Chapter 6. Personal Wills: Drugs, Diets, and Devices

When we feel great, we take our health for granted. We don’t appreciate our bodies or our well-being until we’re injured, ill, or incapacitated. That’s when our heads start spinning. We want to know what we can do—right now—to get well soon. That’s where this chapter comes in. From experimental treatments to dietary changes, we give you the information you need to improve your prognosis.

Let’s start with how your doctor knows what he or she knows. It’s not by simply reading books written by older doctors or having some direct communication with the Deity (no, M.D. does not stand for Medical Divinity). The word “doctor” originally meant “teacher.” Teachers learn by understanding research. Medical ...

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