Product Description

The orthomolecular concept is a simple one, using optimal nutrition to combat, heal and prevent physical and mental illness. Orthomolecular nutrition is based on diets and food supplements of essential vitamins and minerals specifically selected to solve individual problems and needs. Its overall aim is promoting optimal health and longevity for everyone. In this expanded, updated and revised edition, the author discusses orthomolecular medicine and treatment with case histories. It explains the functions of major nutrients, summarizes new research and lays out a comprehensive anti-stress supplement program - to show the way to a longer, healthier life.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #160823 in Books
• Published on: 1998-10-11
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780879836337
• BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed
• Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

About the Author
McGraw-Hill authors represent the leading experts in their fields and are dedicated to improving the lives, careers, and interests of readers worldwide

Customer Reviews

Classic on vitamin megadosing
This book is based on the science and art of healing with nutrition therapy. Yes, while it can be argued that if you eat properly you don't need supplements; very few people have a perfect diet. He believes that what we put in our mouth is what creates our health or lack of, including mental health.

His average anti-stress vitamin formula
B1 - between 100 and 300 mg.
Niacin B3 - between 3,000 mg.-6,000 people with high cholesterol should take the nicotinic acid form.
Pantothenic acid - 100 mg. to 300 mg.
Vitamin C - 3,000 mg. to 6,000 mg.
Vitamin E - 200 I.U. to 800 I.U.
Vitamin A & D - together in 3 to 9 cod liver oil capsules
Calcium & magnesium - together in 3 to 6 dolomite tablets
Zinc - 30 mg. to 60 mg.

He goes through the following vitamins A, B, C and D. For instance, Vitamin C - 8 grams a day is required to prevent colds. Every person suffers from a deficiency, sort of a subclinical scurvy, because the human body does not manufacture it. With scurvy, the blood vessels become weak, and fluid leaks from them into the skin and tissues. The body manufactures cholesterol to plug the leaks and it is deposited onto the walls of the vessels which initiates arteriosclerosis. This is one of the main factors contributing to cardiovascular disease including strokes and coronary disease.

He also talks a lot about zinc and manganese. For instance, in studies with rats and mice zinc insufficiency produced severe skin lesions similar to psoriasis; delayed wound healing; interrupted reproduction; and diminished learning capacity. Human skin holds about 20% of all the body's zinc. Zinc causes skin to be elastic, and without it there will be stretch marks all over the body. Hair and nails won't grow either, and nails will be brittle with white spots. The hair may loose pigment, and skin lesions may appear. Doctors often give zinc after burns, trauma and surgery as it increases the rate of healing.

This is a classic book on supplementing with megadoses of vitamin and minerals. It is backed up with good research and case studies. I recommend that anyone who is in the natural health field read it.

Comprehensive review of vitamins and minerals
It is frustrating that the medical profession, in its ignorance, arrogance, and smugness, looks down on "megavitamin" therapy. Vitamins were placed here by the creator(s), to keep us healthy. The drugs "pushed" by MDs were created by Frankenstein in a lab, and frankly, Frankenstein barely understood one tenth of what he was doing, which explains all those side effects.

To give you a taste of this useful book, Vitamin B3 (niacin or niacinamide) is far more important and necessary than we thought it was. The author goes into detail explaining the things that B3 can do for us.

The section on pyroluriacs is new to me, and fascinating. If you don't know what a pyroluriac is, you may want to find out here. It is a condition verifiable by scientific testing, and the symptoms are correctable using various nutrients.

This book gives a very good explanation of so many vitamins and minerals. Read it, and you will be sure to get some ideas for yourself.

Good reading for laypeople, disappointing for scientists
There are two kinds of books that deal with bio-medical issues: those that have reputable scientific references located within the book, and those that don't. This book does not. If this book had the hundreds of journal articles needed to back up Dr. Hoffer's claims, I would have given it a 4 or 5 star rating. The bottom line is that if a scientific book does not have any references, they may as well be telling you that the world is flat. Time and time again Dr. Hoffer says that he has evidence about the effectiveness of this vitamin or that. Put in the references, Dr. Hoffer!

Part of the book is good---it recommends a balanced diet with no processed foods. This mantra reminds of the conversation I once had with a German exchange student in my laboratory. I was walking by him and his German ladyfriend, who was smoking, and I joked "Hey, how come you Germans smoke and drink, but still live as long as us Americans do?" Well, the German student thought long and hard about my "joke", and came up with an answer. He said that in Europe, there are hardly any fast-food restaurants and no supermarkets. All food is much more fresh and has a much shorter shelf life, and since its located in small stores, the inventory is quickly rotated. So his conclusion is that the processed foods shortened the American life span to that of Germans, who smoke and drink much more than we do. In other words, if someone does not smoke, drink, or eat processed foods, they should live to at least 90 years old, not 75.

Some other parts of the book are not very good. Dr. Hoffer claims that all vitamins are safe---they are not!!! He recommends megadosing with vitamins B3, B6, and vitamin C. Of these three vitamins, only C is safe to megadose with. B3 megadosing can cause liver damage and panic attacks, and if someone is also on psychiatric medication, they could die from the serotonin syndrome, the same syndrome that kills some users of the illegal drug Extasy. B6 may also cause the serotonin syndrome if mixed with psychiatric medication, and even by itself, megadosing with B6 can produce permanent peripheral nerve damage. For a more detailed analysis of vitamin side effects, the book The Failures of American Medicine is an excellent reference.