Ray’s Bookshelf: Books, Oprah Missed — Health and Wellness — Mirage of Health — Utopias, Progress, and Biological Change
This book didn’t make my top ten list easily. In fact every time I went through my faves, I kept discarding it. But no mater how often I scratched the name off my list, or backspaced through it, somehow, I just couldn’t remove it from my mind. So to settle the debate I carefully read Mirage of Heath – Utopias, Progress, and Biological Change, by Rene Dubos, for the third time.
Here is the surprising result of the re-read: while I leaned towards dumping it, once again, somehow I just couldn’t remove the 1959 work from my mind! Realizing that a fourth read would not change anything I decided to place it firmly on my list once and for all. Before you gloss over this review or decide that it must have just squeaked by, I have to confess that it is in my top five.
Read on and you will discover why I rank it so highly and why I vacillated so vehemently concerning its value.
Don’t for a minute think that my decisions regarding inclusion to my list are pell-mell. My criteria are actually quite structured. When choosing my top ten health books, I ask myself questions like… “Does it advance mankind?” “Is the particular author the only one who could pull off writing the book?” “Is the content timeless, or at least of historical importance?” “Does the author promote my worldview?” (Hey, it’s my list!) “Can an interested layperson read it?” and finally, “Do the health and wellness principles discussed in the book actually promote health and wellness?”
Rene Dubos wrote extensively about mankind’s dilemma regarding health issues. He was without question a brilliant medical researcher, a keen observer of cause and effect, and consistently made accurate conclusions. Hindsight continues to validate his work and his contribution to meaningful alterations of our views on health and the environment, are enormous.
So, what’s the problem? Dubos doesn’t promote my worldview. He did when I first read this book in the early 1980’s, but I’ve changed, a lot.
Not to excuse him (or me for that matter), the evidence has been convincing since creation 1, but he did die in 1982 and lived and wrote at a time when science was…young and foolish. Up to that era, all of *us science types operated under a paradigm that was not being questioned by those who mattered and ensured a bias so strong that even quality empirical data which lead to impeccable conclusions still resulted in erroneous assumptios. Dubos’ only academic failing was one that a century of scientist fell for…Darwin’s theory of evolution.
The history is clear on this topic. Nineteenth Century scientists were in such a hurry to operate in a pure scientific vacuum, one devoid of religion, they embraced a theory which was so porous that nonsense quickly filled the vacuum they sought. Continuing the irony, Darwinian Evolution is as much a faith based worldview as any religion!
Interestingly, Dubos speaks to this, in his 1972 work, On Being Human.
Religion and science … constitute deep-rooted and ancient efforts to find richer experience and deeper meaning than are found in the ordinary biological and social satisfactions. As pointed out by Whitehead, religion and science have similar origins and are evolving toward similar goals.
Throughout Mirage of Health, Dubos observes and recounts multiple examples of evolution. At times he seems an apologist, with his numerous citations of evolution, implying Evolution. As with all such apologist, he never goes beyond sighting examples of variation within a particular species. In no way is variation (micro-evolution) controversial, and in no way does it support Darwinian Evolution. Causing one of the “proofs” to become one of it’s many flaws.
With powerful truths like, “The touchstone of a scientific theory is its power to predict natural phenomena…” one has to wonder what doctrine compels him to add, in the same sentience, “…evolutionary theories can rarely be put to this test because most biological processes evolve so slowly.” Perhaps the best answer is found in the Bible, “No one can serve two masters.” 2
Personal philosophy, however, is not enough to discount Dubos. His dispassionate reporting of medical history is astute. Demonstrations of man interacting within his environment are thoughtful and provocative, and it’s easy to see the genesis for his later work in this field. Furthermore, nothing matches his accounts of contributory causation… they are sublime.
This book is a gift for anybody craving a perspective of wellness. It includes; reckoning the past, analyzing the present, and projecting into the future. Dubos speaks of Pasteur who “pointed out…the response of the infected individual [is] determined by his heredity endowment, his state of nutrition, his environment including the climate, and even his mental state.” Yet, he captures in a volume the intricacies behind such a statement. It is these intricacies that are so easily lost to a modern medical marketplace stymied by ignorance and moved by sound bites. Mirage of Heath does not let us forget. That is why I adore this book.
*I’m not suggesting that I was ever in Dubos league. As a science major in college, I wouldn’t have been worthy to sterilize his Petri dishes!
Ray’s Bookshelf: Books, Oprah Missed — Health and Wellness — The Power of Focus
What do you do when YOU have this problem?
Let’s just say you’ve got a terrific idea for a book. Over the years you’ve carefully observed and meticulously analyzed people. You’ve seen again and again how the choices people make determine whether they fail or succeed. In that time you’ve compiled loads of wisdom (your own, the Bible and centuries of other sources) and you are confident that you know what works and what doesn’t.
As a matter of fact you’ve even developed a successful, but little known consulting business around the conclusions of this excellent material. Actually, everything is in place and it’s ready to send to the publisher. But wait! You know with a little effort anybody can sell a thousand books, but how much better a hundred thousand or even a million? Think of it. A million readers learning, processing and implementing the great stuff you’ve got to share!
Yeah, that would be great, but not likely. Sure, Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen sold tens of million’s Chicken Soup for the Soul…books, but a book for *business people? No, that will not sell tens of millions, let alone tens of thousands. In spite of the excellent content, the book is doomed to receive moderate success and quickly fall into obscurity. Certainly most authors settle for that, especially with their first attempt. What would you do?
Yep, that’s what I’d do too, but not Les Hewitt. While he did compose a straight forward book with valuable insight, he also had the marketing foresight to share The Power of Focus credits/rights with…who else…the guys that know how to sell millions of books, Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen. Just so it doesn’t appear to be a big-name-only-grab, they each added a token amount of their own stuff and some spicy comments. Fortunately, not enough to detract from Les’s fine work. (My last implication ensures I’ll never sell a million of anything, at least not with the help of the Chicken Soup guys…**)
Okay, obviously I like The Power of Focus. I believe Les sold many more copies by hooking up with the big names and that means he has benefited way more people with this great book. That said; it is clear that this book is his baby and I’m sorry that he takes a third place on the author list.
As for its business category? I don’t know. Perhaps that’s another marketing strategy. Books which show people how to make more money have always done well. However, as I’ve already suggested, this book would be more properly placed into “Health and Wellness”. Certainly there is enough economic wisdom to advance anyone who has ever dealt with a spreadsheet, but mostly the author illustrates the importance of wellness principles. Will it improve business, or income, or employee relations? Yes. But more than that, he diagrams a formula to improve people’s life experience.
That doesn’t happen in a vacuum and he knows it. He makes it quite clear (front cover excluded) that when we improve wellbeing we rise up every dimension life has to offer. He handles the crossover from business to wellness easily. “To be truly rich includes not only financial freedom, but developing rich meaningful relationships, enriching your health, and enjoying a rich balance between your career and your personal life.” There is even a section on identifying and avoiding toxic people! That alone can improve most people’s health and wellbeing. But here is a little secret. Those things that work to help a person…work to help a person. That is what Les has set out to do, help people. Mission accomplished!
Now I know what you are thinking? Question: “Will Ray’s Bookshelf ever double up and put The Power of Focus into the category “Business and Finance?” Answer: “I’ll think about it.”
Click here to check out The Power of Focus website
*don’t get hung up on the category. This is really a work detailing life application. It is all about health and wellness.
**Personal note to Jack and Mark: “Respectfully, I hope you take no offense. There is this character trait I have that compels me to, ‘call it as I see it.’ Mostly, now I’m bored with your Chicken – Soup stuff (and I think I use a lot of clichés. How about that?). Mark, your motivation work is motivational and I’d like it even like it better if you’d get off the New Age rhetoric. If you don’t watch out you’ll actually start believing that tripe.” (There I go again. Should I clarify my clarification? Nah.)
Ray’s Bookshelf: Books, Oprah Missed — Health and Wellness — The Maker’s Diet
The Maker’s Diet by Jordan S. Rubin
Here is why this book is on my bookshelf. No, I don’t agree with all he says, but within the pages of The Maker’s Diet, there exists a wisdom that has been totally overlooked by our popular culture and while there are many people “crying in the wilderness” Dr. Rubin stands out.
Imagine a bus wildly (Mad Max style) speeding along on an erratic, careening course. Now the ride gets even more wild — you’re a passenger! Just about everybody you know is in the bus too: your mom, dad, kids, friends…even neighbors. Actually, packed into this imaginary bus, is just about everyone from all the industrialized nations on the earth. Can it get any crazier? You bet.
The bus is not equipped with rear view mirrors, the windows are fogged up, the music is deafening and the man behind the wheel is more interested in collecting money than driving. In order to cope with the chaos, you do what everybody else does — hide your head and hang on.
One last item to clarify my illustration…the license plate reads SAD, the acronym for Standard American Diet. This “bus ride” is crazy and destructive. Commercial greed, consumer convenience and ignorance all mixed up provide the high octane fuel keeping the SAD bus going. Day after day this vehicle leaves a wake of tremendous horror. Both public and personal devastation results from its recklessness. Fortunately, every so often someone sticks their head out the window and takes an honest look around. They become troubled by where they have been. Concerned by where they are, and terrified by where they are headed. There is only one choice for such an individual — jump out!
Jordan Rubin is one of those individuals. A brush with a near fatal illness made him jump off that crazy bus. Now, he is heading in a new direction. It’s working for him and he thinks it will work for you too. He explains, “My mission in life since my recovery is to help people who are sick regain their health and to help the healthy flourish even more.” If you are ready to stick your head out the window and take an honest look around, you owe it to yourself to read The Maker’s Diet.
Ray’s Bookshelf: Books, Oprah Missed — Health and Wellness — Holy Bible
Oprah has proven that having a book list is trendy, so I’m going to share with you some of the books on my shelf. I’ll call it, “Ray’s Bookshelf: Books, Oprah Missed” and I’ll begin by giving you the Top Ten in the Health and Wellness category.
As you read about my list, you may be surprised to see some very old titles. Truly golden knowledge transcends time, and I guarantee that, while a statistic may be a bit antiquated, the premise is still apropos. Also, you will see that my list includes a couple books that will never be found in anybody else’s “Health and Wellness” list. With these, you will just have to trust me and read them for yourself…after you experience the read, I believe you will agree with me that the major book sellers should include them in this category.
The Bible: Well actually, this is one book that Oprah and I share on our shelf, although, I cannot be certain as to why.
To some people the Bible appears to be a collection of 66 books, written by 44 authors over a period of about 1500 years. Okay, that’s pretty significant and consequential by itself. Now, combine that with the supernatural phenomenon that the Bible is the Word of God written through men who were inspired directly by the all powerful, all knowing and perfect creator of the universe. Finally, recognize that there are only three possible ways to understand God more completely:
Accepted in faith, we’ve really got a tremendous collection of what God wants us to understand and that knowledge will comfort and bless you all the days of your life.
Stay tuned for my next book.
Hint: It will change the way you look at what you eat.
