A Short Guide to a Long Life

October 14, 2013
Taking inspiration from Michael Pollan’s Food Rules, cancer specialist Agus distills advice from his previous book (The End of Illness) into a simple set of rules for living wisely through healthy habits. His series of dos and don’ts advocate cultivating a measure of physical self-awareness in order to quickly note any changes in the body, as a means of preventing and detecting disease; consuming unprocessed, whole foods while avoiding artificial vitamins and supplements; and taking medications like statins and low-dose aspirin prophylactically. Agus also covers commonly accepted practices like maintaining a healthy weight, exercising, getting a flu shot, and complying with your doctor’s advice, while not smoking, getting sunburned, or wearing uncomfortable shoes. The book closes with a checklist of checkups needed in each decade of life—another reminder of the self-knowledge needed for disease prevention. Little line drawings and a conversational, fatherly tone make this guide light and easy to follow, if rather facile, and readers who have already taken Agus as a health guru will love it. Those who still need convincing might do better to read his earlier book, which includes references to the actual research behind his recommendations. 66 b&w line drawings.