Toxic Superfoods: How Oxalate Overload Is Making You Sick--and How to Get Better Paperback – January 3, 2023

I became more aware of the extent of troublesome oxalates in plant foods after reading a short article by Mark Sisson of Marks Daily Apple and then a comment which testified to the difference it made to reduce or nearly eliminate the many sources of Oxalates in (her) diet. I was so stunned by the commenter’s testimony (even though I was aware of oxalates in some plant foods and already avoided them) that I was compelled to follow the link she left to Sally K. Norton’s website. I was happy to learn what Sally offered at her site which included many helpful articles and lists. I was surprised too by how many foods we consume that contain high amounts of oxalates so I began implementing some of the ideas right away to discover for myself what effects oxalates might be having on my own health.This book Toxic Superfoods - “How Oxalate Overload is Making You Sick and How to Get Better” came out about a year after I found Sally and offers a detailed and comprehensive presentation of her decade plus research and personal journey recovering from Oxalate poisoning from her vegetarian diet. The book is well organized and very readable with impressive stories of recovery, useful lists, tables and comparisons of meals that contain low vs high Oxalate foods. It is designed for anyone who wants to understand the problem of Oxalate crystals in (mostly plant) foods to discover if they might be the culprit in their own health issues and how to tackle it to find out if they are. It covers all the relevant science and explains the physiological effects of these plant elements.I think everyone can benefit from reading this book to gain an understanding of how many foods we eat today (and much less so in decades and centuries past) that are having negative effects on our bodies and health but which are rigorously promoted to us as “health foods” or “super foods” all of which is propaganda not fact.In my 60’s I find it prudent to be pro-active in my approach to health such that I can address or prevent problems before they arise. So even though I didn’t personally have any big problems with oxalates, I was having some & knowing how to eliminate these problems by my own actions empowers me and keeps me out of doctors offices or using drugs for pain management which so many people over 65 rely on yet find little relief. Sally has poured her vast experience, knowledge, wisdom, heart, & soul into creating a book immensely usable and one can feel how dedicated she is to helping people feel well again. This is a hallmark book - first and only one I know of covering this topic so beautifully and thoroughly. Read it!

I don't have severe health issues, but I have tended towards a 'healthy' vegetarian diet all my life and have been feeling less vital with the passing years (headaches and sinus issues, mainly, along with general fatigue), which has given me the uneasy feeling both that my healthy diet is probably not so good for me, all the while not knowing what to do about it. I was also told (by a spiritual healer of all people) that my kidney function is sub-par, which left me feeling confused as to why (I was in my 3rd trimester of pregnancy at the time and never had a bad urine test result) and concerned. I'm currently 35 years old and am only too aware of how hidden problems in young(er) adulthood can silently develop into terrible problems with age and that medical testing doesn't always reveal underlying problems. This book provides me with a solid reason as to why my kidney function may not be so good, and more importantly, a viable possible solution for that and my other issues. Keep in mind that I have never gone to the worst extremes listed in the book, like drinking daily spinach smoothies and celery juice and eating lots of almonds, but nonetheless, this book has enabled me see exactly how I've been overloading my body with oxalates from other sources (e.g., heavy spice usage, sweet potatoes, beets, quinoa, etc.).If you are still wondering how 'healthy' plant foods could be bad and why you may have never heard about this, this book does an excellent job of explaining what oxalate toxicity is, and why it isn't on the radar of the medical establishment or discussed much in general. This book is very clear and well written (not to mention extremely interesting!) and I seriously could not put it down! I have already started to put the knowledge presented in this book into practice and am very eager to see what kind of results I get in the upcoming months. I am planning to report back in the future if I'm able to...Update: after finally getting down to the elimination phase, absolutely nothing happened. I stayed in that phase for well beyond the time that I should have started to observe the symptoms of oxalate elimination (about a month), and I was ultra careful to only consume foods that are discussed in the book as being low oxalate. When I re-introduced potatoes and bread into my diet (which I was missing like crazy), nothing happened either; no headache or other negative effect. It seems that oxalates are just not an issue for me. While a low-oxalate diet hasn't helped me personally, I still think the book is great and am glad that I tried it out.