DOCTOR, WHAT SHOULD I EAT?, by Isadore Rosenfeld, M.D., Random House, 425 pages, $25.

Don’t be fooled by the dust jacket, a slick Madison Avenue production with a full frontal view of Dr. Isadore Rosenfeld himself, rimless glases, gray hair, power blue shirt and matching pattern blue tie, gold cufflinks, nonstarched white coat, class ring and engaging, sincere smile (“… one of America’s most trusted doctors …”). You won’t find a copy of a proprietary diet or eating plan in this book; you won’t find a promise of eternal youth or eternal beauty; you won’t find reams and reams of sample diets, nor tables and tables of normal values. You will find a delightful, witty, clever treatment of a complex subject.

From the dry statistics of an ingredient list to the hype of television advertising, from changes in the four basic food groups to the polemics of alternative practitioners, we are daily assaulted with nutritional information. The pages of this newspaper are replete with reports of contradictory nutritional information from the nutrition police. Some reports are supported by scientific research, but many are only theoretical and not yet proved or unproved. In the area of nutrition, the problem of proof or disproof is staggering. There are not only good groups, but there are genetic factors and cofactors, biochemical enzymes and coenzymes, catalysts, trace elements, individual activity and inactivity, cultural experience, palatability and health status, to name a few, all of which must be controlled. In short, science has only begun to scratch the surface of nutritional knowledge and then usually for specific deficiency or disease status only. What is needed is an exhaustive but simple reference guide to problem-specific eating.

Recent surveys have found that nutrition education for physicians varies from dismal to nonexistent. Because of these combined deficits in the state of the knowledge and the quality of the education, the question, “But Doctor, what should I eat?” is terrifying to the physician. The physician’s answer is likely to be a mix of polemic, science and personal beliefs. What is needed is a simple but well-researched reference guide to problem-specific nutritional counseling.

You will find in this book a holistic view of current dietary thinking presented against a background of knowledgeable scientific review. From acne to vaginitis, from cystic fibrosis to menopause, Rosenfeld has written a tour de force; 77 chapters filled with scholarly review, reasoned personal opinon and practical reference. There is even a chapter on flatulence. This is a readable reference book which should find a place in every kitchen.

Most importantly, for the physician, in spite of its Book of the Month Club selection, this is an easy-reading, plain English summary of current dietary advice which can be used in every office. It has been said, “You are what you eat,” but this book says, “You can be what you you want to be through reasoned eating.” Reading this book is an empowering experience for physician and patient alike. If you pay careful attention, it may even, incidentally, reduce your methane production.

Toby Atkins is a family physician in Bangor.