W H Allen scoops Wilson’s ‘eye-opening’ book on food’s role in mental health

W H Allen has signed psychologist Kimberley Wilson’s Unprocessed: How the Food we Eat is Fuelling our Mental Health Crisis.

Drummond Moir, deputy publisher at Ebury, acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from Francesca Zampi at The Found to the “important and indispensable” book, for publication on 23rd February 2023.

The publisher’s synopsis reads: “Chartered psychologist Kimberley Wilson kickstarts a long-overdue conversation about how what we eat is creating a mental health apocalypse.

“We all know that as a nation our mental health is in crisis. But what most don’t know is that a critical ingredient in this debate, and a crucial part of the solution, is being ignored. Nutrition has more influence on what we feel, who we become and how we behave than we could ever have imagined. It affects everything from our decision-making to aggression and violence.

“Our brains are made from essential dietary fats, our brain cells communicate via neurotransmitters made from nutrients yet mental health disorders are overwhelmingly treated as ‘mind’ problems as if the physical brain—and how we feed it—is irrelevant. Someone suffering from depression is more likely to be asked about their relationship with their mother than their relationship with food.

“In this eye-opening and impassioned book, Wilson reveals the fascinating and surprising evidence of the role of food and nutrients in brain development and mental health, from how the food a woman eats during pregnancy influences the size of her baby’s brain, to hunger makes you mean, to how nutrient deficiencies change your personality. Wilson also explains the importance of addressing poor nutrition as a social injustice, with the poorest and most vulnerable being systematically ignored.”

Moir said: “Kimberley is uniquely placed to catalyse this vital conversation. Her passion for, and expertise in, the subject of food and mental health; her sheer presence both on the page and beyond it; and her determination that we think about diet and nutrition in both personal and political terms—to have all these ingredients come together is a publishing dream. We’re thrilled and proud to be working with Kimberley on what we know will be an important and indispensable book.”

Wilson said: “The public are being let down by failures in health messaging and food policy. And we’re paying for it with our mental health. I hope this book not only raises awareness of the known links between diet, brain, behaviour and mental health but also gets into the hands—and heads—of those in positions of power to finally, finally, do something.”