Product Description

"Christopher Wanjek uses a take–no–prisoners approach in debunking the outrageous nonsense being heaped on a gullible public in the name of science and medicine. Wanjek writes with clarity, humor, and humanity, and simultaneously informs and entertains."
–Dr. Michael Shermer, Publisher, Skeptic magazine; monthly columnist,
Scientific American; author of Why People Believe Weird Things

Prehistoric humans believed cedar ashes and incantations could cure a head injury. Ancient Egyptians believed the heart was the center of thought, the liver produced blood, and the brain cooled the body. The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates was a big fan of bloodletting. Today, we are still plagued by countless medical myths and misconceptions. Bad Medicine sets the record straight by debunking widely held yet incorrect notions of how the body works, from cold cures to vaccination fears.

Clear, accessible, and highly entertaining, Bad Medicine dispels such medical convictions as:
∗ You only use 10% of your brain: CAT, PET, and MRI scans all prove that there are no inactive regions of the brain . . . not even during sleep.
∗ Sitting too close to the TV causes nearsightedness: Your mother was wrong. Most likely, an already nearsighted child sits close to see better.
∗ Eating junk food will make your face break out: Acne is caused by dead skin cells, hormones, and bacteria, not from a pizza with everything on it.
∗ If you don′t dress warmly, you′ll catch a cold: Cold viruses are the true and only cause of colds.


Protect yourself and the ones you love from bad medicine–the brain you save may be your own.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #241292 in Books
• Published on: 2002-10-29
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

Review
For skeptics, always fans of science: The first two books in a series devoted to "bad science," Bad Astronomy by Philip Plait and Bad Medicine (Wiley, $15.95) by Christopher Wanjek, may warm even a Scrooge′s heart. In short chapters, Plait tackles misperceptions about why the moon looks larger on the horizon and why stars twinkle before moving on, dismantling conspiracy kooks who doubt the moon landing and offering a top 10 list of bad science moments in movie history. Wanjek, a science writer who has also written jokes for The Tonight Show and Saturday Night Live, takes an edgy and funny tack in debunking myths such as humans using only 10% of their brains, the utility of "anti–bacterial" toys and the safety of "natural" herbal remedies, ones often loaded with powerful chemicals. (USA TODAY, December 3, 2002)

"...Bad Medicine is an enjoyable romp through a host of biomedical misconceptions..." (New Scientist, 21 December 2002)

"...Wanjek shoots and scores when he tackles the major myths of medicine..." (Focus, February 2003)

Review
"...Bad Medicine is an enjoyable romp through a host of biomedical misconceptions..." (New Scientist, 21 December 2002)

"...Wanjek shoots and scores when he tackles the major myths of medicine..." (Focus, February 2003)

Synopsis
A clever, thought-provoking guide that clarifies common medical misconceptions The average person only uses ten percent of his or her brain. Poor light ruins your eyesight. All natural medicines are safe. In this lively and informative guide, science writer Chris Wanjek dispels these and dozens of other popularly held medical myths and misconceptions. The second title in Wiley's Bad Science series, Bad Medicine begins by taking readers on a fantastic journey into the human body to shed some light on how it really works, answering basic questions about blood, how the immune system works, how food is turned to fuel, and much more. The book then sets the record straight on aging, disease, drugs, medical studies, risk, and the most commonly misrepresented medical "facts" reported by the media.

Customer Reviews

Scotching myths
An essential read in our crazy times, this book will help you understand many of the myths surrounding medicine and science, enabling you to form a much more balanced view of some of the wacky claims made via the tabloids and glossies.

A refreshing read which should be included in the National Curriculum as part of science teaching. Do not read this if you do not wish your prejudices to be challenged!

Bad Medicine - a good read
This book did a good job at debunking or supporting some of the Old Wives Tales and New Age Tales that surround health and medicine, in a very readable way. No doubt it will not convince dyed in the wool new age fanatics, but for the open minded and generally interested I would highly recommend it.

Excellent - I loved it.
An excellent book, well written, well backed up with information sources and research and easy to read.
I am not a scientist, but the concepts and details were well explained and easy to understand.
A brilliant book to fight back at the misconceptions and misinformation of the current quacks and fraudsters of our world.