Review by a_r_egerton -- Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks
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a_r_egerton
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Review by a_r_egerton -- Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks
[Following is a volunteer review of "Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks" by Morton E Tavel, MD.]
3 out of 4 stars
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Health Tips, Myths and Tricks is a reference book by Dr. Morton Tavel, a retired physician who specialized in internal medicine and cardiovascular disease. He describes his book as a factchecker in the mode of the Snopes and Quackwatch, and he quotes the latter site fairly often.
The book’s organization is straightforward: It’s divided into three parts with each section named after a word in the title. In “Tips,” Tavel describes legitimate medical advice that has a proven track record of success. “Myths” covers things people believe to be true but aren’t, and “Tricks” is devoted to out-right scams. There can be some overlap between the last two sections, especially in the sense that they can cause significant harm. For example, the notion that the measles vaccine can cause autism is a myth – but it has resulted in a steep decline in the number of children that have been vaccinated against measles. Not only can measles kill, but it can damage a child’s immune system, and that damage can last for three years, leaving them vulnerable to other potentially deadly diseases.
The vast majority of the “Tips” revolve around diet. In order to help people maintain a healthy weight, Tavel provides detailed descriptions of foods people should and should not eat. He also covers non-diet related matters like exercise, sleep, and smoking. These tips will generally not be news; most people have heard by now that they need to get a good night’s sleep and stop smoking.
Tavel describes the topics in the “Myths” section as “conspiracy theories about medicine.” Some myths, like the vaccine-autism connection, are simply wrong, while others contain an element of truth. Gluten-free food, for example, is good for people with celiac disease and some other GI tract disorders. It isn’t helpful for anybody else, however, since gluten-free foods tend to contain more sugar and fewer vitamins than regular food.
In the “Tricks” section, Tavel describes various scams like the various diets that supposedly “detoxify” the body. Tavel points out two things: the body can detoxify itself with the aid of such organs as the liver and the kidneys, and fasting can be dangerous.
Tavel also helpfully describes ways people can spot a scam. For example, it often claims to use a “secret formula” or the like. Legitimate researchers, by contrast, share their work with their peers, so they can study and review it.
Tavel covers a lot of ground, especially for a book that isn’t even 300 pages long. Consequently, he sometimes skimps on details. The chapter on organic food is a particularly egregious example, as it’s barely three pages long, and he dismisses organic food as no safer or nutritious than conventionally raised food. While he does admit that organic produce is 30 percent less likely to be contaminated with pesticides, he states that all the food examined in the 237 studies reviewed by Stanford University researchers fell within allowable safety limits.
Most of the 62 chapters are quite short, and Tavel makes the very curious decision to devote one of the longer chapters to the polygraph or lie detector. While he understandably considers the polygraph unreliable, it doesn’t seem to have a whole to do with health. If I’d been his editor, I’d have probably advised him to take it out and flesh out shorter chapters like that organic food chapter.
Tavel makes another peculiar decision in the “Tips” section, in which the first 23 chapters are all about diet, and the later chapters cover other health advice. It’s a very straightforward way of organizing the largest section – until he puts the chapter on treating colds in with the chapters on diet. The colds chapter doesn’t even mention foods like chicken soup that people use to relieve symptoms. It’s all about which medications and treatments he recommends.
The book’s accessibility is a big plus. It’s obvious Tavel was writing for laymen, for he uses very little jargon, and his book is therefore mostly easy to read – except when he describes study after study, as he does in the chapter on exercise:
“According to a 20-year, prospective study of more than 17,000 men at the Cooper Institute in Dallas, Texas48, levels of measured cardio respiratory fitness appear to be as predictive of cancer risk and survival as they are of heart disease risk and survival.
Their data showed that the risks of lung and colorectal cancer were reduced 68% and 38%, respectively, in men with the highest level of fitness, compared with those who were the least fit.
Although fitness did not significantly reduce prostate cancer incidence, the risk of dying was significantly lower among men with prostate, lung, or colorectal cancer if they were more fit in middle age.”
While citing studies is a way to bolster arguments, especially in books devoted to medicine or science, it can also induce cases of “my eyes glaze over” in readers. Many will probably skip the studies in favor of such interesting good news that exercise can reduce the risks of developing colon cancer and Alzheimer’s disease.
Tavel seems aware of his tendency towards dry study descriptions, for he will often end a chapter with a summary or conclusion that emphasizes important points, and his tone is often less formal. In some cases, he will list a series of important points, as when he advises the reader on how to reduce the amount of processed food in their diet.
I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. Tavel provides a lot of useful information, but he makes some peculiar decisions and includes a chapter that doesn’t have much to do with the stated topic.
******
Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks
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3 out of 4 stars
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Health Tips, Myths and Tricks is a reference book by Dr. Morton Tavel, a retired physician who specialized in internal medicine and cardiovascular disease. He describes his book as a factchecker in the mode of the Snopes and Quackwatch, and he quotes the latter site fairly often.
The book’s organization is straightforward: It’s divided into three parts with each section named after a word in the title. In “Tips,” Tavel describes legitimate medical advice that has a proven track record of success. “Myths” covers things people believe to be true but aren’t, and “Tricks” is devoted to out-right scams. There can be some overlap between the last two sections, especially in the sense that they can cause significant harm. For example, the notion that the measles vaccine can cause autism is a myth – but it has resulted in a steep decline in the number of children that have been vaccinated against measles. Not only can measles kill, but it can damage a child’s immune system, and that damage can last for three years, leaving them vulnerable to other potentially deadly diseases.
The vast majority of the “Tips” revolve around diet. In order to help people maintain a healthy weight, Tavel provides detailed descriptions of foods people should and should not eat. He also covers non-diet related matters like exercise, sleep, and smoking. These tips will generally not be news; most people have heard by now that they need to get a good night’s sleep and stop smoking.
Tavel describes the topics in the “Myths” section as “conspiracy theories about medicine.” Some myths, like the vaccine-autism connection, are simply wrong, while others contain an element of truth. Gluten-free food, for example, is good for people with celiac disease and some other GI tract disorders. It isn’t helpful for anybody else, however, since gluten-free foods tend to contain more sugar and fewer vitamins than regular food.
In the “Tricks” section, Tavel describes various scams like the various diets that supposedly “detoxify” the body. Tavel points out two things: the body can detoxify itself with the aid of such organs as the liver and the kidneys, and fasting can be dangerous.
Tavel also helpfully describes ways people can spot a scam. For example, it often claims to use a “secret formula” or the like. Legitimate researchers, by contrast, share their work with their peers, so they can study and review it.
Tavel covers a lot of ground, especially for a book that isn’t even 300 pages long. Consequently, he sometimes skimps on details. The chapter on organic food is a particularly egregious example, as it’s barely three pages long, and he dismisses organic food as no safer or nutritious than conventionally raised food. While he does admit that organic produce is 30 percent less likely to be contaminated with pesticides, he states that all the food examined in the 237 studies reviewed by Stanford University researchers fell within allowable safety limits.
Most of the 62 chapters are quite short, and Tavel makes the very curious decision to devote one of the longer chapters to the polygraph or lie detector. While he understandably considers the polygraph unreliable, it doesn’t seem to have a whole to do with health. If I’d been his editor, I’d have probably advised him to take it out and flesh out shorter chapters like that organic food chapter.
Tavel makes another peculiar decision in the “Tips” section, in which the first 23 chapters are all about diet, and the later chapters cover other health advice. It’s a very straightforward way of organizing the largest section – until he puts the chapter on treating colds in with the chapters on diet. The colds chapter doesn’t even mention foods like chicken soup that people use to relieve symptoms. It’s all about which medications and treatments he recommends.
The book’s accessibility is a big plus. It’s obvious Tavel was writing for laymen, for he uses very little jargon, and his book is therefore mostly easy to read – except when he describes study after study, as he does in the chapter on exercise:
“According to a 20-year, prospective study of more than 17,000 men at the Cooper Institute in Dallas, Texas48, levels of measured cardio respiratory fitness appear to be as predictive of cancer risk and survival as they are of heart disease risk and survival.
Their data showed that the risks of lung and colorectal cancer were reduced 68% and 38%, respectively, in men with the highest level of fitness, compared with those who were the least fit.
Although fitness did not significantly reduce prostate cancer incidence, the risk of dying was significantly lower among men with prostate, lung, or colorectal cancer if they were more fit in middle age.”
While citing studies is a way to bolster arguments, especially in books devoted to medicine or science, it can also induce cases of “my eyes glaze over” in readers. Many will probably skip the studies in favor of such interesting good news that exercise can reduce the risks of developing colon cancer and Alzheimer’s disease.
Tavel seems aware of his tendency towards dry study descriptions, for he will often end a chapter with a summary or conclusion that emphasizes important points, and his tone is often less formal. In some cases, he will list a series of important points, as when he advises the reader on how to reduce the amount of processed food in their diet.
I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. Tavel provides a lot of useful information, but he makes some peculiar decisions and includes a chapter that doesn’t have much to do with the stated topic.
******
Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like a_r_egerton's review? Post a comment saying so!
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