cover image Healthy Joints for Life: An Orthopedic Surgeon’s Proven Plan to Reduce Pain and Inflammation, Avoid Surgery and Get Moving Again

Healthy Joints for Life: An Orthopedic Surgeon’s Proven Plan to Reduce Pain and Inflammation, Avoid Surgery and Get Moving Again

Richard Diana, M.D. Harlequin, $17.95 trade paper (352p) ISBN 978-0-373-89270-9

Orthopedic surgeon Diana, a former running back for the Miami Dolphins, explains the science behind joint inflammation and what can go wrong in the knee and other joints due to injury, impact, or overuse. According to Diana, when the inflammation cycle is halted via a nonsurgical, drug-free treatment plan (diet, nutritional supplements, and exercise), patients can recover and prevent pain and further degradation of joints. With clearly rendered illustrations throughout and a straightforward, engaging narrative enlivened by stories from his football career, medical training, and current surgical practice, Diana ably presents the basics of joint physiology, as well as explaining the role of inflammation. He offers “The Eleven Nutritional Commandments for Joint Health” as well as: lists of high-fiber, low-fat, and low-sugar foods that reduce pain flare-ups; tables of vitamin and mineral supplements that bolster joint health; and suggested exercises. The second half details “The Healthy Joints for Life Program,” an eight-week diet and exercise regimen. Each of the eight chapters aims to help readers eat properly, gain strength and range of movement, and eradicate inflammation. Boxes and sidebars with anecdotes, facts, and charts abound. Male readers especially will find Diana’s conversational tone, sports analogies, and guy-to-guy approach as appealing as his solid program. Agent: Faith Hamlin, Sanford Greenburger Associates. (Feb.)