Dr. Murray's Total Body Tune-Up: Slow Down the Aging Process, Keep Your System Running Smoothly, Help Your Body Heal Itself--for Life! (Hardcover)

by Michael Murray (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Michael Murray is on a mission. A prominent naturopath, professor, and coauthor of the hugely popular Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine, he's been teaching people for over 20 years to "harness the power of nature and achieve the highest level of health possible." In his Total Body Tune-Up, Murray outlines a plan to adjust the major organs of the body on a cellular level, using nutrition, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, herbs--and the body's natural drive to heal itself. "Most cells in the body reproduce many times during your lifespan," he writes. "By tuning up, you can make sure that each new generation of cells is as fit and robust as its ancestors."

Murray opens each chapter with a symptom checklist, so readers can prioritize the needs of the various body systems--digestive, cardiovascular, reproductive, and so on--as high, medium, or low. He then explains how each system works when healthy, inspiring an odd affection for all the organs needing nutritional support, from the brain to the thymus. ("If the entire absorptive area of the small intestine were laid flat, it would be the size of a tennis court.") Because naturopaths practice holistic medicine, he covers stress, humor, and optimism, and gives dosages and brand names for hundreds of supplement regimens. Murray's book is so full of useful nutrition information, the occasional missing piece is forgivable. (Most Americans adults, he writes, eat 100 pounds of sugar and at least 40 pounds of "other sweeteners" a year--yet he fails to detail the health hazards of what's inside those ubiquitous blue and pink packets.)

The book's title notwithstanding--the body as car needing a tune-up is a bit rusty--Murray writes with a knack for metaphor. (Phase II detoxification in the liver is "like handcuffing the toxin so it can be escorted out of the body by the biological equivalent of security guards.") Citations for the clinical research articles he pulls from would have been useful for readers seeking more information. Still, this is a must-have reference for anyone who wants to move toward the promise of well-being, whether readers have a medical condition or want to prevent health problems. --Rebecca Taylor

From Library Journal
Natural medicine expert Murray, seen on Prime Time Live, Dateline, and more, offers his prescription for slowing down the aging process and healing the body.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: Bantam; 1 edition (July 5, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553107895
• ISBN-13: 978-0553107890
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #714,039 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive, well-organized, easy to read and understand!, July 20, 2000

By	Ms. Kathryn Houseman Lobert (Arlington, TX USA) - See all my reviews

Dr. Murray really has written a "whole body" book. By coming from the naturopathic viewpoint, he has made achieving and maintaining optimum health an obtainable goal without a lot of side-effect inducing prescriptions. He does not just list a series of steps to follow, but makes the reader a participant and advocate for his or her own health by providing explanations as to why the procedures work. He also provides rating scales so that the reader can prioritize the steps by personal need. If I can only have one health book, this is the one.

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't put it down., July 20, 2000

By	Jamin Condou (Whittier, California United States) - See all my reviews

Last night I sat on the floor of my local bookstore enthralled in this book. As it is not yet payday and cheaper on Amazon, I didn't buy it. But, what a book. It is so easily organized. Besides the basic and known aging issues, Murray addresses others as well. He gives several "tune-up tiips" for each concern. He weaves in the words of Norman Cousins. He gives facts as well as suggestions for herbal, botanical and lifestyle treatments. I don't want to get too obsessed with aging, but I do want to know which supplements I can be incorporating into my diet. This book really helps me do that.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic book, October 24, 2005

By	Jan Erik Petersen "jepeter" (Montreal, QC, Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is my favorite book on health, and I strongly recommend it to anyone wishing to improve their health in a effective and natural way. Its superbly written, and you have a hard time putting it down. Its a easy read and you will feel like implementing it right away. And it works!!! I have used it for everything from curing colds fast to loosing weight. My parents have received a copy for lowering cholesterol and blood presure ...in the natural way!