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mynameisstu's review against another edition
3.0
Pretty dry but fascinating at the same time. Probably a really good book to have on your bedside table and read snippets from that seem like they'd be relevant to you. Not so great as an audiobook.
bellevue's review against another edition
3.0
While an interesting subject, the writing was very dry and did not seem to flow well.
author_d_r_oestreicher's review against another edition
3.0
Linus Pauling won the Nobel Prize and went on to many other fields, notably promoting Vitamin C as a miracle drug. He demonstrated that excellent work in one field does not guarantee the same success in another. The Telomere Effect by Blackburn and Epel is another example of a Nobel Prize winner expanding beyond their field of expertise. I imagine this book will join Linus Pauling's Vitamin C books-distinguished author, undistinguished book.
If you collect self-help books, you might enjoy this rehash of familiar advice to eat healthy, exercise, and avoid stress.
For more: http://1book42day.blogspot.com/2017/11/the-telomere-effect-by-blackburn-and.html
If you collect self-help books, you might enjoy this rehash of familiar advice to eat healthy, exercise, and avoid stress.
For more: http://1book42day.blogspot.com/2017/11/the-telomere-effect-by-blackburn-and.html
kitkat2500's review
3.0
Interesting angle on the factors that drive a healthy body & mind. It’s not really “revolutionary” as there are no surprises in this book (eat healthy, stay active, get enough sleep, manage your stress...). But it’s useful to understand the cellular health perspective.
rick2's review
3.0
It’s alright. Lot of fluff.
Seems like the first half of the book was just telling you that they’re going to drop some knowledge bombs in the second half. And the info ultimately was good but could have been condensed down significantly.
Most of the advice comes down to “be healthier and reduce your stress levels so that you don’t run through your telomeres like Leo DiCaprio going through girlfriends”
Most of the “healthier“ advice is just pretty standard diet, sugar, exercise, stress advice. I feel like I could’ve read a good blog post with the same info and it would’ve saved me several hours.
Seems like the first half of the book was just telling you that they’re going to drop some knowledge bombs in the second half. And the info ultimately was good but could have been condensed down significantly.
Most of the advice comes down to “be healthier and reduce your stress levels so that you don’t run through your telomeres like Leo DiCaprio going through girlfriends”
Most of the “healthier“ advice is just pretty standard diet, sugar, exercise, stress advice. I feel like I could’ve read a good blog post with the same info and it would’ve saved me several hours.
reinhardt's review against another edition
4.0
How our lifestyle gets into our cells: Telomeres. Telomeres are the repeating bits at the end of our DNA that protect the DNA during replications. The shorter our telomeres, the older our cells. Older cells don’t work as effectively for thing like fighting off disease.
Stress also has a notable impact on telomere length. More stress, shorter telomeres. Or at least more negative impacts of stressful situations, the shorter the telomeres. Our attitude to stress is important. Seeing the situation as a challenge instead of a threat protects our telomeres.
Pessimism, especially hostile pessimism has a devastating effect on our telomeres.
Telomeres also show our activity level. Endurance exercise and interval training both lengthen telomeres, and improve our immune system and longevity.
Healthy eating and good sleep also help our telomeres.
And our telomere length at birth is directly related to our parents, especially mothers telomere length when we were conceived. The mental state and health state of parents have a direct, permanent impact on a child.
The book summarizes a large number of studies, a good chunk will turn out to be non-replicable, but still a lot of interesting information here.
A downside is the book is a bit repetitive and does get a bit far off track on techniques for reducing stress, but worth reading.
Stress also has a notable impact on telomere length. More stress, shorter telomeres. Or at least more negative impacts of stressful situations, the shorter the telomeres. Our attitude to stress is important. Seeing the situation as a challenge instead of a threat protects our telomeres.
Pessimism, especially hostile pessimism has a devastating effect on our telomeres.
Telomeres also show our activity level. Endurance exercise and interval training both lengthen telomeres, and improve our immune system and longevity.
Healthy eating and good sleep also help our telomeres.
And our telomere length at birth is directly related to our parents, especially mothers telomere length when we were conceived. The mental state and health state of parents have a direct, permanent impact on a child.
The book summarizes a large number of studies, a good chunk will turn out to be non-replicable, but still a lot of interesting information here.
A downside is the book is a bit repetitive and does get a bit far off track on techniques for reducing stress, but worth reading.