Medical Myths That Can Kill You: And 101 Truths That Will Save, Extend and Improve Your Life
By Nancy L Snyderman, M.D.

This book is sensible, and easy read, and easy to understand. The ending wrapped it all up, and made it clear that the author has good common sense. You won’t find the “secret” to success in here. It is not a secret, we have known for decades what we should and should not do. Gradually the evidence accumulates and we learn more details about exactly what causes and what prevents specific problems.

Homeopathy is controversial. ... But in a more recent review study, published in 2005 in The Lancet, researchers compared the results of 110 trials of homeopathy with the same number of trials of conventional medicine. The conclusion: benefits credited to homeopathy where, at best, placebo effect. (Page 193)

That's where the vicious cycle begins. People with chronic illnesses are more likely to be depressed, and depressed people are more likely to succumb to chronic illnesses. It's natural to feel depressed when dealing with a chronic, potentially fatal illness, but that alone does not explain depressions damaging effects. Mental illness adversely alters the chemical balance of the body. In patients with diabetes, for example, depression makes the body even less sensitive to insulin the hormone the processes blood sugar, and best further activates the disease. Fixing a problem in one place, thankfully, can often help in the other. (Page 217 – 218)

Sex is pleasurable, and great sex is even more pleasurable. Sex is a way of sharing intimacy. Safe sex is also good for your mental health. Sex releases an assortment of beneficial chemicals in the body to produce a natural euphoria in addition, satisfying sex leads to better communication and strengthens the bonds between two people, and these can be Hedges against depression triggered by relationship issues. So go on and do it. (Page 234) This was just a little sidebar; the book did not make a big deal of it.

"Myths, whether ancient or modern day, are instructive and meant to guide us and open our eyes to truth. (Page 239)

Although the big picture is not new in this book, yet there are a lot of interesting details that will flesh your your knowledge, and make clear the path to fuller health. ( )

Medical Myths That Can Kill You is surprisingly good. I picked it up out of the Library because I wanted to see what sort of myths would prevail around 2008. We all heard about Vaccinations and other such things, but what other misconceptions exist in the field of medicine? I honestly saw the title and picked it up without seeing the full cover. When I saw the image of some photogenic woman on the cover I didn’t know what to expect. I especially didn’t know what to expect when I saw that she was the Chief Medical Editor for NBC News. This doesn’t tell me much since I don’t watch television very often. I mean, how do you choose for that sort of position?

So the book has a ton of information packed into its pages. It is organized by talking about a myth that exists and telling a story to debunk this myth. Along the way, we find the medical truths put into little sections that distract from the mainline of conversation. For example, the first myth that the book talks about is that you don’t need to have regular check-ups. It puts it like this; Annual Check-ups are Obsolete. This is one of the silliest things I have ever heard of. Everyone should know that ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.’ Along that line of ideas, we find truths that relate to the myth.

The book only covers seven myths. This is good, but most of the myths are honestly very dangerous and silly misconceptions. The section on Vaccinations is especially heart-wrenching since it talks about a vibrant young man who contracted Meningitis and was hoping to become a doctor. He eventually died after falling into a coma, but not before they had to amputate some of his limbs. Following the anecdotal story, the book goes into suggestions for how to maintain your health.

It was a well-done book. I enjoyed it quite a bit. The information is delivered in a manner that doesn’t use too many jargon words. I appreciated this as well. Although the book is mostly devoid of those sorts of terms, it does get the point across that this author knows what she is talking about. ( )