Food to Grow On

Kelly L. Green is editor of the Canadian Book Review Annual’s
Children’s Literature edition.

This is a handy, all-in-one resource for the nutritionally uninitiated
young parent or parent-to-be. The Mendelson sisters, one an excellent
cook and one a professor of nutrition, have covered almost all the bases
in this bright, well-designed volume. Women will learn the importance of
nutrition even before they conceive, and parents will find many
practical strategies for achieving an excellent diet for themselves and
their children. I particularly like the emphasis in the recipes on
vegetarian dishes, and alternative sources of protein. The heavy
emphasis on the importance of dairy products, however, is rather
surprising in the light of the considerable research that provides an
alternative point of view.

While the authors certainly encourage breastfeeding, they do not take a
stand on the issue of whether or not “breast is best.” I would also
like to have seen references to such organizations as La Leche League as
resources for the nursing mother who is having problems. I would think
that the evidence that breast milk is superior to formula is compelling
enough to have made the authors avoid the statement that “the decision
to breastfeed or bottle feed is a personal one and no woman should be
made to feel that she has made an error in judgement.” This implies
that bottle feeding is an equally beneficial alternative, when the
research indicates that it clearly is not. Nevertheless, on the whole,
this book will be a useful addition to the canon of child rearing texts.