Own Your Health: Choosing the Best from Alternative and Conventional Medicine »

Roanne Weisman is an award-winning writer specializing in science, medicine and health care. Her clients include Harvard Medical School hospitals and many other major Boston universities. She is principal of Words That Work, a communications consulting company that provides writing services to medical, academic and corporate clients. She is based in Newton, Massachusetts.

Brian Berman, M.D. is founder and director of the Complementary Medicine Program at the University of Maryland, the first university-based center of its kind in the U.S. focusing on research. He is professor of family medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, and has trained extensively in complementary therapies. He is principal investigator of a National Institutes of Health (NIH) center grant for the study of alternative medicine in the treatment of pain. In addition to publishing widely, Berman also helped establish and now directs the Complementary Medicine Field of the International Cochrane Collaboration, an organization dedicated to evaluating all medical practices.

Everyone wants good health, but most people are confused about the best ways to achieve it.

Alongside the miracles of conventional medicine are problems: side effects of drugs and chemotherapy; harried doctors juggling too many patients; too much emphasis on surgery and pills and not enough attention to the emotional and spiritual sides of people.

So millions of people are turning to alternative methods such as acupuncture, herbs, massage and yoga. But what works? Which ones are safe? What do you tell your doctor? How can you combine alternatives with conventional care?

Own Your Health will help you navigate the confusing array of choices so that you can take responsibility for your health and find your own power to heal. Authors Roanne Weisman and Dr. Brian Berman give you valuable health information, advice and the latest research evidence from more than a hundred interviews with experts and alternative practitioners.

Did you know, for example, that soy may diminish pain; black cohosh can help with hot flashes; tai chi helps reduce falls in the elderly; you must never take certain herbs if you are taking an anticoagulant?

You will also read moving stories of people who combined alternative and conventional medicine to:

• overcome pain


• recover from heart disease


• live more easily with chronic illness


• find effective, gentle treatments for childhood ear infections, allergies stomach upsets and asthma


• tolerate chemotherapy for cancer


• age gracefully with optimism and good health


• manage anxiety and stress


• get more energy, lose weight, stop smoking, and enjoy life more

This indispensable resource is one that your family will refer to again and again, and will provide you with the knowledge to take charge of your health.

What People Are Saying About Own Your Health . . .

"I recommend this book to all people who want to know how to navigate the confusing world of alternative medicine and choose sensible therapies that work. Whether you intend to use alternative therapies on their own or to integrate them with conventional medicine, the information in Own Your Health can guide you to making the right decisions."

-Andrew Weil, M.D., author, 8 Weeks to Optimum Health

"Own Your Health is truly a landmark book in integrative medicine. It combines moving, personal stories with the latest scientific research in alternative medicine. Most importantly, Dr. Brian Berman is one of the few international authorities with the depth of both clinical and research experience to accomplish this task. With this practical guide, he and Ms. Weisman have elegantly articulated the potency of individual empowerment and informed choice as the cornerstone of health and healing."

-Kenneth R. Pelletier, Ph.D., M.D. (hc), clinical professor of medicine, University of Arizona and University of Maryland Schools of Medicine; former director, NIH Complementary and Alternative Medicine Program at Stanford School of Medicine; author, The Best Alternative Medicine: What Works, What Does Not

"A responsible book for getting the best out of medicine. Inspiring yet grounded in science, Own Your Health is for everyone."

-Wayne B. Jonas, M.D., director, Samueli Institute; former director, Office of Alternative Medicine, National Institutes of Health; coeditor, Essentials of Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Publishers Weekly

This solid reference book came as a result of alternative treatments that helped Weisman, a medical writer, recover after suffering a debilitating stroke. Although the doctors offered her some solutions, she attributes most of her recovery to using a variety of exercise and massage techniques as well as Chinese medicine. Drawing on her own experience, Weisman presents a variety of case histories along with the available treatments, conventional and otherwise. Among the illnesses discussed are cancer, cardiovascular illness, spinal cord injuries and more. Included are comments from the patient along with detailed descriptions of the types of treatments. Particularly helpful are the shaded boxes that offer clear assessments of both conventional and complementary treatments. For more skeptical readers, there are sections called "What's the Evidence?" that discuss the research on a particular topic. The book also includes useful appendices of resources including organizations, books and Web sites on complementary medicine. For readers interested in pursuing alternative treatments, this is a first-rate guide. (Mar.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.