IT FEELS GOOD TO FEEL GOOD

Readers are all living in a toxic soup, but they can take steps to clean up their lives and heal the pain caused by unhealthy regimens, according to this guide.

An updated edition of Meyer’s 2017 debut, this wide-ranging and at times alarmist manual promises to help readers understand the sources of pain and other chronic health problems, including, but not limited to, diabetes, heart disease, autism, and various autoimmune diseases. The author, a health coach and functional medicine advocate, singles out inflammation as the root cause of all these conditions. To feel better and regain control of their health, readers must fight “the fire of inflammation” by eliminating toxins in their lives. Meyer draws heavily on her own experience with pain and chronic illness, using examples from her life to illustrate how to go toxin-free. “Big Agriculture, Big Pharma, and Big Food are all loading our world with chemicals that are poisoning us,” she warns, and it’s up to readers to identify those unhealthy substances and eliminate them from their lives. Much of the book focuses on diet. Genetically modified items come in for particular attack, as do processed foods and sugar, which is likened to cocaine. Embracing a “clean” diet is a critical step on the path to wellness. But clearing out the pantry and forgoing McDonald’s are just among the first of many steps Meyer suggests. Toxins also lurk in cosmetics (especially fragrances) and cleaning products. Even relationships can be sources of damaging, toxic stress. Getting rid of all this nasty stuff is a yearslong project, the author admits, but making the effort is worth it. Despite the sometimes fearmongering tone, Meyer raises many valid concerns about the quality of the food many Americans eat and the possibly harmful chemicals hiding in everyday products. The book, which features Patton’s cartoonish line illustrations, also points to many sources for the author’s claims, not all of them equally reputable. Some valuable information comes from prestigious organizations such as Harvard University and the Mayo Clinic. But she also cites more controversial medical practitioners, like Dr. Joseph Mercola, an American physician who markets diet supplements.

Makes an impassioned—if not always convincing—case for the benefits of toxin-free lives.