How Not To Die Summary – Dr. Michael Greger

How Not To Die (2015)

Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease

by Dr. Michael Greger

A deeply researched and compelling primer on the promise and importance of whole food plant-based nutrition in preventing and reversing disease – by medical doctor and nutrition expert, Michael Greger.

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How Not To Die Review

I really wanted to give you a detailed book summary of Michael Greger’s How Not To Die but, to be honest, you can condense the main points in three bullets:

1. Nutrition accounts for ~85% of the factors in the US’s top causes of death; but
2. The current US health/drug system actually disincentivizes proper education around nutrition for both doctors and consumers; so
3. You’re on your own – but the short answer to better health is to switch to a whole (un or minimally processed) food plant-based diet.

Now, don’t get me wrong. This book is insanely good.

It’s deeply researched (despite some accusations of cherrypicking). It’s powerfully written. It’s surprising and informative and entertaining. In fact, I’d decided to go mostly meat-free again by the time I was halfway through the introduction.

But given that I don’t (yet) suffer from (or have a major family history of)…

…whose detailed treatment makes up ~60% of the main content of the book, I had very little incentive to dive deeply into the enormous amount of detail in those chapters.

(Note: The links above go to the main topic pages for each condition on Michael’s excellent non-profit NutritionFacts.org BUT if you suffer from one of those conditions – and even if you don’t – I can STRONGLY recommend buying your own copy of this awesome book.)

Which left me with an important question that I’d struggled to answer properly the last time I gave up animal-based eating.

Namely…

So, What Should I Be Eating Instead?

Now if there are two things I can’t fault Michael on, they’re:

1. His focus on his overall message: “Thous shalt eat whole plant-based foods.”; and
2. The insane levels of detail he uses to back up and colour his recommendations.

But the big problem I had with this book is I couldn’t find any practical middle ground.

As a newbie to nutrition, I felt frustrated that there was no single, mid-level cheatsheet. There was nothing I could refer to for an idea of which whole plant-based foods mattered most so I knew exactly what to eat more of each day.

So, because I’m stubborn, and because I’m lazy, and because I love spreadsheets, I decided to botch together a quick and simple solution for myself.

I created…

TAoL’s Highly Unscientific Word Density Analysis Of Dr. Michael Greger’s How Not To Die

The simplistic logic behind my analysis is this…

1. If Michael Greger says a food is worth eating, I’ll take his word for it; and
2. The more often he mentions that food in his book, the more important it probably is.

Is it a perfect solution? Not at all. Coffee is a stand out example of a foodstuff that gets lots of mentions where not all of those mentions are good.

But it’s at least given me some kind of mid-level snapshot of what to look out for next time I’m out for a food shop or next time I’m eating in a restaurant.

So, here’s to using other people data in ways they would probably never approve of.

I hope you enjoy it. I hope you find it as useful as I am.

And without further ado, here’s my…

How Not To Die Summary: Good Foods (And Other Things) To Get More Of

I’ve broken this summary down into 14 sections (A “Top 10” section PLUS a breakdown of “Dr. Greger’s Daily Dozen” from Part 2 of the book PLUS the “Supplements” appendix).

Here’s the overall structure with the recommended daily servings for and the top 3 mentioned foods from each category.

1. Overall Top 10 // 🏅 Water 🥈 Turmeric 🥉 Broccoli;
2. Beans // 3 servings // 🏅 Lentils 🥈 Miso 🥉 Chickpeas;
3. Berries // 3 servings // 🏅 Cranberries 🥈 Strawberries 🥉 Blueberries;
4. Other Fruits // 3 servings // 🏅 Apples 🥈 Dates 🥉 Oranges;
5. Cruciferous Vegetables // 1 serving // 🏅 Broccoli 🥈 Kale 🥉 Cabbage;
6. Greens // 2 servings // 🏅 Kale 🥈 Spinach 🥉 Arugula (Rocket);
7. Other Vegetables // 2 servings // 🏅 Mushrooms 🥈 Tomatoes 🥉 Peppers;
8. Flaxseeds // 1 serving // 🏅 Flaxseeds;
9. Nuts & Seeds // 1 serving // 🏅 Walnuts 🥈 Almonds 🥉 Pistachios;
10. Herbs & Spices // n/a servings // 🏅 Turmeric 🥈 Ginger 🥉 Pepper;
11. Whole Grains // 3 servings // 🏅 Oats/Oatmeal 🥈 Pasta 🥉 Brown Rice; and
12. Beverages // 3 servings // 🏅 Water 🥈 Coffee 🥉 Green Tea.

Plus (two bonus sections):

13. Exercises; and
14. Supplements.

Read through in order, or click one of the headings below to skip ahead to that section of the analysis. But whichever you choose, let’s dive in…

1. What Are The Overall Top 10 Most Mentioned Foods?

1. 🏅 Water (Beverages) // 184 Mentions
2. 🥈 Turmeric (Herbs & Spices) // 124 Mentions
3. 🥉 Broccoli (Cruciferous Vegetables) // 121 Mentions
4. Coffee (Beverages) // 115 Mentions
5. Apples (Other Fruits) // 108 Mentions
6. Flaxseeds (Flaxseeds) // 89 Mentions
7. Mushrooms (Other Vegetables) // 76 Mentions
8. Kale (Cruciferous Vegetables) // 68 Mentions
9. Oats/Oatmeal (Whole Grains) // 60 Mentions
10. Tomatoes (Other Vegetables) // 56 Mentions

2. What Beans Should I Eat?

Recommended dose: 3 servings per day.

1. 🏅 Lentils (Beluga, French And Red Varieties) // 44 mentions
2. 🥈 Miso // 28 mentions
3. 🥉 Chickpeas // 17 mentions
4. Tempeh // 14 mentions
5. Black Beans // 13 mentions
6. Split Peas (Yellow Or Green) // 13 mentions
7. Pinto Beans // 6 mentions
8. Edamame // 4 mentions
9. Cannellini Beans // 2 mentions
10. English Peas // 2 mentions
11. Great Northern Beans // 2 mentions
12. Kidney Beans // 2 mentions
13. Navy Beans // 2 mentions
14. Black-Eyed Peas // 1 mention
15. Butter Beans // 1 mention
16. Small Red Beans // 1 mention

3. What Berries Should I Eat?

Recommended dose: 3 servings per day.

1. 🏅 Cranberries // 42 mentions
2. 🥈 Strawberries // 38 mentions
3. 🥉 Blueberries // 33 mentions
4. Cherries (Sweet Or Tart) // 29 mentions
5. Raspberries (Black Or Red) // 15 mentions
6. Blackberries // 14 mentions
7. Açai Berries // 11 mentions
8. Goji Berries // 9 mentions
9. Barberries // 4 mentions
10. Mulberries // 4 mentions
11. Concord Grapes // 3 mentions
12. Kumquats // 3 mentions

3. What Other Fruits Should I Eat?

Recommended dose: 3 servings per day.

1. 🏅 Apples // 108 mentions
2. 🥈 Dates // 40 mentions
3. 🥉 Oranges // 35 mentions
4. Bananas // 26 mentions
5. Lemons // 26 mentions
6. Watermelon // 18 mentions
7. Kiwifruit // 16 mentions
8. Mangos // 15 mentions
9. Grapefruit // 14 mentions
10. Avocados // 12 mentions
11. Pomegranates // 9 mentions
12. Plums (Especially Black Plums) // 7 mentions
13. Dried Figs // 5 mentions
14. Pears // 5 mentions
15. Peaches // 4 mentions
16. Prunes // 4 mentions
17. Limes // 3 mentions
18. Pineapple // 3 mentions
19. Lychees // 2 mentions
20. Tangerines // 2 mentions
21. Dried Apricots // 1 mentions
22. Cantaloupe // 1 mentions
23. Clementines // 1 mentions
24. Honeydew // 1 mentions
25. Nectarines // 1 mentions
26. Papaya // 1 mentions
27. Passion Fruit // 1 mentions
28. Pluots // 1 mentions

4. What Cruciferous Vegetables Should I Eat?

Recommended dose: 1 serving per day.

1. 🏅 Broccoli // 121 mentions
2. 🥈 Kale (Black, Green And Red) // 68 mentions
3. 🥉 Cabbage // 42 mentions
4. Cauliflower // 21 mentions
5. Brussels Sprouts // 14 mentions
6. Horseradish // 10 mentions
7. Arugula (Rocket) // 9 mentions
8. Collard Greens // 9 mentions
9. Radishes // 8 mentions
10. Bok Choy // 7 mentions
11. Mustard Greens // 7 mentions
12. Watercress // 6 mentions
13. Turnip Greens // 3 mentions

5. What Greens Should I Eat?

Recommended dose: 2 servings per day.

1. 🏅 Kale (Black, Green And Red) // 68 mentions
2. 🥈 Spinach // 28 mentions
3. 🥉 Arugula (Rocket) // 9 mentions
4. Collard Greens // 9 mentions
5. Mustard Greens // 7 mentions
6. Turnip Greens // 3 mentions
7. Beetroot Greens // 2 mentions
8. Mesclun Mix (Assorted Young Salad Greens) // 2 mentions
9. Sorrel // 2 mentions
10. Swiss Chard // 2 mentions

6. What Other Vegetables Should I Eat?

Recommended dose: 2 servings per day.

1. 🏅 Mushrooms (Button, Oyster, Portobello And Shiitake) // 76 mentions
2. 🥈 Tomatoes // 56 mentions
3. 🥉 Peppers // 53 mentions
4. Beetroot // 43 mentions
5. Garlic // 38 mentions
6. Onions // 38 mentions
7. Sweet Potatoes/Yams // 29 mentions
8. Carrots // 19 mentions
9. Pumpkin // 16 mentions
10. Sea Vegetables (Arame, Dulse And Nori) // 12 mentions
11. Asparagus // 8 mentions
12. Squash (Delicata, Summer And Spaghetti Squash Varieties) // 8 mentions
13. Sweetcorn // 7 mentions
14. Purple Potatoes // 5 mentions
15. Artichokes // 2 mentions
16. Okra // 2 mentions
17. Snap Peas // 2 mentions
18. Zucchini (Courgette) // 2 mentions

7. What Flaxseeds Should I Eat?

Trick question. Flaxseeds are flaxseeds, although they get 89 mentions!

Recommended dose: 1 serving per day.

8. Nuts & Seeds Should I Eat?

Recommended dose: 1 serving per day.

1. 🏅 Walnuts // 23 mentions
2. 🥈 Almonds // 19 mentions
3. 🥉 Pistachios // 13 mentions
4. Brazil Nuts // 11 mentions
5. Chia Seeds // 6 mentions
6. Sesame Seeds // 5 mentions
7. Cashews // 4 mentions
8. Pumpkin Seeds // 4 mentions
9. Hazelnuts/Filberts // 2 mentions
10. Hemp Seeds // 1 mentions
11. Macadamia Nuts // 1 mentions
12. Pecans // 1 mentions
13. Sunflower Seeds // 1 mentions

9. What Whole Herbs & Spices Should I Eat?

Recommended dose: n/a servings per day.

1. 🏅 Turmeric // 124 mentions
2. 🥈 Ginger // 54 mentions
3. 🥉 Pepper // 53 mentions
4. Garlic // 38 mentions
5. Cinnamon // 37 mentions
6. Saffron // 28 mentions
7. Coriander // 23 mentions
8. Nutmeg // 17 mentions
9. Peppermint // 16 mentions
10. Oregano // 15 mentions
11. Fenugreek // 13 mentions
12. Cloves // 11 mentions
13. Horseradish // 10 mentions
14. Marjoram // 8 mentions
15. Basil // 7 mentions
16. Cardamom // 7 mentions
17. Smoked Paprika // 6 mentions
18. Curry Powder // 5 mentions
19. Mustard Powder // 5 mentions
20. Rosemary // 5 mentions
21. Barberries // 4 mentions
22. Chilli Powder // 4 mentions
23. Cumin // 4 mentions
24. Parsley // 4 mentions
25. Bay Leaves // 3 mentions
26. Thyme // 3 mentions
27. Vanilla // 3 mentions
28. Sage // 2 mentions
29. Allspice // 1 mentions
30. Dill // 1 mentions
31. Lemongrass // 1 mentions

10. What Whole Grains Should I Eat?

Recommended dose: 3 servings per day.

1. 🏅 Oats/Oatmeal // 60 mentions
2. 🥈 Pasta (Whole Grain/Wheat) // 27 mentions
3. 🥉 Brown Rice // 17 mentions
4. Popcorn // 14 mentions
5. Quinoa // 9 mentions
6. Barley // 7 mentions
7. Buckwheat // 3 mentions
8. Millet // 3 mentions
9. Rye // 3 mentions
10. Teff // 3 mentions
11. Wild Rice // 2 mentions

11. What Beverages Should I Drink?

Recommended dose: 5 servings per day.

1. 🏅 Water // 184 mentions
2. 🥈 Coffee // 115 mentions
3. 🥉 Green Tea // 48 mentions
4. Hibiscus Tea // 18 mentions
5. White Tea // 15 mentions
6. Black Tea // 8 mentions
7. Lemon Balm Tea // 3 mentions
8. Matcha Tea // 3 mentions
9. Chai Tea // 2 mentions
10. Vanilla Chamomile Tea // 1 mentions
11. Earl Grey Tea // 1 mentions
12. Hot Chocolate // 1 mentions
13. Jasmine Tea // 1 mentions
14. Almond Blossom Oolong Tea // 1 mentions
15. Peppermint Tea // 1 mentions
16. Rooibos Tea // 1 mentions

12.What Exercises Should I Do?

13. What Supplements Should I Take?

A whole-food plant-based diet will provide an ample supply of most vitamins and minerals.

But if you’re off-meat completely (or living somewhere dark) you might consider taking:

• Vitamin B12 // 2,500 mcg (μg) at least once per week
• Vitamin D // 2,000 IU per day (or ~15 mins a day of mid-day equivalent sun)
• Iodine // 150 mcg (μg) per day (or 2 x sheets of nori seaweed)
• Long-Chain Omega-3s // 250mg per day (yeast or algae-derived)

Just to keep things topped up.

Arthur Worsley
I founded TAoL to discover and share the best wisdom on how to live long and prosper. Before that I studied Psychology, Philosophy & Physiology at Oxford and consulted at McKinsey. Still curious? Learn more or take my FREE productivity quiz.