Second Thought

Looking again at news and commentary

Ellen Goodman

The Los Angeles Times

By syndicated columnist Ellen Goodman from The Los Angeles Times, May 26, 1987

"... I think it has become impossible for Americans to keep their health IQ updated. We are all suffering from an information glut, research overload. But worse, we have accumulated a midriff bulge of confusing and contradictory health advice.

". . . The way I read it, what's good for the bones is probably bad for the arteries. What's good for the heart is probably bad for the back. And just reading this news raises everybody's stress level, which is dangerous in itself and must be reduced by exercise. . . .

"This cacophony of reports from researchers has turned personal health into a modern soap opera. ('General Outpatient'? 'As the Body Turns'?) Something new comes up every week. It's enough to make anyone long for the days of the four basic food groups.

"This is not just the result of a research boom. It's an offshoot of living in the era of subspecialties. . . .

"As the last generalists, we, the owners of whole bodies, are supposed to think of ourselves as nothing more than the sum of parts and potential diseases to be taken care of with separate regimens. . ."

Editors' comment: Humorists can sometimes get to the point while the rest of society is taking the long way around!

"Is civilization only a higher form of idolatry, that man should bow down to a flesh-brush, to flannels, to baths, diet, exercise, and air?" Mary Baker Eddy once asked. "Nothing save divine power is capable of doing so much for man as he can do for himself," she concluded in the chapter "Physiology" in Science and Health.

This column will appear from time to time, offering a second opportunity to think about today's news and commentary—in the context of Christian Science.

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