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The Health Dialectic
In the past five minutes you have done things that 99.9% of human beings have never done. You may have checked your phone, got in a car or gotten a snack from the fridge. Those are good things, but our biology is still suited to hunting and foraging on the African savannah. This book answers the question of how we can practically navigate modern spaces in a way that prevents disease and optimizes happiness.
Most people in modern societies are likely to die of one of a small number of diseases - heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease - that were practically nonexistent a century ago. How can we have gotten so sick so soon and what can we do to reverse the process? The answers may surprise you.
In addition to outlining the discrepancy between how we presently live and how we evolved to live, this book is also filled with practical tips to help you start living a happier and healthier life today.
Most people in modern societies are likely to die of one of a small number of diseases - heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease - that were practically nonexistent a century ago. How can we have gotten so sick so soon and what can we do to reverse the process? The answers may surprise you.
In addition to outlining the discrepancy between how we presently live and how we evolved to live, this book is also filled with practical tips to help you start living a happier and healthier life today.
60 pages, Paperback
Published October 1, 2021
4 people are currently reading
23 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
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October 15, 2021Sameer Dossani’s book combines health advice with a critique of the modern capitalist system, and it’s refreshing! His health advice is easy to understand and he has a great view of how also social support or loneliness affects our personal health and our ability to make healthy choices. This unique combination of perspectives makes this book stand out. His background as a social justice activist is particularly appealing to me – personal health is a personal choice, but its also what enables you to have maximum impact in the world. Whatever you fight for.
October 9, 2021
I am not someone who reads books on health and diet, given a combination of scepticism and ignorance in these matters. Sameer Dossani's book made me rethink many of my cliched ideas and gave me a way of thinking about diet and health. An original, well informed and personal book in many ways
October 15, 2021
I became very interested in Dossani's writing based on an essay of his called "Ecological Catastrophe, Capitalist Excess or Ongoing Colonialism?" written in 2019. It was exactly the wavelength that I have been on, and once on that wavelength it quickly becomes time to re-evaluate everything - the environmental crisis as per that essay, but also history, education, and of course - health. I was very interested to see how Dossani would map what I've called the "colonial determinist" world view onto a study of human health and specifically diet. He's also been very slowly and in a Hippocratic (do-no-harm) sort of way, experimenting with these ideas as a coach and in his own life. The basic prescriptions (Keto, Fasting, Muscle-building) are recommended by many others - what's different here is how Dossani gets to them, by way of historical argument (not quite paleo, though there are elements of paleo in here). What did colonialism do to our health? What can we do, short of overthrowing colonialism, to protect our health? Very few people are thinking along these lines - Dossani is one of them and you'll want to start your own study with this book.
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October 12, 2021This book is everything you want from your doctor but rarely get, and more. As an activist and intellectual, Sameer Dossani tackles the health issues of our day. First, readers get the low down on the slow death of noncommunicable diseases and personal choices framed in a political economic analysis so often missing from health literacy efforts. Then there are in-depth forays into root causes of this slow death based on extensive reading and synthesis of health and related studies we can only wish to review ourselves. In addition there is practical, evidence-based advice offered on solutions, including many we see flashing up in our newsfeeds and social media. The book ends with strategies to cope with the socio-cultural resistance we may face in doing things differently - a must in the current world historical moment where so much change is needed but is fiercly resisted. READ this book, even if your health is fine. In the hour (tops) you spend reading, you will inevitably come upon facts reinforcing your current choices or/and new things to investigate further.
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October 10, 2021This is a very interesting and informative book. I found it to be well written and easy to read. Great messages about the importance of mitigating hyperinsulinemia by limiting carbohydrates. This is a book that many readers will be able to relate to in their pursuit of health and healing from lifestyles that discourage meat and healthy fats in favour of low fat high carb vegan diets. A minor point to look into is causes of type 1 DM as many are born with it but it can also be acquired from a virus that destroys the pancreas as far as I know.
Overall an excellent read that will be beneficial for anyone wanting to improve their physical and emotional well being.
Overall an excellent read that will be beneficial for anyone wanting to improve their physical and emotional well being.
October 14, 2021
Interesting and accessible read for anyone keen to take part in the (Great) Health Dialectic, or looking to improve overall well-being by addressing the main health hazard of today: hyper-insulinemia. Easily digestible (pun intended!) and with a dry sense of humour, Sameer engages on a personal level with his readers and I look forward to seeing more of his work.
October 19, 2021
Great opening snapshot of how contemporary consumer culture shapes our habits and therefore health. Honing in on our sugar-and-carb addiction, the book provides some good pointers to ways out, including personal decarbonisation (as it were), exercise and fasting. Looking forward to more about the modern nexus of screens and dopamine, insulin and isolation. Interesting territory.
October 12, 2021
This book is easy to read and covers a few relevant topics by summarizing research/data with relatable anecdotes. It also provides some great tips on starting the journey towards a healthier lifestyle! Highly recommended!
October 12, 2021
This book came right on time for me, as I've had some challenges with my overall health linked to my diet. I learned a lot, and Sameer Dossani is an excellent writer.
October 21, 2021
Great book, Sameer! While doing the design of the book, I learnt a lot about the impact of modern living on our health and how we can combat that. Congrats!
November 3, 2021
A good introduction to the low carbohydrate diet as a way to optimal health. Simple and clear. Recommended for anyone who wants to understand this way of eating and why it is better than the traditionally recommended 'low fat' diets.
October 24, 2021
This short but content rich book was a worthwhile read. Sameer brings in a valuable anthropological lens in his analysis of the current health crisis caused by the modern way of living and proposes some actionable solutions. His approach is practical and non-dogmatic, but backed by cutting edge evidence from latest research. He gently offers viable suggestions and never prescribes extreme life style changes. This resonated deeply with me as I made similar life style changes in the last few years and reaped the benefits. I wish I had a concisely written book like this to guide me instead of the the painstaking trial and error method I had to follow along the way. This is an essential read for anyone who is aware of the health hazards posed by the current life style (worsened significantly by the home based work culture caused by the pandemic) and committed to make changes to strive for good health and improved quality of life. Kudos to the author for distilling a large body of knowledge in lucid prose.
November 13, 2021
THE HEALTH DIALECTICS an e-book by Sameer Dossani, an activist health coach is an amazing thought provoking work which critically examines the health issues, rightly, rejecting the theories and practices of the mainstream god fathers/mothers who control the health discourse presently. It is written for all those who have been failed by the profit greedy Corporate led solutions [I being one of such millions and millions]. Sameer growing up as a keen anthropologist has added refreshingly new dimensions and phraseology to the whole debate. This book goes beyond discussing technical aspects of the diseases and remedies raising important philosophical and normative aspects regarding the mental as well as physical health of humans.
The reading of this book is a refreshing experience as author is not didactic or packs the book with medical jargons but uses simple terms to outline the case for liberating human health from the shackles of capitalism. Author needs to be congratulated for producing a “readable and simple (but not simplistic)” work on the subject.
The book shares the historical fact that though “all humans throughout history have struggled with disease” and coped with these but the modern cultures treat humans “primarily as consumers and not as fully rounded human beings” with diverse needs. The author is absolutely truthful when points out that the modern capitalist culture has been successful in tapping into our basest instincts by stimulating certain hormonal responses with constant push to get us to spend our money. “Modern culture tends to pressure us to define ourselves through our job- what we do, how much we earn, and therefore what we can consume…When it comes to food, our biology is constantly being used against us”.
The book underlines many critical issues which have made us slaves of the profit mongers under the garb of healers.
Firstly, Processed foods full of carbohydrates take this to a whole new level. “Food laboratories design smells and tastes that border on irresistible. It’s important to understand that in this case irresistible is almost a literal truth. Just as a moth cannot resist the flame that will kill it, many of us cannot resist the carbohydrate-rich foods that we know are killing us (albeit more slowly than a moth attracted to a flame)”.
Secondly, it is through the total dependence on gadgets with blue-light. “Blue light disrupts our sleep patterns. As we never evolved to see blue light after dark and because we are diurnal creatures (meaning we’re active in the day time), the absence of blue light is one of the things that tells our bodies to begin to slow down in the evenings for our night time sleep. When we expose ourselves to blue light throughout the evening and even into the night time, we disrupt those sleep patterns.” It is not only sleeping which suffers, the worst part is that “for many of us, the screen replaces the meaningful human interaction with which humans evolved”.
Thirdly, rampant use of sugar based food. The list of eatables and drinks is endless. The manufacturers being the biggest rich Corporates on this earth. In the past, “When we did find sugar rich foods-berries, tropical fruit and honey- our bodies developed special mechanisms to store those calories for the inevitable lean season. This is why humans are pretty unique among primates in being able to store a lot of fat. During times of plenty we feast so that we can survive the inevitable famine by using our fat stores”. By becoming dependent on such products humans store high level of insulin [hyper-insulinemia] which is the driving factor behind rampant strokes, heart attacks, cancer and even dementia.
Sameer proves with facts that modernity under the hegemony of the Corporates is making us sick through its ‘solutions’. Solutions like crab and sugar restrictions, fasting and exercises provided in the book are simple but require commitment and discipline. My own experience with Sameer Dossani as health coach for last two years proves has been amazing. His advices contained in this book too have kept my weight, insulin and anxiety under control to a great extent.
I wish this book is made available to the students of medical colleges so that the future healers remain alert towards the actors who are using human misery for minting money.
The reading of this book is a refreshing experience as author is not didactic or packs the book with medical jargons but uses simple terms to outline the case for liberating human health from the shackles of capitalism. Author needs to be congratulated for producing a “readable and simple (but not simplistic)” work on the subject.
The book shares the historical fact that though “all humans throughout history have struggled with disease” and coped with these but the modern cultures treat humans “primarily as consumers and not as fully rounded human beings” with diverse needs. The author is absolutely truthful when points out that the modern capitalist culture has been successful in tapping into our basest instincts by stimulating certain hormonal responses with constant push to get us to spend our money. “Modern culture tends to pressure us to define ourselves through our job- what we do, how much we earn, and therefore what we can consume…When it comes to food, our biology is constantly being used against us”.
The book underlines many critical issues which have made us slaves of the profit mongers under the garb of healers.
Firstly, Processed foods full of carbohydrates take this to a whole new level. “Food laboratories design smells and tastes that border on irresistible. It’s important to understand that in this case irresistible is almost a literal truth. Just as a moth cannot resist the flame that will kill it, many of us cannot resist the carbohydrate-rich foods that we know are killing us (albeit more slowly than a moth attracted to a flame)”.
Secondly, it is through the total dependence on gadgets with blue-light. “Blue light disrupts our sleep patterns. As we never evolved to see blue light after dark and because we are diurnal creatures (meaning we’re active in the day time), the absence of blue light is one of the things that tells our bodies to begin to slow down in the evenings for our night time sleep. When we expose ourselves to blue light throughout the evening and even into the night time, we disrupt those sleep patterns.” It is not only sleeping which suffers, the worst part is that “for many of us, the screen replaces the meaningful human interaction with which humans evolved”.
Thirdly, rampant use of sugar based food. The list of eatables and drinks is endless. The manufacturers being the biggest rich Corporates on this earth. In the past, “When we did find sugar rich foods-berries, tropical fruit and honey- our bodies developed special mechanisms to store those calories for the inevitable lean season. This is why humans are pretty unique among primates in being able to store a lot of fat. During times of plenty we feast so that we can survive the inevitable famine by using our fat stores”. By becoming dependent on such products humans store high level of insulin [hyper-insulinemia] which is the driving factor behind rampant strokes, heart attacks, cancer and even dementia.
Sameer proves with facts that modernity under the hegemony of the Corporates is making us sick through its ‘solutions’. Solutions like crab and sugar restrictions, fasting and exercises provided in the book are simple but require commitment and discipline. My own experience with Sameer Dossani as health coach for last two years proves has been amazing. His advices contained in this book too have kept my weight, insulin and anxiety under control to a great extent.
I wish this book is made available to the students of medical colleges so that the future healers remain alert towards the actors who are using human misery for minting money.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews