FEED YOURSELF RIGHT

Some mushy arguments for using extensive vitamin and mineral supplementation in the daily diet--followed by suggestions for treating dozens of illnesses (abdominal discomfort to yeast infection) with further doses of vitamins and minerals. Smith (Feed Your Kids Right, Foods for Healthy Kids) first suggests analyzing one's possible weak spots by looking at inherited and other risk factors (""You are a tossed salad"" of environmental, social, genetic, and other influences); but his text is not sufficiently well organized, or sufficiently detailed, for systematic identification of possible problem areas. He makes a flashy plea for reformed eating habits (""give a kid a Twinkie and watch him pull a knife or walk on the ceiling""); but his big push, again, is for supplements. As regards the various disorders, causes are oversimplified (diverticulosis, for instance, is attributed to eating constipating foods). The advice--see, for example, bursitis--is scant and shaky throughout. For a more judicious argument in favor of vitamin supplementation, look to Michael Colgan's Your Personal Vitamin Profile (1982); for the illness-prevention slant, stick with Alice Martin and Frank Tenenbaum's Diet Against Disease (1980).