The Body Clock Guide to Better Health: How to Use Your Body's Natural Clock to Fight Illness and Achieve Maximum Health

A leading authority in the field of ""chronotherapy""--adjusting medical treatment to align with the body's natural clock--Smolensky starts with an overview of how people's circadian rhythms affect their health and then explains treatments for a variety of ailments. Though still not fully understood or recognized by many in the medical profession, chronomedicine is important, the authors argue, for several reasons, among them: illness symptoms can vary by time of day, and the hour of day can affect diagnosis and treatment. For example, blood pressure increases in the morning; that's why there are more fatal heart attacks and strokes in the morning than at any other time of day. Similarly, different cancer treatments have been shown to be more effective if they're given at a particular time of day. The sections on specific health problems (such as headaches, peptic ulcers and high blood pressure) are clear and concise; readers can walk away with steps to modify their diet and medicine regimen. Though Smolensky's book contains many digressions into other kinds of body rhythms, such as menstrual cycles, his guide makes a competent introduction to an intriguing new field of health. (June)