cover image Intelligent Medicine

Intelligent Medicine

Ronald L. Hoffman. Fireside Books, $32.95 (532pp) ISBN 978-0-684-81082-9

The host of the popular New York City radio ""Health Talk"" on WOR and operator of a Manhattan health-food store offers counsel to aging baby boomers whose bodies are just now beginning to let them down. To the holistic Hoffman, the practice of ""intelligent medicine"" means selecting the best from both alternative and high-tech medicine. To help readers understand the workings of their bodies, he describes each physical system (e.g., cardiovascular, reproductive, gastrointestinal) and offers dos and don'ts for keeping it in working order. Among his recommended strategies are use of herbal remedies and food supplements, dietary and behavioral modifications as well as alternative therapies such as acupuncture. Trendy topics such as Syndrome X (sugar disease or hyperinsulinism), allergies and environmental pollution get serious coverage. Hoffman's notion that fighting off the flu naturally is a good way to keep the immune system in peak condition may seem odd to advocates of annual flu shots, and his promotion of chelation therapy for atherosclerosis will raise conventional eyebrows. Less controversial and quite sensible is his advice on selecting doctors and hospitals, working with one's doctor and taking charge of one's own health. (Aug.)