There was a major turning point in the industry of dieting and nutrition in the early 1990s, as the culture advanced more from the previous decade. Many advertisements were popping up on television and in magazines, introducing newer diets each year. With different “nutritious” substitutions appearing on the market, people’s attention was caught and many were intrigued, marking the beginning of the evolution of diet culture. The industry was emphasizing low-fat diets, slimming dieting pills, meal replacement shakes, and extremely low-calorie content diets, but no real educative research was really conducted about the true healthy diet nor how these products were harmful to the human body and health in the long-run.

Celebrities and other important public figures swore by these toxic diets. The most extreme version of a low-fat diet was known as the Beverly Hills Diet. This diet was introduced in the late 1980s, but its existence was more accentuated in the 1990s. This diet had no real nutritional structure, as it was developed by a weight loss advocate with no educational certificate. “ […] the 42-day diet centered around eating fruits for the first 10 days, then adding items like bread and proteins like steak and lobster.” This diet was as dangerous as it sounds, as different macro and micronutrients are being restricted in this diet, causing hormonal and biochemistry imbalance in the human body. Ironically, hormonal imbalance can cause weight gain, as the chemicals in our bodies are confused and send wrong messages through nuclear receptors. “Although food is not produced in the body, its components travel through the blood, and nutrient substrates can act as signaling molecules by activating cell-surface or nuclear receptors.”.

Respectively, low-fat diets are to be proven to be as bad as low-calorie diets. Logically, when there’s a low quantity of something you must balance it out with an alternative substance, in the case of a low-fat diet it is sugar. Studies conducted by Ngugyen et al., have proven that regular foods are actually better for you than low-fat foods, hence they contain an equal amount of quantity of nutrients. “Although the increase in added sugar per serving appears to be small, the cumulative effect of consuming ‘empty calories' over several years could have important health consequences.”. So how does Norene Gilletz fit into the picture of nutrition and health science?

Norene Gilletz was a well-respected Canadian-Jewish cook, who devoted her life to writing cookbooks with healthy and nutritious recipes. One of her most famous cookbooks “Meal Leani Yumm!” was published in the late 1990s, which was a transitionary period in the diet culture as scientific researches revealed the truth about the fad-diets and their harmful consequences. “Meal Leani Yumm!" is a kosher cookbook, with a main focus on helping cardiac, cholesterol troubled patients find passion for healthy cooking in a fun and easy way. Kosher is a religious dietary law followed by the Jewish community. Kosher foods are required to meet certain and specific food laws; slaughtering of animals and processing it need to be done under strict rabbinic supervision, fruits need to be 100% pests free, and the list goes on. Kosher diet is considered to more clean and healthier than a standard vegan diet. There has been a dramatic increase in the kosher market since the middle 1990s. With educative background information, people were intrigued on the many health benefits kosher diet had to promise. “Only 8% of Kosher consumers are religious Jews. Most kosher consumers choose kosher for reasons, which relate to health, food safety, taste, and vegetarianism”. Indicating that the other 92% responsible for supporting market for Kosher products are non-Jews and are only purchasing kosher labeled food items, because of the trust and clean procedure the food goes through.

The recipes in the cookbook are in fact 100% nutritious, and the variety of fresh produce mentioned in the book is marvellous. For each category of dishes, Gilletz shares a couple of healthy tips and trick prior to the recipes, as well as each recipe has its own proper nutritional facts.

Not only this cookbook, but many other ones by Norene Gilletz have made a significant and positive impact on diet culture, and fortunately enough more kosher dietitians: Ashley Koff RD, Julie Miller MPH, R, CDE, and Bethany Campbell RD, etc., have an appearance with cookbooks and educational content for the public.