Review by Catevanne22 -- Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks

[Catevanne22]

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

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4 out of 4 stars

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Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks by Morton E. Tavel, MD is a very wide ranging and comprehensive book on just about every aspect of staying healthy that you can imagine. Dr. Tavel covers every subject from the bottled water myth to conspiracy theories surrounding certain health scares and scams.

The book starts off talking about weight loss. In this chapter there is a chart showing how to measure your body mass index (BMI). Since many of us are trying to shed pounds, this scale helps you know whether you are truly overweight or not. Societal causes of obesity are discussed and Dr. Tavel discusses four healthy ways to lose weight. If you’re wondering about diet pills and the like, he declares most of them are either ineffective or downright unsafe.

A discussion on foods to avoid because of their trans-fat and saturated fat is also included in the book. Things I never thought of like chicken pot pie, canned soup, biscuits and Parkay margarine are listed. One surprising tip he gives is to choose the tub of Parkay over the stick as it has less of the evil trans fats.

Dr. Tavel is a huge proponent of reading labels on all the food you buy, and that certainly makes sense. After reading this book I plan to start reading more labels. Dr. Tavel reminds us that if you want to be healthy, you need to be proactive, and reading labels can be a very helpful part of your health regimen.

Some surprising facts I learned from this book were that cranberries can reduce your chances of getting urinary tract infections; they prevent E-coli from adhering to the urinary tract. Olive oil is very good for you because it contains MUFAS, (monounsaturated fatty acids); they’re the good kind of fat and play a part in reducing your chances of cardiovascular disease.

We all probably know that our food contains toxins, but did you know that arsenic is a poison that is actually present in our water, soil and air? It’s also in some of our foods, although in small amounts. However, he recommends limiting brown rice, apple and grape juice as these have higher amounts of arsenic and can be dangerous. He also discusses shellfish allergies, gluten-free food, electronic cigarettes and so much more. There is a wealth of knowledge about the world of health and health products.

Dr. Tavel discusses some of the popular health conspiracy theories which I found particularly interesting. A popular conspiracy theory about cancer is that there are many natural cures for cancer, but the medical establishment is deliberately keeping them under wraps from the public because cancer has become a huge money maker for them. Some of these conspiracy theories were surprising and a bit hard to believe; I found them unsettling. But to me, that was the only adverse part of the book.

There is also a conspiracy about cell phones and brain tumors that says if you hold your phone to your ear for too many hours you’re in danger of a brain tumor. There is absolutely no evidence to support this, Dr. Tavel says. His advice about health conspiracies is to “believe them at your own risk.”

Anyone who wants to learn the latest information on being healthy and staying that way should read Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks. It’s a treasure trove of information, some of it is common knowledge but much of it will surprise you. It’s a great book to read if you want to stay on the cutting edge of today’s health news. I got answers to a lot of my questions and concerns about how to stay healthy, and since health has always been an interest of mine I find this book invaluable for anyone who wants to do the same. However, if you’re a lover of quarter pounders, fries and chocolate malts, this book may not be for you. But I challenge you to read it anyway; you never know when this kind of knowledge can come in handy and even save your life.

I found no errors of any kind in the book; it’s very well written with references that back up his findings. I give it 4 out of 4 stars. The information is presented well and it’s an easy and very informative read.

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Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks
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[Stephanie Elizabeth]

Great review! I read and reviewed this book as well, and found it very useful.

I was also surprised about cranberries being that powerful!