Health and Healing: The Philosophy of Integrative Medicine and Optimum Health
23
Mar
- ISBN13: 9780618479085
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Product Description
Dr. Andrew Weil’s groundbreaking handbook for people who want to take control of their lives and their health, Health and Healing presents the full spectrum of alternative healing practices, including holistic medicine, homeopathy, osteopathy, chiropractic, and Chinese medicine, and outlines how they differ from conventional approaches. The philosophical basis for his work in integrative medicine and optimum health, Health and Healing draws on Weil’s own vast c… More >>
Health and Healing: The Philosophy of Integrative Medicine and Optimum Health
Dr. Weil presents an objective view of many healing modalities that may be familar to most Americans. He includes allopathic (traditional Western) medicine, homeopathic, naturopathic, osteopathic, and chiropractic paths; acupunction, holistic medicine, shamanism/mind cures/faith healing, and psychic healing. He not only presents assets and disadvantages of each modality, but also presents some theories on why any course of treatment works. He explores the role of faith and the patient’s belief in the treatment as a positive contributor to the effectiveness of the treatment. He describes the “placebo effect”, where people are cured of illness by drugs that have no biological affect on the illness. He discusses the origins and effectiveness of pharmeceutical drugs and narcotics.
Dr. Weil’s questioning leads the reader to also question his/her own role in healing and in making appropriate choices in health care. His treatise does not entirely put down allopathic or alternative medicine, but does put each in its place so the reader is left with a sense of responsibility. It is up to us to decide what we, as persons seeking health, need in terms of treatment and what will choose to place our faith in.
Rating: 5 / 5
This book is required reading for all students at the Clayton College of Natural Health. It should, in fact, be required reading for anyone entering the field of health, as it convincingly drives home an important point: just because allopathy (“conventional” or “western” medicine) has the most powerful medical lobby in the US, its history is far from flawless, and is often downright embarrassing when compared with that of time-honored systems such as homeopathy or tribal approaches to healing. In an entertaining and lucid manner, Dr Weil introduces the reader to many of the alternative approaches still being practiced the world over, and their advantages and shortcomings. He also points to the need for ALL kinds of medicines, and provides guidelines on which types of dis-eases are best handled by the various specialties. All in all, a thoroughly readable and informative book which will hopefully abolish forever the popular regard of M.D.s as “demigods in white,” and the idea that allopathic medicine is the only credible and worthwhile approach to healing our sick.
Rating: 5 / 5
This book was required reading in my college microbiology class. I’ve kept it ever since and I have read it several times more. I’ve also given this book as a gift. It will really open your mind to several types of alternative medicine. The fact that this was written by a “traditional” M.D. brings a bit more legitimacy to the various disciplines of medicine.
Rating: 5 / 5
Pinned on my office wall is an uplifting reminder titled, “Seven Rules Of A Winner”. I found it interesting that the author listed health as the first rule. He wrote, “Be proactive and preventative about your health. Your body is your one and only vehicle for your journey to success, so start taking care of your health through exercise and diet.” (The Psychology of Winning, by Denis Waitley). I didn’t take that statement seriously until after a medical problem sent me to the hospital. Since happiness seems to go hand-in-hand with having a healthy body, I highly recommend this book. If nothing else, it provided me with a positive perspective on illness, and that alone made it worth reading. It also opened my eyes to the down-side of high-tech medicine, or rather, it put American medical practices into perspective and introduced me to alternatives. Herbal remidies are investigated as well as many others. The bottom line: read this book to learn how the body can heal itself and just how much is not known about the process of healing. A must read for anyone wishing to take control of their own health.
Rating: 5 / 5
Even though this book was written in 1983, it is the most readable introduction to complementary medicine that I have found. I use it as required reading for my class (“Introduction to Complementary Medicine”) at the UCLA School of Medicine. It is really fun to read! My only problem with the book is that he is somewhat negative on Chiropractic therapy (although he is very positive about Osteopathy). His section on homeopathy is extremely well-written.
Rating: 5 / 5