Super Immunity: A Breakthrough Program to Boost the Body's Defenses and Stay Healthy All Year Round

Written by Joel Fuhrman

Narrated by Ned Sparrow

From world-renowned health expert and New York Times bestselling author of Eat to Live and Eat for Life Dr. Joel Fuhrman comes a practical nutritional plan to prevent and reverse disease—no shots, drugs or sick days required.

 

Why do some of us get sick with greater frequency than others? What makes us more susceptible to illness? Is there a secret to staying healthy? Dr. Fuhrman doesn’t believe the secret to staying healthy lies in medical care—rather, the solution is to change the way we eat.

 With more than 85 plant-based recipes, a two-week menu plan, and lists of super foods that boost immunity, Dr. Fuhrman’s proven strategies in Super Immunity combine the latest data from clinical tests, nutritional research, and results from thousands of patients .

Inside Super Immunity, you’ll find:

• The big picture—Learn everything you need to know about healthy eating for a healthy life.
• A 2-week meal plan—Take the guesswork out of changing your diet with planned meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day of the week.
• 85 immunity-boosting recipes—These delicious plant based recipes make eating healthy easy and crave-worthy.

 Live longer, stronger, and disease free with this proven plan to change your diet and change your life.

 “Super Immunity is a much needed book that contains the key to ending the cycle of sickness that plagues many of our lives. This is enlightened medicine, at last!” (Dr. Alejandro Junger, New York Times bestselling author of CLEAN)

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Sep 20, 2011
• ISBN: 9780062099655

Joel Fuhrman

JOEL FUHRMAN, M.D. is an internationally recognized expert on nutrition and natural healing, a board-certified family physician, President of the Nutritional Research Foundation, and a #1 New York Times bestselling author. Dr. Fuhrman has appeared on hundreds of radio and television shows, including his own  successful PBS specials, which have raised millions for public broadcasting stations. Dr. Fuhrman is the author of six New York Times best-sellers: Eat to Live (Little Brown, 2003); Super Immunity (HarperOne, 2012); The End of Diabetes (HarperOne, 2013); The Eat to Live Cookbook (HarperOne, 2013); The End of Dieting (HarperOne, 2014) and The End of Heart Disease (HarperOne, 2016). In addition to his New York Times best-sellers, Dr. Fuhrman has written several other popular books, which include: Fast Food Genocide (HarperOne, 2017); Eat to Live Quick & Easy Cookbook (HarperOne, 2017); Eat for Health (Gift of Health Press), Disease Proof Your Child (St. Martin’s Griffin), Fasting and Eating for Health (St. Martin’s Griffin) and the Dr. Fuhrman’s Nutritarian Handbook and ANDI Food Scoring Guide (Gift of Health Press).

Reviews for Super Immunity

[Annett · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Everyone should read this book if you care about longevity and a life with minimal morbidity .

[Justina Sat · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Game changer for me! Loved it! Thank you. Amazing

[Chioma C · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a lifestyle changing book

[d-fbuser-57701489 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Most insightful and a good resource to additionally research your health and nutritional questions - immensely well structured and easy to follow.

[Beverly Arnold · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Love this guy! This is the third of his books I've listened to and will continue to listen to more. I'm already vegetarian but his books have given me really great suggestions to eat even more healthfully. Highly recommend this book.

[Tyra · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The amount of information in this little book is amazing ! I also love the meal plan option and the recipes ! Thanks Dr. Fuhrman ?

[pepe · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Very good ,love it . easy to understand I learn a lot

[Matthew Jukes · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An excellent book for health enthusiasts. A must read.

[Elliot Hardy · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Amazing book. Nothing controversial. This book will surprise you in its simplicity while being spot on. The title seemed to good to be true but the benefits of a diet high in fruits and vegetables is hard to ignore!

[Phyllis Legrand · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Very interesting and believe able
Shall definitely be changing my food shopping
Hoping to find the foods in England
I am inclined to vegetarian food with some fish
A few times a week
Very easy to listen too video
I shall recommending too Family and friends
Glad that I found it

[Shannon Durand · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Where do I find the pdf. that goes along with this book?

[octavio o nunez · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

En este momento de Coronavirus todos debemos leer este libro que nos puede salvar la vida.
At this time of quarantine because of the Coronavirus we must all read this life-saving book.

[bookcrazed_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Touting himself as “a leading expert and board-certified medical specialist in prevention and reversing disease,” Joel Fuhrman is at the forefront of the contemporary food-as-medicine movement. Supported by his 30 years clinical experience and more than 200 peer-reviewed scientific studies, he convincingly proposes that our food choices can make us sick or keep us well. He advises a vegan (or nearly vegan) diet that is rich in the fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, and seeds that he claims are largely missing from the average American diet. His “nutritarian” approach to eating requires that we eat more “super” foods that are packed with nutritional benefits and fewer foods that have limited nutritional benefit.

Fuhrman is not a fan of low-fat or low-carbohydrate diets, but rather recommends a balanced combination of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins from mostly vegetable sources. Pointing out that green vegetables are more than 50% protein, he espouses a diet that includes daily servings of greens, berries, onions, mushrooms, beans, and seeds. With such a diet, he writes, we can expect a healthy immune system that heads off disease before it can take hold.

In addition to Fuhrman’s lengthy discussion of “super foods for super immunity”—which include specific foods that have been scientifically shown to protect against cancer and heart disease—he tackles the controversial use of flu vaccines. His chapter on colds and flu is a scientifically well-documented discourse on what works and what doesn’t work . . . and what has been proven to NOT work includes most of the popular prescription and over-the-counter remedies. The overuse of antibiotics is widely accepted, but what is not widely known is that frequent use of antibiotics over the course of a lifetime has been linked to increased risk for breast cancer . . . and use of antibiotics in infants has been linked to asthma and allergies.

Fuhrman’s final chapter, titled “Making the Right Choices,” is a well-crafted summary of the book’s most powerful points. For readers who like to read the end first, in this case you’ll be equipping yourself with sufficient knowledge to begin making needed changes to your dietary habits, whether or not you wisely invest the time needed to read the entire work. Also included are menus, recipes, 25 pages of endnotes, and a 15-page comprehensive index.

Written for a general public with no scientific background, Fuhrman has included the information and references that qualify it as a valuable resource for both consumers and providers of health services. While American medical schools continue to provide little-to-no nutrition education, any physician or primary health provider would benefit from having a copy of Fuhrman’s Super Immunity close at hand.

[elsiereads · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Can't say enough good things about Dr. Fuhrman's work. He has helped members of my family to lose weight and improve or reverse serious medical conditions. I can't think of anything more valuable.

Although I've read his previous books, this one offered more detailed information on how fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts and seeds prevent and reverse diseases from colds to cancer, type 2 diabetes, allergies, and asthma. He backs up his assertions by giving detailed explanations and citing research. The book also includes healthy recipes, some of which are new (others were included in his other books).

[alberto_martinez-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

this book shows many data but lacks any references: how could I verify them? On certain things it has a good "common sense approach" but I couldn't find any science behind.

[ionas_7 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read this book in Danish since I got hold of it by mistake in this language.

I found the book to be somewhat scientifically formulated and to contain many unexplained abbreviations, or perhaps explained when first introduced but not subsequently, all of which did not make it an easy read.
(So it wasn’t just the Danish.) There was no index, at least not in the Danish edition.

There is so much information in this book, that I will just indicate here those aspects of it that I found most interesting/valuable.

The catastrophic state of health among Americans is due to their atrocious diet – Americans suffer from a critical lack of phytochemicals (obtained from plants) and this has had extensive and serious consequences.

60% of the American diet consists of ready-made foodstuffs. These include foodstuffs containing white flour, added sugar/sweeteners and fats. These foodstuffs are generally filled with additives, colouring agents and preservatives and packed in plastic bags and cardboard containers. More than 25% of calories are derived from animal products, and Americans derive under 10% of their calories from unrefined plant foods such as fruit, beans, nuts, seeds and vegetables. This indication of 10% is misleading, however, since about half the vegetables consumed in the US are products made from potatoes, including chips (French fries) and crisps. The true number is 5%.

Dr. Fuhrman explains to us about macro- and micronutrients, Macronutrients are fats, carbohydrates, protein and water, while micronutrients are vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and enzymes. Eating habits comprising “superfoods” with their high content of micronutrients are the secret behind excellent health.

There has been an explosive growth of cancer in the modern world as the consumption of ready-made foods and fast food spread both in the U.S. and in developing countries. It is the combination of overweight and malnutrition that is responsible for this life-threatening epidemic in the modern world.

The author’s thesis is that when the body lacks micronutrients from plants, the immune system is weakened, and we become open to various infections and forms of cancer.

Green vegetables contain the most micronutrients that build up the immune system. It is also these that are most strongly involved in prevention of heart disease and cancer.

Green vegetables like cabbage, kale, Brussels sprouts and broccoli together with non-green vegetables like cauliflower are termed “cruciferous” vegetables. These contain isothiocyanates which remove cancerous substances and destroy cancer cells.

Increased consumption of cruciferous vegetables results in a corresponding reduction in breast, lung, prostate, colonic and rectal cancer. A 20% increase in consumption of vegetable foods generally corresponds to a 20% fall in the incidence of cancer, while a 20% increase in consumption of cruciferous vegetables corresponds to a 40% fall in the incidence of cancer!

28 portions of vegetables a week reduces the risk of prostate cancer by 33%, while only 3 portions of cruciferous vegetables a week reduces the risk of prostate cancer by 41%.

One or more portions of cabbage a week reduce/s the incidence of pancreatic cancer by 38%.

Moreover, cruciferous vegetables have an antiviral and antibacterial effect.

Cruciferous vegetables should be chewed well so every cell is crushed. They should preferably be puréed, blended or chopped.

Cruciferous vegetables are the strongest cancer-preventing foods to be found and also contain most micronutrients.

Mushrooms contain a large number of substances that support the immune system by protecting us from viruses and bacteria. They can even be effective against autoimmune illnesses like rheumatoid arthritis and lupus due to their ability to combat inflammation and strengthen the immune system.

Onions and garlic are also invaluable in the prevention of cancer and fortification of the immune system.

In a study to ascertain the connection between onion consumption and cancer incidence, it was shown that among those who frequently ate onions there was:

- a reduction of colonic cancer by 56%
- a reduction of ovarian cancer by 88%
- a reduction in oesophageal cancer by 56%
- a reduction of prostate cancer by 71%
- a reduction in stomach cancer by 50%.

Moreover, eating pomegranates prevents breast, prostate and colonic cancer as well as leukemia and this fruit has many other important health-giving qualities.

All berries also have strong cancer-preventing qualities. They are superfoods. It is also extremely important to eat nuts and seeds, which contain invaluable nutrients.

To summarize, the superfoods stated by the author to provide optimal immunity are as follows:

Kale/green cabbage leaves/mustard greens
Rucola (is that an English word?), watercress
Lettuce and common cabbage
Broccoli and Brussels sprouts
Onions and garlic
Mushrooms
Pomegranates
All types of berries
Seeds (flax, chia, sesame and sunflower).

This book provides a wealth of absolutely essential information, most of which I have not touched upon.

However, I do not agree with the author in everything. For instance, he does not believe in the value of taking Vitamin C supplements. Personally, I have in my youth experienced amazing cures of whooping cough (when I was really ill) and mumps by means of large doses of Vitamin C. My little daughter overcame mumps in 24 hours. I haven’t had the flu for 36 years since beginning to take Vitamin C regularly and only in a moderate dose (2 g.), neither have I had a cold for about 30 years.

Dr. Fuhrman has successfully treated patients with autoimmune disorders by his nutritional advice. A plant-based or vegan diet is often effective against autoimmune disorders. The inclusion of a large amount of green cruciferous vegetables is a key factor.

The book provides a few accounts by patients of Dr. Fuhrman that have healed themselves by adopting his nutritional advice, one of them from lupus.

There is a valuable section on the dangers and inefficacy of vaccinations, including vaccinations against the flu.

At the end of the book you will find some attractive recipes, including “Dr. Fuhrman’s famous cancer-preventing soup”.

I do not concur with the author in his recommendation of use of microwave ovens, and fail to understand how such a health-conscious person can recommend such a dangerous apparatus that deprives food of its life energy.

In conclusion, despite its faults, this is a valuable, informative book that can be life-saving to its readers, if they follow his advice. Read the book!

[bloof_books · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I've been following Dr. Fuhrman's work since 2007, and this book and the updated edition of Eat to Live are his best. Both are super-loaded with information that can change your health dramatically. (We're vegan, so follow the vegan-style plans, but there are nonvegetarian plans in the books that will work for anyone.)

Even before I read this one, I haven't had a flu, sinus infection, serious cold, or other virus in three years, thanks to eating the way Dr. Fuhrman recommends. My allergies have practically disappeared. I can't remember the last time I had a headache. I also have "excellent" BP, cholesterol, fasting blood sugar, etc., according to my most recent physical--definitely not always the case. That means I'm protected against disease like CAD, diabetes, and cancer as well, despite my family history. And the food is good too (once you get used to eating more volume in veggies and fruit)!

As with all of his books and articles, every assertion is backed up. The 20 pp. appendix of research references in the back could keep you busy for years. Or you could just eat your GOMBBS (greens, onions, mushrooms, berries, beans, seeds).