Review by mandysue411 -- Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks

[mandysue411]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks" by Morton E Tavel, MD.]

---

2 out of 4 stars

---

Share This Review

---

Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks is a quick read and it covers a lot - almost too much. The book is split into three parts: the first gives an overview of health information, the second debunks some common health myths and the third talks about health tricks that consumers should avoid. I found with so much information being thrown at me as the reader that I wasn’t sure what the overall purpose of the book was.


In the first section I took away some new information that was useful, such as a list of specific foods that are high in potassium or ones that contain arsenic - all that I didn’t know before. But I also found the author jumped around a lot and there wasn’t a clear reason for some chapters being included, such as what to do when you get a cold or about the adverse effects of smoking. Aren’t we talking about healthy eating? Sure these are all tangentially related but a bit more focus could have done a whole lot of good.


The fact that the chapters are short made this book very digestible, and the author bolds subsections and offers space at the end of each chapter for conclusion to allow skimmers to get the basic facts. I appreciated how most everything the author touches on is backed by research, so that you trust him by the time you enter the myths and tricks portion of the book. Here I thought it was great that he addressed hot button topics such as vaccines and gluten, and I learned that back pain is often overtreated and that most bottled water still contains pollutants. I especially appreciated how instead of scaring you with some facts, he also offers some simple solutions for leading a healthier lifestyle and avoiding some traps set out by certain companies. But again, in these sections I was confused as to why certain topics (wifi, flying, polygraph tests) were included at all. Some simple editing could have made this book stronger.


I also wanted to get more into the tricks section - this could have been an entire book in itself, especially about how pharmaceutical companies essentially “create” a need for their products. Perhaps its also my generation but I wasn’t as familiar with the term “snake oil” which the author uses throughout (and I see was also in the title of one of his previous books).


Overall, I found this a quick and informative read and give it 2 out of 4 stars. This would be a great book for people who are looking to make a change in their health journey and looking for information, but probably wouldn’t be as useful to those who may already know this content or know how to discern this information and separate myths and tricks while looking up such information online.

******
Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

Like mandysue411's review? Post a comment saying so!

[EvaDar]

I enjoyed reading your review. I liked how the information was presented and also appreciated the author taking on his own industry in the piece about pharmaceutical companies. I was really put off by the wholesale condemnation of alternative medicine in the book. It seemed really out of touch with contemporary medicine and healing practices. Check out my review if you like. Thanks.