DECATUR - Tony Coleman has a mission. And a dream.

The Decatur native, a corrections officer at the Decatur Correctional Center, brought a group of Decatur people together to help him publish, "Triet! Not Diet," a book that suggests changing eating habits for a healthy life.

"I didn't know nine years ago this was my destiny," he said.

The mission, it turns out, was to write this book.

The dream?

"I have a wish to get this into every home in the world."

Q: Can you explain the somewhat unusual title?

After his research and reading, Coleman wanted people to not look at what he put together as a "diet," so he looked for a way to encourage someone to try the ideas he was presenting, hence "Triet."

Writing in the book's opening, Coleman says, "It's God's plan for us to live a long healthy life, to prosper, and to live abundantly. When we eat the wrong foods we are making room for diseases and other health problems to arise.

"The food that we choose to eat determines our health in the future."

But, Coleman said, a lot of things take time and changing eating patterns is one of them.

"That's one reason I didn't want to name my book 'diet,' " he said because he just wanted people to try.

The book is filled with eating tips such as: "Educate yourself on reading what ingredients you should avoid when buying foods. If you cannot pronounce it, don't buy it."

But it's also filled with recipes such as "Tony's Feta Cheese and Spinach Dip," "Tony's Pecans and String Beans" and "Tony's Avocado and Celery Salad" among others.

Q: So, let's back up a bit. What brought about the book?

Tony, and his wife, Ren©, are the parents of three sons. The youngest, Tyler, now 10, developed some digestion problems when he neared his first birthday. Though he was growing, it seemed there were still lots of problems, the couple eventually even videotaping his feeding and subsequent problems to help determine what might be bringing about the difficulties.

The medications Tyler received, recalled Coleman, had side effects.

"He'd have seizures in his sleep. That brought us to tears."

Lots of testing and medication followed, he continued, and when it was finally determined that the opening of the esophagus to the stomach was not fully developed, surgery was recommended.

The Colemans refused, opting instead to look at offering their infant a change in diet, with such foods as rice milk, organic apple and cherry juices and mashed sweet potatoes. Sugars, salt, and all processed, modified, enriched or bleached were excluded.

"As we did this for him I started to incorporate (these ideas) into my diet, a little at a time," Coleman said.

"I got curious," he admitted, noting that the foods we eat must affect us as well.

"When you eat healthy foods, the weight comes off naturally," he added, though the book does say that moderate exercise is part of the suggested program and that a physician should be consulted prior to any diet or exercise program.

"I didn't set out to write a novel," said Coleman, adding the book can be read within an hour or so and, "You're done with it."

Arlene Mannlein can be reached at amannlein@herald-review.com or 421-6976.

About the book

TITLE: "Triet! Not Diet" by Tony Coleman, edited by Dan Smith, cover design/artwork by Shani Goss, photography by Christine Doolen

TYPE: paperback, 77 pages

ISBN: 1-4251-4657-0

ISBN-13: 978-1-4251-4657-3

PUBLISHER: Trafford Publishing, Victoria, British Columbia

LIST PRICE: $10.77

AVAILABLE: www.trafford.com; amazon.com/.