Do You Believe in Magic?: The Sense and Nonsense of Alternative Medicine - Hardcover

Offit, Paul A., M.D.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0062222961 ISBN 13: 9780062222961

Publisher: HarperCollins, 2013

Synopsis

In Do You Believe in Magic?, medical expert Paul A. Offit, M.D., offers a scathing expose of the alternative medicine industry, revealing how even though some popular therapies are remarkably helpful due to the placebo response, many of them are ineffective, expensive, and even deadly.

Dr. Offit reveals how alternative medicine--an unregulated industry under no legal obligation to prove its claims or admit its risks--can actually be harmful to our health.

Using dramatic real-life stories, Offit separates the sense from the nonsense, showing why any therapy--alternative or traditional--should be scrutinized. He also shows how some nontraditional methods can do a great deal of good, in some cases exceeding therapies offered by conventional practitioners.

An outspoken advocate for science-based health advocacy who is not afraid to take on media celebrities who promote alternative practices, Dr. Offit advises, "There's no such thing as alternative medicine. There's only medicine that works and medicine that doesn't."

About this title

Review:

""Do You Believe in Magic?" is a briskly written, entertaining, and well-researched examination of those whom Offit considers 'unclothed emperors' purveyors of miracle cancer cures, fountains of youth, and the theory that vaccines cause autism."--"Boston Globe"

"Convincing."--"Forbes"

Important and timely . . . Offit writes in a lucid and flowing style, and grounds a wealth of information within forceful and vivid narratives. This makes his argument - that we should be guided by science - accessible to a wide audience. --"New Republic""

Convincing. --"Forbes""

"Do You Believe in Magic?" is a briskly written, entertaining, and well-researched examination of those whom Offit considers unclothed emperors: purveyors of miracle cancer cures, fountains of youth, and the theory that vaccines cause autism. --"Boston Globe""

Over the last decade [Offit] has become a leading debunker of mass misconceptions surrounding infections and vaccines, and now he is taking on the entire field of alternative medicine, from acupuncture to vitamins. --"New York Times""

A fascinating history of hucksters, and a critical chronology of how supplements escaped regulation. . . . A bravely unsentimental and dutifully researched guide for consumers to distinguish between quacks and a cure. --"Publishers Weekly" (starred review)"

A rousing good read, strong on human interest and filled with appalling and amazing data. --"Kirkus Reviews" (starred review)"

Few scientists are willing to touch this third rail of science publicity; Offit grabs it with two hands. --"Newsweek," on "Autism's False Prophets""

An invaluable chronicle that relates some of the many ways in which the vulnerabilities of anxious parents have been exploited. --"Wall Street Journal," on "Autism's False Prophets""

From the Back Cover:

Medical expert and health advocate Dr. Paul A. Offit offers an impassioned and meticulously researched expose of the alternative medicine industry.

A half century ago, acupuncture, homeopathy, naturopathy, Chinese herbs, Christian exorcisms, dietary supplements, chiropractic manipulations, and ayurvedic remedies were considered on the fringe of medicine. Now these practices--known variably as alternative, complementary, holistic, or integrative medicine--have become mainstream, used by half of all Americans today seeking to burn fat, detoxify livers, shrink prostates, alleviate colds, stimulate brains, boost energy, reduce stress, enhance immunity, eliminate pain, prevent cancer, and enliven sex.

But as Offit reveals, alternative medicine--an unregulated industry under no legal obligation to prove its claims or admit its risks--can actually be harmful to our health. Even though some popular therapies are remarkably helpful due to the placebo response, many of them are ineffective, expensive, and even deadly. In Do You Believe in Magic? he explains how

• megavitamins increase the risk of cancer and heart disease--a fact well known to scientists but virtually unknown to the public;
• dietary supplements have caused uncontrolled bleeding, heart failure, hallucinations, arrhythmias, seizures, coma, and death;
• acupuncture needles have pierced hearts, lungs, and livers, and transmitted viruses, including hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV;
• chiropractic manipulations have torn arteries.

Dr. Offit debunks the treatments that don't work and explains why. He also takes on the media celebrities who promote alternative medicine, including Mehmet Oz, Suzanne Somers, and Jenny McCarthy. Using dramatic real-life stories, he separates the sense from the nonsense, showing why any therapy--alternative or traditional--should be scrutinized. As he advises us, "There's no such thing as alternative medicine. There's only medicine that works and medicine that doesn't."

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0062222961
• ISBN 13: 9780062222961
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 322