Review by pikkewynne0807 -- Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks
Posted: 10 Mar 2017, 16:53
[Following is a volunteer review of "Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks" by Morton E Tavel, MD.]
2 out of 4 stars
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Review for Health Myths, Tips, and Tricks by Morton Tavel
Health Myths, Tips, and Tricks: A Physician’s Advice, by Morton Tavel is not a traditional narrative-based book but rather a compendium that can be read either start to finish, or perused by chapter to target specific information. Organized by numerous (62 to be exact) short chapters sorted into the headings of “myths”, “tips”, and “tricks”, the reader can skip around at their leisure and focus on topics related to diet, weight-management, food safety concerns, natural remedies, and a varied assortment of other areas that might interest someone seeking quick advice on life’s many choices. Dr. Tavel offers his personal opinion in conjunction with a solid body of academic and professional research, although this literature is somewhat curated to support these opinions. On the whole, this book reads as a seasoned physician’s compilation of all the random questions he or she has ever been asked by patience for their professional ruling on. It touches on GMOs, food allergies and sensitivities, dietary balance, colds vs viruses, homeopathy, and commonly used drugs, making it a useful source of general common sense from the medical and/or scientific community. A reader with any advanced lay-understanding of science, nutrition, or medicine would not find much new information here, but it would be very useful to the average consumer without much technical knowledge or access to professional discourse.
The organization of the book itself is less than ideal, and there are numerous typos throughout suggesting poor copy editing. While the many chapters are convenient for a reader seeking specific bite-size chunks of summarized information, this presentation choice limited the content to superficial commentary on sometimes complex issues. Examples of topics that suffer from this brevity include his discussion of BMI (Body Mass Index), which he appears to consider a preferable measurement of weight despite his acknowledgement of its failure to distinguish muscle and fat make-up of different bodies. His attention to fish and safety issues (Chapter 9) has a heavy emphasis on mercury, despite numerous other potential hazards, both direct and indirect. This will be discussed further below. The intent of the layout is clear but by Chapter 40 the jumpiness and superficiality of the content is less appreciated and more of a slog. There also ends up being some repetition throughout chapters that could have been condensed into more complete evaluations of individual subject areas rather than attempting to answer numerous sub-questions.
A deeper issue of the content stems from the above trend toward brevity. As a reader with strong familiarity with academic literature, this book is mostly on par with common discourse but strays a bit toward the author’s personal interests and opinions in some sections. In regards to the fishing chapter- the emphasis on mercury ignores the prevalent and potentially dangerous practice of seafood mislabeling- which would have made perfect sense within his overall narrative of sniffing out fraud. His discussion of arsenic (chapter 19) borders on a vendetta against brown rice which counters very well accepted nutritional advice. In the shellfish chapter (chapter 10) he mentions toxins that can accumulate in shellfish tissue, but makes surprisingly no mention of diseases that can be transmitted through shellfish consumption such as vibrio- something fairly well known among shellfish producing and consuming communities. This reflects the general trends of bias toward certain vendettas, namely contaminants and fake remedies, rather than an attempt to provide a balanced and sufficiently detailed description of the topics covered.
The overall tone to the book also walks a tight line between friendly informality and glib patronization. There is a clear attempt to have fun with the potentially dry material, evident by the insertion of small jokes and commentary as if the reader is engaging in a conversation rather than reading a scientific text. While this is often a good tactic, there are several occasions where the approach feels forced or falls flat; good intentions thwarted by timing and tactics. In later and more controversial chapters, however, this style may come across to the skeptical reader as condescending rather than entertaining or helpful.
While the data, for the most part, support his suggestions and opinions, the book itself is unlikely to convince anyone not already receptive to its message. Readers who already have a firm grasp of the basics of nutrition, science, and basic medical concepts will likely find themselves bored more often than not aside from the occasional cool fact. The approach is not always consistent, such as the note about the environmental impacts of red meat in chapter 17, but no word on the devastation of overfishing in chapter 9. The areas where specific examples could be helpful would be improved by a more general approach rather than listing a blacklist of specific branded items like and Olive Garden or Cheesecake Factory dish. Of far more utility to the average reader would have been more transferable categories of food, like packaged baked goods as opposed to homemade ones. Overall I can’t say I was very impressed with the book, and while I might give it to an overly anxious family member, I have little faith it would convince anyone not already inclined toward the information contained within. I rate this book 2 out of 4 stars.
******
Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks
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2 out of 4 stars
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Review for Health Myths, Tips, and Tricks by Morton Tavel
Health Myths, Tips, and Tricks: A Physician’s Advice, by Morton Tavel is not a traditional narrative-based book but rather a compendium that can be read either start to finish, or perused by chapter to target specific information. Organized by numerous (62 to be exact) short chapters sorted into the headings of “myths”, “tips”, and “tricks”, the reader can skip around at their leisure and focus on topics related to diet, weight-management, food safety concerns, natural remedies, and a varied assortment of other areas that might interest someone seeking quick advice on life’s many choices. Dr. Tavel offers his personal opinion in conjunction with a solid body of academic and professional research, although this literature is somewhat curated to support these opinions. On the whole, this book reads as a seasoned physician’s compilation of all the random questions he or she has ever been asked by patience for their professional ruling on. It touches on GMOs, food allergies and sensitivities, dietary balance, colds vs viruses, homeopathy, and commonly used drugs, making it a useful source of general common sense from the medical and/or scientific community. A reader with any advanced lay-understanding of science, nutrition, or medicine would not find much new information here, but it would be very useful to the average consumer without much technical knowledge or access to professional discourse.
The organization of the book itself is less than ideal, and there are numerous typos throughout suggesting poor copy editing. While the many chapters are convenient for a reader seeking specific bite-size chunks of summarized information, this presentation choice limited the content to superficial commentary on sometimes complex issues. Examples of topics that suffer from this brevity include his discussion of BMI (Body Mass Index), which he appears to consider a preferable measurement of weight despite his acknowledgement of its failure to distinguish muscle and fat make-up of different bodies. His attention to fish and safety issues (Chapter 9) has a heavy emphasis on mercury, despite numerous other potential hazards, both direct and indirect. This will be discussed further below. The intent of the layout is clear but by Chapter 40 the jumpiness and superficiality of the content is less appreciated and more of a slog. There also ends up being some repetition throughout chapters that could have been condensed into more complete evaluations of individual subject areas rather than attempting to answer numerous sub-questions.
A deeper issue of the content stems from the above trend toward brevity. As a reader with strong familiarity with academic literature, this book is mostly on par with common discourse but strays a bit toward the author’s personal interests and opinions in some sections. In regards to the fishing chapter- the emphasis on mercury ignores the prevalent and potentially dangerous practice of seafood mislabeling- which would have made perfect sense within his overall narrative of sniffing out fraud. His discussion of arsenic (chapter 19) borders on a vendetta against brown rice which counters very well accepted nutritional advice. In the shellfish chapter (chapter 10) he mentions toxins that can accumulate in shellfish tissue, but makes surprisingly no mention of diseases that can be transmitted through shellfish consumption such as vibrio- something fairly well known among shellfish producing and consuming communities. This reflects the general trends of bias toward certain vendettas, namely contaminants and fake remedies, rather than an attempt to provide a balanced and sufficiently detailed description of the topics covered.
The overall tone to the book also walks a tight line between friendly informality and glib patronization. There is a clear attempt to have fun with the potentially dry material, evident by the insertion of small jokes and commentary as if the reader is engaging in a conversation rather than reading a scientific text. While this is often a good tactic, there are several occasions where the approach feels forced or falls flat; good intentions thwarted by timing and tactics. In later and more controversial chapters, however, this style may come across to the skeptical reader as condescending rather than entertaining or helpful.
While the data, for the most part, support his suggestions and opinions, the book itself is unlikely to convince anyone not already receptive to its message. Readers who already have a firm grasp of the basics of nutrition, science, and basic medical concepts will likely find themselves bored more often than not aside from the occasional cool fact. The approach is not always consistent, such as the note about the environmental impacts of red meat in chapter 17, but no word on the devastation of overfishing in chapter 9. The areas where specific examples could be helpful would be improved by a more general approach rather than listing a blacklist of specific branded items like and Olive Garden or Cheesecake Factory dish. Of far more utility to the average reader would have been more transferable categories of food, like packaged baked goods as opposed to homemade ones. Overall I can’t say I was very impressed with the book, and while I might give it to an overly anxious family member, I have little faith it would convince anyone not already inclined toward the information contained within. I rate this book 2 out of 4 stars.
******
Health Tips, Myths, and Tricks
View: on Bookshelves
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