When studying nutrition and dietetics, there will be some textbooks you will want to learn from for life! These are the top textbooks you should never sell.
Have you ever watched the show Hoarders? I think it’s crazy interesting. Namely because I am the exact opposite of a hoarder and find it extremely fascinating that people actually like keeping stuff.
I would consider myself more clutter phobic…willing and ready to recycle, sell, trash, or give away practically anything. This can be a blessing or a curse depending upon the situation.
In the case of selling off textbooks that in hindsight I actually needed…it’s more of curse. So that’s why I’m here, to give you some useful textbooks that you should never get rid of!
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1. Krause’s Food and the Nutrition Care Process
Why: It’s the bible. Well, not exactly. But it is one of the main books used by most nutrition programs. It comprehensively covers most conditions/diseases dietitians would encounter, the nutrition care process, life cycle nutrition, as well as all of the nutrition basics. Essentially, if you could memorize everything in this book, you would make a bomb dietitian.
2. Mosby’s Diagnostic and Laboratory Test Reference
Link to book here
Why: This book literally has every lab test known to man and explains what the test is for, normal results, abnormal results, and test explanation and physiology… all in alphabetical order. Definitely handy if you are going to be in a clinical setting.
3. A Food Service Management Textbook (recommendation, Foodservice Management: Principals and Practices)
Link to book here
Why: This one isn’t specific, you just need to make sure you have a textbook that involves the principals of food service such as quantity food productions, accounting/financial management, food safety, menu planning, etc. Given that food service systems comprises 17% of the RD exam, it’s an area to know well. It’s also great to have a textbook on hand that reminds you how to perform all of those pesky calculations. 🙂
4. Life Cycle Nutrition: An Evidenced-Based Approach
Link to book here
Why: This is a personal fav. I found this book randomly in the library and fell in love. Because it has an emphasis on “evidenced-based”, it gives you the actual studies from which the nutrition recommendations are based on. Plus the book is new (2015) so all of the research is newer findings compared to stuff from the 80s. It is broken down into diseases the way Krause’s is, but also includes quick reference charts, case studies, medical terminology, and more. I love it for the research aspect, but it’s a great textbook all-around!
5. ASPEN Nutrition Support Core Curriculum
Link to book here
Why: Quite simply, because no other book goes into nutrition support in enough detail. Face it, during the internship or if working in a clinical setting, you’re going to be working with enteral and parenteral nutrition. There’s a lot of information to know, so it’s crucial to have a reference text to go back to and refresh your memory. Plus it has practical clinical scenarios that are useful to run through.
Notable Mentions:
- Any quick reference text- Great for during the internship process so keep those if you have them. Plus, they are small and store easily.
- Advanced Nutrition and Human Metabolism- DETAILED, yet super relevant, and can be a great biochem review.
- Any Community Nutrition book- Personally, I have an old, old book but keep it on hand in case I need a refresher on the theories of educational readiness or stages of change.
- Nutrition and Diet Therapy Reference Dictionary- Another great reference text. It’s a dictionary made just for nutrition and medical terms that is full of suggested nutrition therapy and dietary guidelines, perfect for when you come across a word you are unfamiliar with!
In addition to these books, click here to view some of my go-to websites for evidenced-based nutrition information. If you have recommendations on great books to keep, please comment below! Sharing is caring 🙂
Great blog, Jen. Thanks for sharing!