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This comprehensive volume is a timely and much needed update to the rapidly changing world of nutrition and immunology. The editors, all from the University of California, Davis, undertook the monumental task of assembling a volume that relates the advances in our understanding of immune function, particularly at the cellular and molecular level, to similar broad advances in nutritional research. Taken as a whole, the reader is left with the impression that this is a field still in its infancy and somewhat handicapped by the nutritional scientific community's focus on individual nutrients rather than on the complex mixtures we encounter in foods and botanical products in their natural forms. It is encouraging that the field is evolving, as evidenced by the formation of a section on immunology research by nutritional investigators at Experimental Biology 2000 in San Francisco.
The book's 38 chapters are organized into 4 sections that cover nutritional assessment, specific nutrient requirements, nutrient-immunity interactions, and clinical issues. The contributors are many, representing an impressive breadth of disciplines and training. The chapters contrast problems in the developing world (eg, diseases and infections of childhood, malnutrition, and specific nutrient deficiencies) with problems in the developed world (eg, chronic diseases and manifestations in relation to an abundant energy supply and inadequate nutrient densities). The scope is broad, involving coverage of more than just the common nutrients and minerals. The book contains useful chapters on immunologically active nutrients (eg, phytochemicals, n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, nucleotides, lipoic acid, probiotic bacteria, and Chinese herbs and spices) and alternative medicines. Problems of specific at-risk populations, such as the elderly, are described. Also noteworthy are chapters describing immune response disorders, such as allergic reactions, and the use of nutrition to moderate immune responses in autoimmune diseases and transplantation.
The book serves a broad audience. For investigators, it provides an overview and context for research. For physicians and other health professionals providing nutrition guidance to patients, it is an excellent resource, although the clinical chapters do not consistently provide recommendations for care. For those trying to understand the proliferation of products in the marketplace that claim immunologic benefits, it provides an encyclopedic source of background material, although somewhat ambiguously so given the current state of knowledge.
The book has the usual shortcomings of multiauthored texts: inconsistencies in terminology, figures of varying quality and style, and redundancy. However, the different perspectives and focuses are its strength. Some chapters are heavily clinical, whereas others delve deeper into animal studies and cellular responses. The book would have benefited from the inclusion of a brief overview at the beginning of each section and cross-reference notes in the margins to ensure that the relevant information scattered throughout the chapters would be readily accessible. The uninitiated would have benefited from a glossary of immunologic terms, including the vast array of surface markers, cell types, and cytokines and their significance to immune function. Additionally, inclusion of tables of food sources for the myriad of nutrients would have made the book more practical. Some food constituents of the diet were overlooked, including dairy proteins and fermentable fibers.
Given the increasing use of dietary supplement products in the United States and elsewhere, broader coverage of botanical products, other supplement ingredients, and alternative medicine practices would have been prudent, although research in these areas is limited. I recommend this book highly, although its price may limit ownership. Given the expansion of research interest in this field, one hopes that the editors will begin preparing an updated edition soon.