A wide-ranging and enthusiastic wellness approach.
A health and wellness guide that mixes Western and Eastern healing philosophies.
This follow-up from obstetrician, gynecologist, and acupuncturist Kurosu and medical doctor Kuhn (True Wellness, 2018) also melds medical practices from the East and the West, but it also sharpens its focus to problems of the mind—from anxiety to sleep disorders to depression. The authors situate their latest book squarely in the hyper-connected, always-on modern world, with all its inherent strains: “The demands that modern society places upon us, and that we place upon ourselves,” they write, “are creating a situation in which we can never fully succeed.” It centers on how one’s health may be affected by “the way you live your life day to day”; one’s sleeping and eating habits, for example, can affect one’s “ability to sustain all the physiological processes your body needs to stay healthy and in balance.” The authors supply quick thumbnail sketches of the history of Western medicine and counterbalance it with an in-depth tour of the “powerful medical system” of Eastern thought. In it, readers receive introductions to subjects that some may find familiar, such as tai chi, herbal remedies, and acupuncture, and the ways that these and other approaches can influence the body’s “bioelectromagnetic” energy. Some readers may be skeptical of some of the material here, as when the authors talk about the “phases of the universe” being “water, wood, fire, earth, and metal.” It also necessarily obliges the authors to talk about the nature of the placebo effect, as mainstream Western medicine tends to dismiss the effectiveness of acupuncture, for example. However, the book is unquestionably correct in pointing out that the general-living concentration of Eastern philosophy can be something of a boon in the frenetic modern world they describe—one in which pharmaceutical and surgical interventions may not be enough. Skeptics of practices described here won’t find anything in these pages to convince them otherwise, but the faithful will be rewarded.
A wide-ranging and enthusiastic wellness approach.Pub Date: July 7, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-59439-664-9
Page Count: 144
Publisher: YMAA Publication Center
Review Posted Online: April 23, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Useful but disappointingly commonplace tips.
In a follow-up to The End of Illness (2012), which explored how technological advances will transform medicine, Agus (Medicine and Engineering/Univ. of Southern California) restates time-tested but too often overlooked principles for healthy living.
The author outlines simple measures that average citizens can take to live healthier lives and extend their life spans by taking advantage of modern technology to develop personalized records. These would include a list of medical tests and recommended treatments. Agus also suggests keeping track of indicators that can be observed at home on a regular basis—e.g., changes in energy, weight, appetite and blood pressure, blood sugar and general appearance. He advises that all of this information be made available online, and it is also helpful to investigate family history and consider DNA testing where indicated. Along with maintaining a healthy weight, Agus emphasizes the importance of eating a balanced diet, with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables and a minimum of red meat. Avoid packaged vitamins and food supplements, and if possible, grow your own vegetables or buy frozen vegetables, which will generally be fresher than those on supermarket shelves. The author also warns against processed foods that make health claims but contain additives or excessive amounts of sugar or fat. Regular mealtimes and plenty of sleep, frequent hand-washing and oral hygiene are a must; smoking and excessive time in the sun should also be avoided. Agus recommends that adults should consider taking statins and baby aspirin as preventative measures. He concludes with a decade-by-decade checklist of annual medical examinations that should be routine—e.g. blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol screenings, from one’s 20s on; colonoscopies, prostate exams and mammograms later—and a variety of top-10 lists (for example, “Top 10 Reasons to Take a Walk”).
Useful but disappointingly commonplace tips.Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4767-3095-0
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 30, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Oncologist Agus (Medicine and Engineering/Univ. of Southern California) predicts that the application of advanced technology for modeling complex systems will transform 21st-century medicine.
The author writes that a remark Nobel Laureate Murray Gell-Mann made to him in 2009—“Look at cancer as a system"—transformed the way he views his own specialty and the entire field of preventative medicine. It made him realize that “[r]ather than honoring the body as the exceedingly complex system that it is, we keep looking for the individual gene that has gone awry, or for the one ‘secret’ that can improve our health.” Agus writes that although the ability to sequence the entire human genome is a great step forward, it is insufficient for achieving a significant breakthrough. Even though it may start with a mutation, cancer “is a dynamic process that's happening…far from the confines of a static piece of DNA”—it involves the body's immune system, its ability to regulate cell growth, metabolism and more. Agus directs his university’s Center for Applied Molecular Medicine and is the co-founder of two personalized medicine companies, Applied Proteomics and Navigenics. His hope is that their research will contribute to developing better analytical tools for preventative medicine and for the treatment of cancers. These will address the functioning of the body as a whole, applying digital technology already used by physicists to provide virtual models of cancers and model the action of proteins that regulate cell communication in the body. He also hopes to develop tools that will provide information on the concentration of different proteins in a drop of blood taken from a patient, which may reveal the onset of disease. The author also includes some guiding principles and warnings about certain healthy practices that may not be so healthy. A refreshing change of pace in the medical field, but by venturing beyond his field of expertise to pontificate on a wide range of subjects, Agus makes his otherwise intriguing narrative difficult to follow.
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4516-1017-8
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Free Press
Review Posted Online: Nov. 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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