Health Myths

Gabor Maté’s internationally bestselling books have changed the way we look at addiction and have been integral in shifting the conversations around ADHD, stress, disease, embodied trauma, and parenting. Now, in this revolutionary book, he eloquently dissects how in Western countries that pride themselves on their health care systems, chronic illness and general ill health are on the rise. So what is really “normal” when it comes to health?

Heart disease is the number-one killer. However, traditional heart disease protocols - with their emphasis on lowering cholesterol - have it all wrong. Emerging science is showing that cholesterol levels are a poor predictor of heart disease and that standard prescriptions for lowering it, such as ineffective low-fat/high-carb diets and serious, side-effect-causing statin drugs, obscure the real causes of heart disease. The Great Cholesterol Myth reveals the real culprits of heart disease.

The Porn Myth is a non-religious response to the commonly held belief that pornography is a harmless or even beneficial pastime. Author Matt Fradd draws on the experience of porn performers and users, and the expertise of neurologists, sociologists, and psychologists to demonstrate that pornography is destructive to individuals, relationships, and society. He provides insightful arguments, supported by the latest scientific research, to discredit the fanciful claims used to defend and promote pornography.

For hundreds of years, the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table has been one of the world's most precious literary possessions. In 1902, the distinguished American artist Howard Pyle undertook to retell and illustrate this classic. His four-volume work has long been considered one of the outstanding interpretations of the Arthurian cycle.

Women around the globe are buying and consuming alcohol at alarming rates never seen before. But is it doing us any favors? Is it really that treat or reward that we deserve? Lotta Dann thinks not. In The Wine O'Clock Myth, Lotta takes an in-depth and eye-opening look at women's drinking habits. Written through the lens of her own story and her work in the field of addiction and recovery, Lotta explores the privileged position alcohol holds in our society, the way the liquor industry targets women and the damaging "Wine Mom" social media culture.

The COVID-19 pandemic has left many of us haunted by feelings of anxiety, despair, and even anger. In this audiobook, pioneering therapist Pauline Boss identifies these vague feelings of distress as caused by ambiguous loss, losses that remain unclear and hard to pin down, and thus have no closure. Collectively the world is grieving as the pandemic continues to change our everyday lives.

50 Great Myths of Popular Psychology uses popular myths as a vehicle for helping students and laypersons to distinguish science from pseudoscience. It also explores topics that listeners will relate to, but often misunderstand, such as "opposites attract", "people use only 10% of their brains", and "handwriting reveals your personality", and provides a "mythbusting kit" for evaluating folk psychology claims in everyday life.

Emerging science is showing that cholesterol levels are a poor predictor of heart disease and that standard prescriptions for lowering it, such as ineffective low-fat/high-carb diets and serious, side-effect-causing statin drugs, obscure the real causes of heart disease. Even doctors at leading institutions have been misled for years based on creative reporting of research results from pharmaceutical companies intent on supporting the $31-billion-a-year cholesterol-lowering drug industry.

Why do most diets fail? Why does one person eat a certain meal and gain weight, while another eating the same meal loses pounds? Why, despite all the advice about what to eat, are we all still getting fatter? The answers are much more surprising - and fascinating - than we've been led to believe. The key to health and weight loss lies not in the latest fad diet, nor even in the simple mantra of 'eat less, exercise more', but in the microbes already inside us.

Everyone seems to agree that we have an epidemic of what is diagnosed as autism. But, in the history of our society, there has never been "an epidemic" of any developmental or genetic disorder. Yet, over the span of thirty years, autism has gone from affecting one in 5,000 children to one in 90, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. So what is this "autism", which has come to affect the lives of so many?

Weaving a rich tapestry of multicultural myths, ancient legends, and simple folktales, Anita Johnston, PhD, inspires women to free themselves from disordered eating by discovering the metaphors that are hidden in their own life stories.

Consciousness creates all material reality. Biological processes do not create consciousness. This conceptual breakthrough turns traditional scientific thinking upside down. In An End to Upside Down Thinking, Mark Gober traces his journey. He explores compelling scientific evidence from a diverse set of disciplines, ranging from psychic phenomena to near-death experiences to quantum physics and beyond.

This updated and expanded edition of Dr. Berry’s best seller Lies My Doctor Told Me exposes the truth behind all kinds of “lies” told by well-meaning but misinformed medical practitioners. Nutritional therapy is often overlooked in medical school, and the information provided to physicians is often outdated. However, the negative consequences on your health remain the same. Advice to avoid healthy fats and stay out of the sun has been proven to be detrimental to longevity and can wreak havoc on your system.

More than simply an end to fertility, menopause is a time when a woman’s health can spin out of control. The hormonal shifts of menopause impact everything from body composition and immune system function to increased risk of chronic health conditions such as cancer, diabetes, dementia, heart disease, and osteoporosis. The Great Menopause Myth shows you how to age wise and well at midlife and beyond. Learn actionable steps and guidelines to curate an optimized menopause regimen based on your unique health considerations.

The editors of Scientific American’s best-selling Fact or Fiction: Science Tackles 58 Popular Myths return with Fact or Fiction 2: 50 (More) Popular Myths Explained. We cast an analytical eye on another collection of urban lore and cultural myths that persist so long in our collective consciousness they acquire a ring of truth. Who hasn’t heard the “five-second rule”, which insists that food dropped on the floor is safe to eat if it’s picked up within five seconds? How many of us have been told to “feed a cold, starve a fever"?

Number one international best seller in pain management and health, fitness & dieting categories. Back pain is now the number one cause of disability worldwide; this is ironic, because the mystery was solved in the 1970s by Dr. John Sarno at the New York University Medical Center. Tragically, few sufferers accepted his solution.

Do antidepressants work, or are they no better than placebos? Like his colleagues, Irving Kirsch spent years referring patients to psychiatrists to have their depression treated with drugs. Eventually, however, he decided to investigate for himself just how effective the drugs actually were. With 15 years of research, Kirsch demonstrates that what everyone “knew” about antidepressants is wrong; what the medical community considered a cornerstone of psychiatric treatment is little more than a faulty consensus.

Turtles All the Way Down: Vaccine Science and Myth will resolve the vaccine question for you, once and for all. By the time you finish, not only will you see the answer clearly for yourself, you will also have the scientific references and specific quotes at your disposal that prove it – more than 1,200 of them – all from mainstream scientific papers and textbooks, the official publications of relevant government agencies, or manufacturers’ documents.

Did you know that oatmeal actually isn't a healthy way to start the day? That milk doesn't build bones, and eggs aren't the devil? In Food: What the Heck Should I Eat?, Dr. Hyman looks at every food group and explains what we've gotten wrong, revealing which foods nurture our health and which pose threats. He also explains food's crucial role in functional medicine and how food systems and policies affect our environmental and personal health.

In The Myths of Happiness, Sonja Lyubomirsky isolates the major turning points of adult life, looking to both achievements (marriage, children, professional satisfaction, wealth) and failures (singlehood, divorce, financial ruin, illness) to reveal that our misconceptions about the impact of such events is perhaps the greatest threat to our long-term well-being.