In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto is the fifth book by journalist Michael Pollan. It addresses the shortcomings of the Western diet, including the faulty thinking, vague wordings, fads, and diseases associated with it. Pollan (and his associates) conducted extensive research while writing this book, and all major facts and figures are cited. The book is divided into three parts. The first two are highly informative and fairly unbiased, while the final section is fairly informative and highly biased. Though it is never explicitly mentioned, this book is aimed primarily at middle and upper class Americans.
The first part of the book covers nutritionism. It explains the allure and pitfalls of nutritionism and the reductionist thinking it promotes, in addition to showing how food science is always changing while hinting at how little we truly know about the true workings of foods. Pollan feels that a food is worth more than the sum of its parts (its nutrients), and goes to great lengths to explain the evolution of nutritionism and its place in today's food culture.
The second part of the book covers the Western diet and the diseases associated with it. Pollan shows how the Western diet's focus on fast food and fatty, sugary, processed food contributes to rises in obesity, diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease. However, he also stresses that there is no singular cause of or solution to these diseases, and food must instead be viewed as a system, all the way from the soil it grows in to its form on the table. He also touches on the role health-care plays in our society and food culture.
The third part of the book covers ways to overcome the Western Diet and nutritionism, mostly through explanation of Pollan's maxim: Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. Pollan mentions that his suggestions are not rules, but more like guidelines. Unfortunately, since these are his guidelines, this section contains the most biases and opinions. While some of his opinions do not take social factors into account, he still attempts to maintain the neutrality of his argument whenever possible.
Overall, this book was enlightening and enjoyable. The first two sections are raw information backed up by research and observations, much of which can be confirmed by a stroll through any major grocery store. Some facts also seem so obvious, you will be surprised you had not thought of them before. Though Pollan's soap-boxing can get slightly oppressive during the last section, it does not mar the overall effectiveness of the book... even though Pollan never mentions the importance of drinking plenty of water.
tl;dr In Defense of Food can be summed up by Pollan's maxim of Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. If you think there's something wrong with your eating, this book is for you. Even if you don't think anything is wrong with your eating, you should still read this book. Chances are, there's something wrong with your eating.