[.ca] Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Healthiness: Dr. ... (ISBN 006057724X)

Too superficial to be worthwhile:
Name a topic. ANY topic. Type that into a search engine, and you can learn far more in a few minutes than you can from Dr. Edell's superficial treatment of too many topics in this book. Edell is a generalist, not a specialist. As such, he knows a little about almost everything, and evidently not much about anything. In fact, Dr. Edell seems to possess a gift for superficiality. (Perhaps because he has been doing his radio show for so long, since radio hosts generally tend to gloss over topics to "keep the show moving.") I've read similar books of equal length by other authors, and even though they covered just as many (or more) topics as Edell did, they managed to convey some useful, in-depth information. Dr. Edell seems to have difficulty expressing himself concisely, which explains why he can say so little in so much space. This book will likely sell well because Edell is famous and has a radio show in which he can, and does, frequently plug the book. If he were an unknown doctor, few people would read this book, and even fewer would like it. Many of you Dr. Edell fans will undoubtedly give this book five stars and rave about how good it is, not because the book is truly good (to think that, you'd have to be delusional or oblivious to other books that do a MUCH better job of educating readers), but because you like Dr. Edell. Well, so do I, because his radio show is, despite its equal superficiality, more palatable than other programs in that time slot. I purchased this book thinking that it would give Dr. Edell a forum to discuss things in more depth than he can on radio. Obviously, I was very disappointed. Edell is clearly more interested in selling books than taking the time to write something that is worthwhile to read.

Keep it handy:
This is the first book of its kind I've owned, and I find that if I keep it handy, I frequently pick it up during commercials when I'm watching the news or a movie. Invariably, I come upon some helpful tidbit of healthful information that will serve my family well or maybe do nothing more than satisfy my curiosity. With its simple, to the point format, looking up specifics is easy and quick.

It's a keeper:
As a mother of 2, this book will join my other more traditional health books on the book shelf. My husband and I really enjoyed the "readability" of this book. We like the family health aspect as opposed to the childrens health books we already own. Reading Dr. Edell is like getting a second opinion. We can also relate to his common sense take on things, since this is how we live our lives.

Dr. Dean Doesn't Disappoint:
I'm not someone who normally buys medical guides. This one came to me as a gift, and I have really enjoyed it. I found it to be well written and well organized, neither too technical nor too basic. The format makes the information accessible. As a special added bonus, it's entertaining. I liked it.

Do Your Homework, Doctor!:
As a along time sufferer of Fibromyalgia (FMS), I was horrified to see Dr. Edell haul out that old and thoroughly disproven idea that it is a psychological illness. I am a psychiatric social worker, and have had umpteen tests, all normal. Many studies have shown no more psych problems than in any pain syndrome. This illness has ruined the lives of 10 million (mostly) women in the prime of their lives. Hey Doc, read the functional MRI studies, the SPECT and PET scan studies, the cardiomyopathy studies, the cortisol stimulation studies, the somatatomedin C/growth hormone studies, and I could go on an on. It must be sheer laziness not to know the research overwhelmingly proves the reality of this illness. And while you're at it, read the World Health Organization's position paper on FMS, in which they state it is one of the three top morbidity illnesses affecting the human race. We are in enough pain and misery already without having an ignorant doctor casually trashing us in a book. This makes me wonder how many other errors are in this book. Shame on you!