Health and Healing [Paperback]

Andrew T. Weil M.D. (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 20, 1998

In light of the health care crisis and the proliferation of HMOs, Dr. Weil has written a new introduction to this groundbreaking study of conventional and alternative medicine. Health and Healing presents the spectrum of alternative healing practices - holistic medicine, homeopathy, osteopathy, chiropractic, Chinese medicine - and outlines how they differ from conventional medicine.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Why do we get sick? How do we get well? How do we avoid getting sick again? Dr. Andrew Weil attempts to answer these fundamental questions in Health and Healing, but the real joy of the book isn't in learning the answers, but in following his mind down the path to an answer.

He starts with homeopathy, a treatment that, to an outsider, seems more like a leap of faith than an actual system of healing. Weil recounts how homeopathy cured--completely cured--an annoying intestinal problem he suffered. Then he discusses the principles and history of this type of treatment, including the surprising ways in which homeopathy has affected the course of modern medicine. Finally, he gets to the real question: does homeopathy work or is it simply a placebo effect? The only reasonable answer is "maybe," but accompanying Weil as he gets to that answer is a fascinating experience.

One of the strongest points made in this book is that "perfect health" is simply unattainable. We're all going to feel bad sometimes. Another is that the body eventually heals most of its injuries, illnesses, and infections--up to 90 percent of them, by some estimates. But it's the other 10 percent that raise havoc. Weil, trained as a medical doctor, believes that conventional medicine is great at handling trauma and sudden, life-threatening conditions like heart attacks, but it's less good at dealing with chronic conditions like arthritis. Health and Healing examines the strengths and weaknesses of both conventional and alternative medicine, and offers a roadmap to determine which is best for what ails you. --Lou Schuler

Review

"A warm and clear-cut spectrum of health and healing. I recommend this book to all who are involved in or interested in wellness." - Dr. Bernie Seigel

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Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: Mariner Books (May 20, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395911532
• ISBN-13: 978-0395911532
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #914,737 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Andrew Weil, M.D., is a world-renowned leader and pioneer in the field of integrative medicine, a healing oriented approach to health care which encompasses body, mind, and spirit. His next book, "Spontaneous Happiness," will be released November 8, 2011.

Combining a Harvard education and a lifetime of practicing natural and preventive medicine, Dr. Weil is the founder and director of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona Health Sciences Center, where he is also a Clinical Professor of Medicine and Professor of Public Health and the Lovell-Jones Professor of Integrative Rheumatology. Dr. Weil received both his medical degree and his undergraduate AB degree in biology (botany) from Harvard University.

Dr. Weil is an internationally-recognized expert for his views on leading a healthy lifestyle, his philosophy of healthy aging, and his critique of the future of medicine and health care. Approximately 10 million copies of Dr. Weil's books have been sold, including "Spontaneous Healing," "8 Weeks to Optimum Health," "Eating Well for Optimum Health," "The Healthy Kitchen," "Healthy Aging," and "Why Our Health Matters."

Online, he is the editorial director of DrWeil.com, the leading web resource for healthy living based on the philosophy of integrative medicine. He can be found on Facebook at facebook.com/DrWeil, Twitter at twitter.com/DrWeil, and Dr. Weil's Daily Health Tips blog at drweilblog.com.

See a comprehensive list of Dr. Weil's information: about.me/DrWeil

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent overview of the history of alternative medicine, December 29, 1998

By 

Larissa stillman Wagner "LaraUS" (Germany) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Health and Healing (Paperback)

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.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Objective View Of Mulitple Healing Modalities, July 4, 2005

By 

Tracy Robert (Albuquerque, NM United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Health and Healing: The Philosophy of Integrative Medicine and Optimum Health (Paperback)

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.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dr. Weil wrote an eye-opener on health and how we heal..., December 11, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Health and Healing (Paperback)

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.