Eat, Drink and Be Gorgeous: A Nutritionist's Guide to Living Well While Living It Up    by Esther Blum Order:  USA  Can Chronicle, 2007 (2007) Hardcover Read an Excerpt      Reviewed by Belle Dessler At this time of the year, store bookshelves groan under the weight of diet and fitness books. The holidays give us permission to indulge in every delicious morsel as we share the season with family and friends, but there's a price for overindulgence. Some health and fitness experts are all too happy to tell us we need to deprive ourselves for the rest of the year. Thankfully, Blum doesn't subscribe to that way of thinking. Eat, Drink and Be Gorgeous is a breath of fresh air in a sea of tomes that preach self-deprivation and pain. Blum takes an entirely different approach to nutrition. Using her background and expertise as an industry expert in nutrition, she teaches women how to eat healthy while still indulging in those wonderful treats we all crave. The key to Blum's teachings is so simple, you'll be surprised when you hear it: moderation. Blum's approach is not new, but her wise advice is delivered with a healthy dose of common sense. That, above all else helps elevate Eat, Drink and Be Gorgeous into a league of its own. Blum understands that we're not going to be able to eat organic food all the time, no matter how much we might want to. We're also not going to be able to cut out chocolate from our diet altogether, or never drink a cosmopolitan again. And she says that's okay. Better yet, she teaches us how to do all those things while still living a healthy lifestyle, and 'how to put the fun back in eating.' Most importantly, Blum wants us to realize that 'life is too short to be on a diet the whole time.' The book itself is as cute as the hot pink cover. Blum delivers a wealth of information, tips and suggestions in an easy-to-read and easy-to-understand manner. I especially enjoyed the chapter on supplements, a topic I've not seen covered in such depth in other health and fitness books. Blum explains 'why you should take supplements, which ones to take, and which types are absorbed best.' Combine that with her advice on eating, drinking and treating yourself to all the best things life has to offer without all the guilt that normally comes with such an approach, and you've got a book that breaks through the misconceptions and gets right to the heart of the matter. Apparently, you can have your cake and eat it, too. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more NonFiction books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews