In The China Study, father-and-son authors T. Colin Campbell and Thomas M. Campbell II overwhelm you with evidence upon evidence of the relationship between diet and health. A large portion of the book centers around a massive study the authors conducted in China that involved thousands of subjects and set out to find how diet and lifestyle influence cancer. The authors also discuss studies performed by many other researchers on the topics of various other serious diseases, such as heart disease and diabetes.

The information is presented in an accessible and understandable way. There is some technical jargon at times, but it doesn’t get in the way.

This review can be summed up in a single sentence:

In my opinion, this is a must-read book for anyone concerned about long-term health.

There are a couple main points I want to cover.

Point #1

The Campbells’ research leads them to recommend a plant-based whole foods diet. You will understand why when you read about their research and that of others.

Unfortunately, this recommendation comes very early in the book. In fact, they use the “V” word… vegetarian.

I have mixed feelings about that.

On one hand, I personally believe that a plant-based diet is the way to go. So when someone advocates this, I generally feel that it helps build awareness and progress.

On the other hand, in this case I fear that the Campbells’ research – and its significant potential health benefits – may be dismissed because of a perception that they are biased or have an agenda to push.

(According to the book, the elder author was raised a dairy farmer, implying no predisposition to a vegetarian diet.)

Point #2

One of the more interesting themes in the book, from my perspective, was the critical look at how most research looks at substances (nutrients, drugs, carcinogens, etc.) in isolation.

Isolating variables to determine cause and effect relationships is a cornerstone of the scientific method.

Yet the authors offer a compelling argument that biology is massively intricate and complex, with its hundreds of thousands of chemicals, and isolating ignores the possible synergistic effect of the way substances occur in nature.

For example, is vitamin C really effective as an isolated supplement, or does eating a fresh orange – where the vitamin C is in its natural context – give the best benefit?

Conclusion

The book holds extremely valuable information about health and nutrition with serious implications for the wellness of Americans as well as other developed and developing nations.

If you’re at all concerned about your own health, or the health of a loved one, or you know someone who is suffering or is at risk of suffering from cancer, heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and more, I urge you to read this book.

Just don’t let the “V” word stand in your way.

Because being well-informed about your health is never a bad thing.

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The China Study