Customer Reviews

The Tao of Detox: The Secrets of Yang-Sheng Dao

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I was excited to buy this book because I am familiar with some of Reid's other books on Taoism and Traditional Chinese Medicine. I was hoping for some authentic Taoist and Traditional Chinese dietary and detox processes. Alas, what I got was an uncritical promotion of the worst fads, snake oil, and expensive products and devices imaginable. Taoist teachings emphisize the ability to discern reality from delusion, most of this stuff is pure magical thinking. It reads like Reid is just citing promotional literature for a lot of this stuff. Some of what he says is pure nonsense that circulates around the internet with no substantiation, such as Pasteur's deathbed recantation of the germ theory (never been documented) and the notion that colons are packed full of hard plaque (never been seen at an autoposy). In at least 2 of the products he discusses, the manufacturers have been subject to prosecution for false and misleading claims.

The good - A couple of useful chapters dealing with detox by diet and detox by fasting. Some useful food ideas and several herbal mixtures, both American herbal and TCM, that might be useful. Some simple exercises. These sections warrent 2 stars.

The so-so - The promotion of colon hydrotherapy. There is no evidence of hard plaque in anyone's colon, however the cleansing of the colon is typically part of any detox, so this may be a useful addition to herbs and foods. Despite Reid's uncritical acceptance of the manufacturer's claims, the product he discusses for home use is at least not very expensive and appears well-made. I, for one, wouldn't want to do 14 colonics in 7 days. This would seem awfully disturbing to normal gut flora. But at least it is probably not harmful nor too expensive for those who want it.

The bad - Uncritical acceptance of science fiction theories and products and promotion of these (often very expensive) products with stuff straight from the company's literature. Things like: the Grander Living Water Sytem, proven in independant lab tests to do nothing and which is extremely expensive; "alkaline water" generators which are expensive and produce a product which is immediately acidified by the stomach; water "microclusters" when in fact the stomach and intestinal lining can absorb any conformation of water with ease, body pH (I thought this fad had died out several years back)... the list goes on and on and on. Only 1 page of discussion of the yin and yang of foods, pretty much reduced to yang = acid = bad, yin = alkaline = good. Minus 1 star.

I don't usually like to chime in on the skeptic side of things and sound like some quackbuster. I'm willing to be open-minded and try a lot of new stuff. But I also worked as a microbiologist and in chemistry for a number of years and I know when things just don't work on a physical level. Much of this is just magical thinking and I hate to see people waste a lot of money on it.

I'd suggest skipping this one and just look at some simpler, more basic books on diet and detox. You don't need a lot of expensive products to turn your kitchen into a chemistry lab and your bathroom into a colon treatment center to do a little internal cleansing.

I am a little disappointed in this book. It seems to just rattle on at times with bits of useful information added in. The useful information is then directed to the sponsors in the back of the book. The book often refers to experts who have no references. I'm sure that the information may be accurate, but these things that I have pointed out make me wonder.

i have read many of daniel reid's books and they are all incredibly informative and easy to understand, this book is no exception. daniel reid gives a practical way to exist in our society that's full of toxicity and periodically or daily clean or 'detoxify' ourselves. that simple act can great lenghten and improve one's life. the best part is he really gives great suggestions on methods and products people could use to detoxify. i really recommend this book for everyone.

This book has a lot of information in it. I came across it randomly in the book store and have recommended my more serious health-nut friends read it for more insight of ways to detox. I couldn't put it down. I hadn't come across a book for detox that really drew me in like this one. Sure, some of this seems so serious and too much for a beginner or even one who has taken on the challenge of detoxing, but it gives the reader an outlook in many dimensions. Get your hands on this book, read it for yourself and decide what you want to incorporate into your next detox. It is another learning curve . . . . there are many thoughts on detox . . . some agree with it and some don't . . . . some take it further than others . . . . Get as much knowledge as you can and decide how you want to go about it. Be smart!

THE TAO OF DETOX The Secrets of Yang-Sheng Dao A Practical Guide to Preventing an Treating the Toxic Assault on Our Bodies

By Daniel Reid ISBN-13:978-1-59477-142-2 (Healing Arts Press)

I found The Tao of Detox to be very comprehensive, making it an valuable reference book. I also found the section on retoxification to be realistic as it addresses those who simply do not want to give up certain toxins like alcohol or tobacco. The merging of Chinese medicine and Western thinking has once again brought new light to ailments like chronic pain and fatigue, hypertension, and heart failure, cancer, diabetes, arthritis, and insomnia, all of which are caused by the long term accumulation of toxins. And if you are caught in the confusion of wondering which vitamins to take, Daniel Reid explains in simple and concise language the significance of taking whole food supplements.

Dhara Lemos, Lotus Guide Magazine

This is such a fantastic book. I have read some of Reid's other books and I have come to trust him, through applying his advice and getting real results. Other reviews that are skeptical have clearly not tried what they consider expensive "snake oil". If you have tried it and it has failed for you then you can speak from experience. No one is interested in a skeptics point of view before they have even tried it. Alkaline water is used all over Japan in hospitals because of it's proven healing properties. Reid's book is straight forward and easy to follow. The fact that he provides specific contact information for suppliers in the book is very helpful to start your own detox program

I got interested in detoxing the body from a friend of mine who let me borrow this book. After I read the first chapter I decided to order my own copy of the book. It is packed full of detox methods ranging from fasting to tapping energy meridians to detox massage and more. A must-read for anyone interested in peak health or traditional chinese medicine.

This is an informative and refreshing approach not only to detox but general nutrition and Tao.

I am delighted, informed and heartened by this comprehensive practical guide to detoxification...especially by its linking of eastern and western knowledge and thought processes. I would rate this 4 and a half stars if I could. Missing, however, is documentation/citation of some mostly evident (to me) truths and pertinent studies that are mentioned. Also there are interestingly speculative (to me) statements presented as logical deduction or fact; these could be better supported.. I was left wanting directions to pursue for more substantive validation. I don't think there was a statement I wanted to disagree with or did want to challenge based on my own background knowledge but I'd have liked to have had something to pursue or to have a deeper conversation with the author.

I would like for example to see whence comes the percentage data of oxygenation of earths air now and before and also how the conclusion is reached that we are oxygen deprived because we have less. How much do we need and how is that determined, I wonder. Another example: Occular-endocrine reactions in fluorescent lighted classrooms. Mentioning studies... I wonder what they are... to support the behavioral normalization of students. I'd like to also understand the occular endocrine process more deeply in this regard and while relieved and pleased that Mr Reid articulates my thoughts even further, I would like some harder fact and deeper explanation on this and other points. Personally, as a visual artist/art teacher of talented teens, I've seen greater responsiveness and other benefits from switching to daylight spectrum lighting inside and have read/heard of other experiences. I'm interested in finding a scientifically designed study or two to back Mr Reid's statement and am sorry to not find it here. Its absence does not further the impact I might have where I teach. I seek some research of conventional value in order to be able to persuade administrators to purchase and try this...thereby providing relief to students teeming with such behavioral issues as Dan Reid mentions.

Overall, I am still most pleased. I don't so much mind leaving this book with questions [...where to purchase Ocean Frost? The site mentioned doesn't have it.. and Mica type??] that I wish it had more fully answered. This is because it's practicality, comprehensive nature an premise is resonantly sound and provides a balanced understanding of our challenges and how to face them. A great mixture of 'how to' and 'what is and why' from a remarkable broad and rooted perspective. Thank you to Dan Reid for writing it.

Knowledge from the past blended with the most recent useful means of appling it. The physiology of how detox works, might be well established in "Yang-Sheng Dao", but this "how-to" hands the techniques to this baby-boomer in plain terms from more overlapping angles than I could have ever found in one source. Enjoy