If Our Bodies Could Talk

October 17, 2016
In this fascinating book, Hamblin, a medical doctor and senior editor at the Atlantic, discusses why stomachs rumble, how much sleep we need, what causes cancer, and many more questions about the plethora of human bodily functions. Drawing on his experiences creating a video series (with the same title) for the Atlantic, he combines his own medical knowledge with consultations with scientists and doctors in different fields. Each chapter focuses on a category of “body usage,” starting with the body’s “superficial” parts such as skin and eyes, then moving into feeling, eating, drinking, relating, and finally dying. His explanations are thoughtful and interesting and often framed by a specific story or research study that provides context and clarifies why the answers are not always cut-and-dried. He delves into the many ways technology is driving medicine, touching on topics such as epigenetics (the role environment plays in gene expression), dysbiosis (disruption of the microbial system), and hormone therapy to support a person’s sense of gender identity. Challenging what one interviewee calls the “scientific misinformation and marketing-based ‘facts’ ” we are bombarded with daily, this book will be a useful tool for helping people get in touch with their own bodies.

January 1, 2017

Physician-turned-journalist Hamblin covers health news as an Atlantic senior editor. This book, based on a series of videos that he created for the magazine, answers people's most common health questions in an accessible and entertaining way. His introduction notes that ignorance is our most serious health problem and is the result of marketing that cultivates the denial of scientific fact. He also credits the denizens of the web who manufacture "information" online. He then examines aspects of anatomy and physiology using a question-and-answer format. Chapters cover broad areas: "Appearing" looks at eye color, curly hair, sunburn, and the Adam's apple; "Perceiving" examines itching, the immune system, sleep, and ringing in the ears; sections on eating and drinking cover rumbling stomachs, bad breath, sports drinks, tooth whitening, and alcohol's effects. "Relating" deals with sexuality, including the G-spot and gender transitioning. "Enduring" discusses heart disease, cancer, rigor mortis, and productive things to do with a dead body. VERDICT This excellent book cuts through media hype and bias to give readers useful information about their bodies and promote critical thinking about health.--Barbara Bibel, formerly Oakland P.L.

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2016
Adam's apples, stomach rumbling (borborygmi), bad breath, drooling, male nipples, necrobiome (corpse bacteria), dimples: these are just a sampling of the medical curiosities examined by Hamblin, an MD and editor at the Atlantic magazine. His grab bag of health information is presented in the form of questionspractical, philosophical, and weirdthat folks might like to ask a doctor but are perhaps embarrassed to do so. He writes with sarcasm, humor, and a sense of astonishment. Consider some surprising facts: individuals typically manufacture 1.5 liters of saliva per day. Twenty percent of U.S. adults have a tattoo. The average American eats just shy of 2,000 pounds of food yearly. Intercourse typically lasts 3 to 13 minutes. Hamblin tackles sleep, heart problems, antibiotics, the immune system, and aging. He does a stellar job with nutrition, covering supplements, multivitamins, energy drinks, and gluten. He calls out medical misinformation and marketing myths. He is troubled (as we should all be) by how money, politics, and industry distort scientific data and muddle health policy. Educational, entertaining, and a bit eccentric.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)