Harper SuperLife: The 5 Forces That Will Make You Healthy, Fit, and Eternally Awesome

Very interesting ideas and some of which only require a very simple adjustment to what you eat.

I bought this book at my local bookstore, hoping to learn about 'superfoods" around the world. I wanted to see if there were any amazing fruits or vegetables that I could try. Just for the fun of experimenting new flavors. I am a graduate student in biology, and come from a megadiverse country, where we have ancient knowledge on certain foods that are beneficial for human consumption.This book is the classic example of how people, who unfortunately have a very influential position, use science incorrectly to prove their point no matter what. I started reading this book and got upset pretty fast, within the first pages. I continued reading, just to give it the benefit of the doubt. BUT!! It just keeps giving erroneous information, discrediting science by using controversial experiments, that generate debates within the scientific community.The first major mistake I found was suggesting people to consume distilled water... For those of you who are not familiar with what distilled water is, very briefly is water with a high purity. This means that the normal minerals, that water contains, get removed by several different processes. If we consume this type of water it can remove all of our essential salts and minerals, due to the concentration gradient. That is why Darin says that he mixes it with Himalayan salt, and some other stuff. Please avoid consuming distilled water because it can be perjudicial for you health.Then he goes on and talks about alkalinization, with different foods (there is a list towards the back of the book). Please just google the pH of the fruis he includes there. Just as a major lie, he mentions tangerine (which is from the citric family). By doing a quick search we can find that Tangerine is the most acidic fruit from that family (has a pH lower than 7, which is neutral). This was the point when I decided to just throw away this book.Also, the body has a very precise and fine pH regulation, that keeps us functioning properly. It goes from 7.35 - 7.45 (slightly alkaline). This means that no matter what we eat or drink, we cannot modify our internal pH, and if we do so, we would need medical attention.I do not know what else is hiding inside this book, but I do not recommend it at all!

I've been drinking Shakeology since 2014 and love the way it makes me feel. I finally bought this book since Darin is the creator of Shakeology. This book is probably the best and most informative book I have read regarding our health and nutrition! Definitely a must to keep on hand and I'll most likely be reading it again.

If you’re interested in reading vegan propaganda filled with cherry picked “science” to further the argument, this book is for you.For background, I have a degree in biochemistry, and a doctorate degree in pharmacology. So, when I saw a book about superfoods (I believe in healthy eating) that’s supposedly researched and science-based, I was intrigued. To my disappointment I found this to be a complete misguided scam.First off, the book is so wordy and poorly written it’s hard to read. The author repeats his same points and phrases over and over, frequently in back to back paragraphs. It’s obvious that the author doesn’t have enough concrete information to share, so he utilized a TON of filler to complete the book. This can be cut to quarter of the size to get all the points across.Let’s get to the best part, junk science, and plain old incorrect scientific statements. In order to try to appear credible, this author tries to cite various “studies” throughout the book to prove his point. Without dissecting all of them I will just say that a lot of his “studies” rely on anecdotal evidence, and of course he cherry picked the ones that further his agenda. However, he didn’t stop there. He offered plain old wrong information in multiple places. Here are a few examples:1) He recommends to drink distilled water. Are you kidding me?? Distilled water has all the dissolved solids (which includes ions and minerals crucial to our survival) removed completely. If you drink distilled water only, this can lead to disruption of electrolyte balance (since you’re not replacing what you lost in sweat), fluid imbalance and throw off your blood pH due to lack of salts. This might be the most idiotic, not to mention medically unsafe, advice I ever heard.2) In one section of the book where he goes off about never eating grains again he mentions that “gluten consumption has been proven to cause celiac disease”. Huh?!?! Celiac disease is a genetic auto immune disorder!! Gluten consumption triggers symptoms of the disease, it doesn’t cause it.Aside from blatant fallacies the author is simply pushing vegan propaganda and is not even attempting to be balanced in his approach. Every step of the way he paints meat as evil and disease causing and plants as the answer. If the book is about veganism it would be ethical to disclose that in the title or on the cover. This failure to disclose up front is an offensive manipulation of consumers to purchase a product (book) that’s essentially mislabeled. But then again, if he actually had good or accurate medical facts, maybe he wouldn’t have a fear of being honest on the cover.

I’ve been following a vegan diet for over 10 years, and while I try to eat as healthy as possible, I love learning about new and different theories. The 5 Forces reopened my eyes to many additional things I can be implementing to stay healthy.I highly recommend this book to anyone, vegan or not, who strives to better understand their body and live a healthier life.

Such a great book. I am a beachbody coach and I absolutely LOVE shakeology but reading this from the creator of Shakeology was just the best decision I have made. It basically breaks it down into steps to have a healthier lifestyle, lose weight, feel happier & more energetic, clean and detox your body and just be "eternally awesome" :)Do yourself a favor and READ THIS BOOK - life changer!