Why We Eat

The essential guide for understanding what you’re eating, and the forces that are driving you to eat it. Nutrition isn’t rocket science; it’s harder. There are new diet fads, bold claims about superfoods and articles promising the secrets to lasting weight-loss and longevity. The more ‘expert’ advice we hear about diet, the less clarity we have about what to eat. In Food Intelligence, award-winning health journalist, Julia Belluz, and internationally renowned nutrition and metabolism scientist, Kevin Hall, cut through the myths about nutrition to deliver a comprehensive book on food, diet, metabolism and healthy eating. Breaking food down into its constituent parts, they reveal the science behind how protein, fat, carbs and vitamins impact our bodies. They shine a light on the wonders of metabolism, and debunk the latest ‘theories’ about blood sugar trackers and ultra-processed foods. They reveal the ways that the world around us – our food environment – shapes our eating behaviors and the food choices we make every day. Diseases like obesity and type 2 diabetes are not a result of a failure of will power; they are consequences of food systems working as designed. Humane and deeply reported, this journey into the science of what we eat will equip you with the food intelligence you need to better understand what’s on your dinner plate, how it got there, and why you eat it.