration of the teeth and gums.

According to Dr. Price’s research, your physical health is greatly influenced by what your parents ate before conception, what your mother ate during pregnancy, what you ate as a growing child, and what you now eat as an adult. The definition of proper nutrition that emerged during Dr. Price's research is not the same as the mainstream definition of proper nutrition today. The following Web pages provide a brief summary of Dr. Price's findings:

http://www.radiantlifecatalog.com/the...
http://www.radiantlifecatalog.com/dr_...
http://www.radiantlifecatalog.com/wha...

It appears that this book is in the public domain. You can read chapters 1-21 of the book online here:

http://journeytoforever.org/farm_libr...
or
http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200...

The wisdom in this book should be common knowledge today, but it is not. Why? Please keep in mind that if we all avoided the damaging processed foods (like sugar, white flour, and vegetable oils), ate nutrient-dense foods, and as a result had excellent health, we would not need dentists, orthodontists, or doctors, just as the isolated people studied by Dr. Price didn't need them. Not only would the producers of the processed foods lose a lot of money, but dentists, orthodontists, doctors, and Big Pharma would also lose a huge income stream. It is much more profitable for them if we are not sick enough to die but sick enough, for example, to need cavity fillings, orthodontics, or medications like statins that must be taken for the rest of our lives. These groups have a big influence on our government, so that explains why the US government's food pyramid does not reflect Dr. Price's research and instead reflects the financial influence of these groups. ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Jan 24, 2015 Łukasz Pomi rated it it was amazing

A must read ..BUT

Way to many pages if You ask me.

You could sum up this book in few points really. So to spare You the trouble of hearing words like: "dental", "cavity", "teeth" and "dental arches" a MILLION times.

Here is my quick sum up:

1. The author and his team of researchers traveled around the world and studied the teeth and overall health (but focused on teeth as the main factor) of different primitive tribes (or at least what would SOME call primitive) - some of them included Aborigines, ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Nov 25, 2013 Monica added it

I will just link an article by Dr. L. Wilson reviewing the findings of Weston A. Price.

"We all a tremendous debt of gratitude to Dr. Price, which I share. I believe he would appreciate the updating of his work based on the drastic changes in our bodies and our food that have occurred in the past 100 years since he lived."

http://drlwilson.com/ARTICLES/PRICE.htm

http://drlwilson.com/ARTICLES/PRICE,%...

Also, this: http://www.drlwilson.com/Articles/FAT...

Do not overdo on fats, even the best quality ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Feb 10, 2009 Karen rated it really liked it

So very interesting. Dr. Price (actually a DENTIST...not an MD) wrote this in 1939 after studying the effects of various diets on isolated, primitive peoples. He describes is great detail (with insightful pictures) how our diet effects our health. Although not all arguments were entirely substantiated, the overall picture shows the potential harm our Western diet can inflict. I am the exact type of person who SHOULD be a health-nut...unfortunately, I read as many cookbooks as other books and lov ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Jan 19, 2014 Laura rated it did not like it

I had read many recommendations which suggested this book as a great nutritional reference.
While I do not doubt the value of the information here presented, the book itself is awfully tedious. After a while it becomes very repetitive, it just goes on and on and on with examples of exactly the same problems and situations.
It indeed reflects some interesting facts but at a certain point the text does not add anything at all - just looking at the different example pictures would suffice to most rea ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Jul 04, 2011 Marisa rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This is a really great book, it reads like a textbook so is hard to get through all of it and I had to skim through parts of it. Basically in the 1930's Weston Price and his wife scoured the earth for the most remote and primitive populations. Ones that weren't tainted by a modern diet. The people were healthy in every way, bones and teeth were well formed and there was little disease. As modern diet encroached on their traditional diets their health and vigor decreased with each generation. All ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Oct 24, 2009 Nate rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Have you ever wondered why we experience tooth decay? How about why we are so vulnerable to diseases? This book, written in the 1930s, is an amazing study about nutrition. It is hard not to believe every word in this book -- Dr. Price visits isolated communities throughout the world and learns why they are free from all the degenerative diseases that were prevalent in the 1930s and even more so today.

Just read it.

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Feb 14, 2019 Raffaele rated it it was amazing

Quite verbose, but such an amazing book. The terminology would need a review and update though! Some definitions result to be racist and discriminatory in our modern times. People are addressed as 'monsters' or 'idiots'..frankly unacceptable!

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Jul 24, 2018 Uröš Mikolič rated it it was amazing

Probably one of the most important books that noone knows about. MUST read if you are a type of person that just simply gives a f*** about things.

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Mar 22, 2012 Meesha rated it it was amazing

A must read for everyone!

flag 1 like · Like · see review

May 09, 2008 Daniela rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This is a really long book, very dense...it'll take a while to get through.

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Mar 11, 2019 Rutger rated it liked it

Shelves: health

Weston Price’s classic “Nutrition and physical degeneration” still offers worthy insights to us today. Price, a dentist, travelled all over the world to “primitive” tribes to see what their diets were before and after contact with modern Western man. Price believed there was a clear relation between modern diets and irregularities in teeth and jaws (badly formed dental arches, caries, etc.) and wanted to investigate this idea further.

His travels definitely increased his suspicions. Wherever he w Weston Price’s classic “Nutrition and physical degeneration” still offers worthy insights to us today. Price, a dentist, travelled all over the world to “primitive” tribes to see what their diets were before and after contact with modern Western man. Price believed there was a clear relation between modern diets and irregularities in teeth and jaws (badly formed dental arches, caries, etc.) and wanted to investigate this idea further.

His travels definitely increased his suspicions. Wherever he went: Fiji, Congo, Peru, Loetschental valley and Gaelic islands, the findings were similar. People who ate modern diets had disproportionate amounts of caries and badly formed dental arches; pre-modern tribes who ate traditional diets all had straight, white teeth without caries, wide jaws. These people never brushed their teeth or saw a dentist – they didn’t need to. Price believed that traditional diets were richer in vitamins and certain amounts of micronutrients (potassium, magnesium, iodine, etc.) He was struck by the richness of seafood, especially.

Price did a lot of further thinking with regards to his ideas. For example, he checked what happened to animals (like pigs) raised a modern diet. Result: they had all kinds of development problems (blindness, disfigured limbs, etc.) So, Price concluded agricultural land tended to get over-used, making the agricultural products low in micro-nutritional content and thus unhealthy – for animals and people. During the book, Price seems to see other effects of micro nutritional shortages in human: club feet, small faces, small frames, bad development in the pelvic area (problems during pregnancy and labour).

This book, however, is old and, therefore, a bit dated. In many ways research and insights have falsified certain conclusions. He seems to argue pre-modern dietary wisdom was better than anything the modern West has to offer. Well, look at a map today, 100 years after this book? Does anyone prefer to live in pre-modern societies? I sure don’t. That’s not the big story, in my opinion. What is noteworthy is how many of Price’s ideas have resulted in useful practices today. Price would have supported a paleo diet, for example, and frowned upon the veganism craze; children and pregnant women get all sorts of dietary supplement; we all value fresh and nutrient rich food today; and we all understand the importance of eating healthy food and the prevention of teeth decay.

Recommended. ...more

flag Like · see review