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A New York Times BestsellerA rigorous, skeptical, deeply reported look at the new science behind the mind's surprising ability to heal the bodyHave you ever felt a surge of adrenaline after narrowly avoiding an accident? Salivated at the sight (or thought) of a sour lemon? Felt turned on just from hearing your partner's voice? If so, then you've experienced how dramatically the workings of your mind can affect your body. Yet while we accept that stress or anxiety can damage our health, the idea of "healing thoughts" was long ago hijacked by New Age gurus and spiritual healers. Recently, however, serious scientists from a range of fields have been uncovering evidence that our thoughts, emotions and beliefs can ease pain, heal wounds, fend off infection and heart disease and even slow the progression of AIDS and some cancers. In Cure, award-winning science writer Jo Marchant travels the world to meet the physicians, patients and researchers on the cutting edge of this new world of medicine. We learn how meditation protects against depression and dementia, how social connections increase life expectancy and how patients who feel cared for recover from surgery faster. We meet Iraq war veterans who are using a virtual arctic world to treat their burns and children whose ADHD is kept under control with half the normal dose of medication. We watch as a transplant patient uses the smell of lavender to calm his hostile immune system and an Olympic runner shaves vital seconds off his time through mind-power alone. Drawing on the very latest research, Marchant explores the vast potential of the mind's ability to heal, lays out its limitations and explains how we can make use of the findings in our own lives. With clarity and compassion, Cure points the way towards a system of medicine that treats us not simply as bodies but as human beings.
About the Author
Jo Marchant is an author and journalist based in London. Her books tackle the story of humanity, from the wonders of ancient civilisations to the mysteries of our bodies and brains. Her upcoming book, The Human Cosmos (to be published in September 2020) , tells the story of our intimate relationship with the night sky and the universe beyond.Jo's most recent book, the 2016 New York Times bestseller Cure: a journey into the science of mind over body, was shortlisted for the Royal Society science book prize, longlisted for the Wellcome Book Prize and named a book of the year by The Economist and The Sunday Times. Jo's other books are The Shadow King: The bizarre afterlife of King Tut's mummy (2013) and Decoding the Heavens: Solving the mystery of the world's first computer (2009) , which was also shortlisted for the Royal Society science book prize.Jo trained as a scientist: she has a PhD in genetics and medical microbiology from St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College in London, and an MSc in Science Communication from Imperial College London. She previously worked as a senior editor at New Scientist and at Nature, and her articles have appeared in publications including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian and Smithsonian magazine. Her radio and TV appearances include BBC Radio 4's Start the Week and Today programmes, NPR's Fresh Air, CNN and National Geographic. She has captivated audiences around the world, including at the World Science Festival in New York, the Royal Institution in London, Hay Festival, Edinburgh Science Festival, the Emirates Literature Festival in Dubai and the Dutch-Flemish Institute in Cairo.
