'The Un-Constipated Gourmet: Secrets to a Moveable Feast'
For all our collective obsession with food, dining, and the so-called joy of cooking, there's very little said about what happens to all that matter once we swallow it. Thus Danielle Svetcov's The Un-Constipated Gourmet: Secrets to a Moveable Feast, a cookbook with an eye towards promoting, er, gastrointestinal regularity.
With lengthy discussions about different cultures' approaches to digestive health and a "Go Meter" rating each recipe, this isn't a book that dances around its unappetizing subject. "The result is part culinary history, part mouthwatering cookbook, and part inquiry into nothing less than our bodies themselves," writes Chris Colin in the San Francisco Chronicle. Surely, Hemingway is rolling over in his grave.
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18 Comments:
Ick.
And also rather pointless in my opinion, as everyone has different digestive reactions to different foods. Maybe I'm jaded I I think I've only been constipated once or twice in my life (after surgery), but is there really a need for such a book?
Dcarl1 at 2:48PM on 08/09/09
Rule of thumb: If it tastes like tree bark, eat as much of it as you possibly can.
redfish at 3:03PM on 08/09/09
What an incredibly awful, off putting and uncreative title.
CJ McD at 3:55PM on 08/09/09
Uh, yeah. There is no need for this. There are books about food, and books about "going." No need for a mash-up of the two. It is just off-putting.
And may I say "senna tea." Works!
Trilby at 4:03PM on 08/09/09
Papayas. Prunes have 0 effect. I always joke to my husband when he has constipation that he needs to drink more water. :P
Every couple of weeks, I hear about a different toddler that needs to see a GI doc for impaction/constipation. I don't even work with digestive disorders.
While I've never been constipated, going several times a day with a clean bill of colon health, my stepmother, goes once every 4-5 days. No oil, herbal tea, or medicine has worked for her, maybe a change in diet would help.
I'll send this to my father so he can translate. Thanks. :)
I actually like the title, because it's fairly direct without alarming people who are squeamish about bodily functions. Books, and I'll throw in stores and restaurants as well, with elusive titles/names = fail.
Cassaendra at 5:03PM on 08/09/09
Super. Nothing makes me want to cook and eat like the thought of BMs.
yankeesgal at 8:43PM on 08/09/09
Hmm, nope to most of the above. Part of eating is having a well-balanced diet, which makes way for a well-balanced digestive system. Man cannot exist on bacon alone, as his bowels would not be thankful.
anysuchname at 10:17PM on 08/09/09
to solve this problem: buy and follow "how to eat, move and be healthy" by paul chek. and peruse westonaprice.org.
alktraz at 10:28PM on 08/09/09
@Dcarl1: Oh yeah, it's very necessary. As you say yourself, everyone has different reactions. Constipation is a very common medical complaint.
wunami at 12:22AM on 08/10/09
The Irish say - you got a "knot in your puddin". Take a dose of cod liver oil and get on with the BACON !
jfitz at 5:51AM on 08/10/09
I think it is a good idea.
Neodymium at 6:05AM on 08/10/09
I cannot belive that this post made "Today's Specials" on Serious Eats.
Whatta ya tryin' ta do, huh? Drive us all away?
CJ McD at 8:53AM on 08/10/09
There are books about how treat all kinds of conditions with food. Why not this? I think people get unnecessarily uptight over the topic of poop.
ultraviolet79 at 9:48AM on 08/10/09
no need for a book. just learn to love whole grains, fruits and veggies, and it will all come out well at the end.
cybercita at 11:11AM on 08/10/09
If people in this country ate more home cooked food and drank sufficient amounts of water, as opposed to processed garbage, TGIFriday's Wings and Ribs, Outback Bloomin Onions and 64 oz sodas, maybe they wouldn't have to be reading about a diet to make them poop. Oh, yeah...getting up and walking around 'moves' things too - but not many people like to do that either...
GingerSnap at 11:11AM on 08/10/09
Too bad the reviewer's last name is Colin, not Colon!
PDXbiker at 1:12PM on 08/10/09
Go on a raw vegan diet and be sure to stock up on toilet paper.
Fatfudge at 2:55PM on 08/10/09
I have to agree that it's a yucky title... And to redfish who said if tastes like tree bark eat as much as you can of it, thats hilarious because it can be soooo true! Fiber isn't always tastey, not that it can't be. It just really takes some personal research of fiberous foods you are willing and wanting to eat. I purchased a diatary book that is geared more toward calorie counters, but shows the compltete stats of many, many foods to find out what I could be eating to increase my fiber intake and just eat healthier in general. And, it really doesn't matter what you're stuffing down your gullet if you're not drinking enought water!
honeywheat at 7:34PM on 08/10/09