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Media Reviews
Reviews by Keila Swan & Jackie Kosednar
How We Know What We Know About
Our Changing Climate
Lynne Cherry and Gary Braasch
(Dawn Publications, 2008; hard cover, $18.95; see
www.dawnpub.com for more.)
In today’s busy, confusing world of too much media information
(which doesn’t always mean good information), how can we know
anything at all? It’s overwhelming, not to mention downright
scary at times. Take global warming, for example. Is it even
real?
Although this book is intended for the 9 to 12 year old group, I
also found it to be a refreshing, easy to understand (yet not
overly simplified) view on what’s really going on with changes
in our environment. The book is divided into four sections: (1)
where we find clues about climate changes; (2) how to fit those
clues together; (3) what we can do about what we find; and (4)
resources. With helpful color photos, the authors look at
different ways in which humans can measure changes in the
environment — from butterfly migration to habitats in the
tropical rain forest; from shifting coastlines and rising seas
to melting glaciers. The book draws upon the Gaia hypothesis,
which views all aspects of nature and living beings as one
interconnected whole. Because humans have an important role to
play and must looker deeper at our own responsibility for our
earth, the authors include a very good section on what we can do
to help — especially young adults as ‘citizen scientists.’
This is not a doom and gloom book, but one that encourages a
balanced view of what is actually happening on our planet in
terms of changing climate patterns. I appreciated that the
authors ended on a positive note, emphasizing success stories of
what is possible. As they note, “...every voice
matters...together, many voices can make a big difference.” I
found this to be a helpful, encouraging book for students of all
ages.
~ Review by Keila Swan
Healing the New
Childhood Epidemics: Autism, ADHA, Asthma and Allergies
Kenneth Bock, MD, and Cameron Stauth
(Ballantine Books, 2007; soft cover; $16.00; see
www.ballantinebooks.com
for more.)
During the last two decades the incidence of autism, ADHD,
asthma and allergies in children has skyrocketed. Dr. Kenneth
Bock calls this the 4-A epidemic. In the last 20 years, autism
has increased from one in every 2,500 to 10,000 births to one in
every 150-166 births. ADD, as well as allergies, have increased
by 400 percent, and asthma by 300 percent. Not only that — most
kids with autism and ADHD also have numerous serious allergies.
This book is a must read for all parents and teachers who have
children with these problems, as well as for parents who want to
protect their children from these growing epidemics.
Dr. Bock and his colleagues have found that modern toxins,
nutritional deficiencies, metabolic imbalances, genetic
vulnerabilities, assaults on the immune system, and
gastrointestinal systems trigger most of the symptoms of the 4-A
disorders, often resulting in misdiagnosis and untold misery.
According to Bock, there have been five main catastrophic
changes in the last twenty years:
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ONE: Toxins have
proliferated — from water and air pollution to food pollution,
mostly due to added chemicals, hormones, antibiotics, and
preservatives. There are currently 87,000 toxic chemicals in
use. We dump four thousand tons of lead into the atmosphere
every year. |
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TWO: Our nutrition
has deteriorated. Busy households rely on fast foods and highly-
processed, nutrition-deficient foods. |
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THREE:
Vaccinations have increased. In 1976, children had 10 vaccines
before starting school; many children now receive up to 36
vaccinations by the time they are 18 months old. If the standard
medical program is followed, some of this vaccination begins the
moment a child is born. Vaccines and many medical drugs contain
mercury or aluminum as a preservative. |
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FOUR: Children
have an inability to process and detox these heavy metals and
other toxic substances. |
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FIVE: There is an
increase in emotional trauma that many children experience.
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For years medical
science has generally overlooked the connections among the 4-A
disorders and has considered autism medically untreatable and
incurable. Additionally, the medical community has limited ADHD
treatment to symptom suppression. Dr. Bock is an innovative
medical doctor who has studied this medical view and problem
extensively, and has found common connections in the cause of
these epidemics. In his practice he treats and dramatically
improves the children who come to him. With his biomedical
approach, he has been able to reverse many cases of autism as
well as bring children back to total health with his program.
I found this book to be packed full of information like an
encyclopedia, but easy to read. It is also full of dramatic,
true stories of parents and children that will warm your heart
and inspire you. It is definitely a book you will want all your
friends to read, so buy two copies.
~ Review by Jackie Kosednar
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