A review by krismarley
Do You Believe in Magic?: The Sense and Nonsense of Alternative Medicine by Paul A. Offit

4.0

Probably a four star book but I'm giving it a bonus star for dedicating 2 full pages to what an idiot Indiana's own Dan Burton is. I could probably write a ten page essay on my personal experiences related to Do You Believe in Magic, but it's summer and who wants to write that let alone read that. As someone who has dealt with rheumatoid arthritis for over fifteen years, I needed this book. It helped me reconcile a lot of my conflicted thinking. I've let media and individuals trick me into believing that I should have been pursuing "alternative" medicine since the beginning when Offit repeatedly reminds us that there are two types of medicine: medicine that works and medicine that doesn't. I appreciate that Offit doesn't touch food based therapies though I'm pretty sure he'd wary of a gluten free or casein free diet acting as a panacea for any given ailment. While I, too, am wary of elimination diets performing miracles, I remain a steadfast advocate on the powers of a plant-based diet for everyone!