A lively argument from award-winning journalist proving the key to reversing health crisis lies in the overlooked link between nutrition and flavour: “The Dorito Effect is one of the most important health and food books I have read” (Dr. David B. Agus, New York Times bestselling author).
We are in the grip of a food crisis. Obesity has become a leading cause of preventable death, after only smoking. For nearly half a century we’ve been trying to pin the blame somewhere, fat, carbs, sugar, wheat, high-fructose corn syrup. But that search has been in vain, because the food problem that’s killing us is not a nutrient problem. It’s a behavioural problem, and it’s caused by the changing flavour of the food we eat.
Ever since the 1940s, with the rise of industrialized food production, we have been gradually leeching the taste out of what we grow. Simultaneously, we have taken great leaps forward in technology, creating a flavour industry, worth billions annually; in an attempt to put back the tastes we’ve engineered out of our food. The result is a cuisine that increasingly resembles the paragon of flavour manipulation: Doritos. As food becomes increasingly bland, we dress it up with calories and flavour chemicals to make it delicious again. We have rewired our palates and our brains, and the results are making us sick and killing us.
With in-depth historical and scientific research, The Dorito Effect casts the food crisis in a fascinating new light, weaving an enthralling tale of how we got to this point and where we are headed.
Solid Look At A Topic Few Look At - Possibly Benefits From Me Reading It In Audible Form. I'll be upfront- this was one of my Audible books. Thus, I really have no way of knowing how extensive the bibliography is here, as Audibles never include them. And admittedly, this book *needs* an extensive one, as it makes quite a few quite remarkable claims- and remarkable claims necessitate remarkable documentation. But because I read the Audible and thus have no record of any biliiography for good or ill, I can't base my rating on something I did not see.
What I *did* see here was a solid look at concepts most - even myself - don't actively consider, and here Schatzker takes us on a detailed yet intriguing look behind the scenes and gets quite technical indeed... while never losing his readability (at least when having the book read to you). That alone is quite the feat for many science writers, and that he was able to pull this off so well is a mark of a stronger science writer.
Schatzker was also remarkably *balanced*, decrying Big Food and Big Ag for their efforts that led to blandness and loss of flavor over the last several decades while acknowledging that these same efforts are what has enabled humanity to continue to feed itself - and applauding these same groups' efforts to re-introduce flavor while maintaining as much modern yields as possible. Even here though, he does note - and *arguably* seem to take a touch of glee in - the idea that flavorful, more nutritious foods will always be a few multiples more expensive than more bland, less nutritious foods. Which yes, does allow at least a potential perception of classism, though I note here that I never really felt he was being classist so much as simply a gourmand passionate about truly great food. Indeed, the final pair of chapters, structured around his efforts at a "perfect meal" of sorts, brought the entire narrative together quite well while also being quite visceral in its love of both that meal and telling the tale of it.
Overall a truly intriguing book, and one that even 8 years after initial publication, as I write this review having read this book just this month, still needs to be widely read and... digested. Very much recommended.
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31 January, 2023:
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