Mad Cow Disease (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy)

A gripping biological detective story that traces the history of mad cow disease and related infectious brain diseases of livestock and people. The book also illustrates dramatically how scientific progress unfolds as researchers in various countries pursue new ideas and leads in order to identify the cause of and relationship between these enigmatic diseases.

You can never have too many vitamins, until they kill you. Eat meat, but avoid beef, chicken, turkey, and pork. Packaged foods are more efficiently preserved than they were 100 years ago--but should we actually eat the stuff? Consumers are besieged with conflicting messages about food and nutrition, making it difficult for the average customer to know what to believe. Is anything safe at McDonald's? Do carbohydrates cause obesity? This provocative new resource explores 15 common controversies in the field of food and nutrition.

The European Union is becoming increasingly involved in health policy. The Treaties of Maastricht and Amsterdam require the EU to consider health issues in all that it does. Even though the Union has no direct involvement in the delivery of health services, its range of responsibilities, including the ramifications for health of the Single European Market, make it a key player. This is the first major academic book solely devoted to EU health and health-related policy.

The story of viruses and the story of humanity have been intertwined since the dawn of history. The first small cities formed not only the cradle of civilization, but the spawning ground for the earliest viral epidemics, the first opportunity for viruses to find a home in the human herd. This is a story of fear and ignorance, as everything from demons and the wrath of the gods to minority groups have been blamed for epidemics from smallpox to yellow fever to AIDS. It is a story of grief and heartbreak, as hundreds of thousands, sometimes millions, are wiped out in a single year. And it is a story of great bravery and sacrifice, as doctors and nurses put themselves in harm's way to combat yellow fever in Memphis and Ebola in Zaire, and as researchers risk their own lives to test theories of vaccines and the transmission of disease. Now, in Viruses, Plagues, and History, Michael B. A. Oldstone tells all these stories as he illuminates the history of the devastating diseases that have tormented humanity. Oldstone focuses his tale on a few of the most famous viruses humanity has battled, beginning with some we have effectively defeated, such as smallpox, polio, and measles. Nearly 300 million people were killed by smallpox in this century alone -- more than were killed in all the wars of the twentieth century combined. The author presents a vivid account of the long campaign against the virus, the insightful work of Edward Jenner, who created the smallpox vaccine from cowpox virus in 1796, and the monumental efforts of D. A. Henderson and an army of W.H.O. health care workers to finally eradicate smallpox. The smallpox virus remains the only organism that we have deliberately pushed to complete extinction in the wild. Oldstone then describes the fascinating viruses that have captured headlines in more recent years: Ebola and other hemorrhagic fevers, which literally turn their victims' organs to a bloody pulp; the Hantavirus outbreaks in the southwestern United States and elsewhere; mad cow disease, a frightening illness made worse by government mishandling and secrecy; and, of course, AIDS, often called "the plague of our time." And he tells us of the many scientists watching and waiting even now for the next great plague, monitoring influenza strains to see whether the deadly variant from 1918 -- a viral strain that killed over 20 million people in 1918-1919, more than twice the military and civilian casualties of the First World War -- will make a comeback. Viruses have enormous power. They have wiped out cities, brought down dynasties, and helped destroy civilizations. But, as Michael Oldstone reveals, scientific research has given us the power to tame many of these viruses as well. Viruses, Plagues, and History shows us the panorama of humanity's long-standing conflict with our unseen viral enemies, from our successes to our continuing struggles. Oldstone's book is a vivid history of a fascinating field, and a highly reliable dispatch from a worker on the frontiers of this ongoing campaign.

From killer hamburgers to contaminated strawberries, the dangers of food have been placed squarely in the public eye. Now Fox provides the facts behind the frenzy in an accessible guide to foodborne illness.

Robert Klitzman was 21 years old when he was invited by the Nobel prize-winning scientist Dr. Carleton Gajdusek to conduct original research among the Stone-Age Fore group in Papua New Guinea whose ritual cannibalism had infected them with Kuru, an incurable disease akin to Mad Cow Disease. The adventure he embarked on would change his life, and provide keys to understanding Mad Cow Disease, potentially the world's next major deadly epidemic.

Battling the dense primordial rain forests penetrated by few outsiders before him, Klitzman tracked down Fore patients and family members, overcoming their suspicions and superstitions so that he could document the progress and patterns of Kuru. Confronting cultural gaps and his own limitations, he came away with a deeper understanding of human nature. His work with the Fore trained the future doctor in ways that would far surpass medical school.

At once a gripping medical mystery, an exotic travelogue, and a stirring coming-of-age story, The Trembling Mountain is a powerful first-hand account of life on the frontiers of science.