"From Johns Hopkins medical expert and bestselling author Dr. Marty Makary - an eye-opening look at the health recommendations the medical establishment has gotten wrong, and what you need to know to protect your health. More Americans have peanut allergies today than at any point in history. Why? In 2000, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a strict recommendation that parents avoid giving their children peanut products until they're three years old. Getting the science perfectly backward, triggering intolerance with lack of early exposure, the United States now leads the world in peanut allergies. Could it be that many modern-day health crises have been caused by the hubris of the medical establishment? Experts have been refusing menopausal women hormone replacement therapy based on flawed data, causing unnecessary suffering. They prescribed antibiotics liberally, causing a drug-resistant bacteria crisis. They demonized natural fat in foods, driving Americans to processed carbohydrates as obesity rates soared. When modern medicine issues recommendations based on good scientific studies, it shines. Conversely, when modern medicine is interpreted through the harsh lens of opinion and edict, medical dogma can take on a life of its own, molding beliefs that harm patients and stunt research for decades. In Blind Spots, Dr. Makary explores the latest research on critical topics ranging from the microbiome to childbirth to nutrition and longevity and more, revealing the biggest blind spots of modern medicine and tackling the most urgent yet unsung issues in our $4.5 trillion health care ecosystem. The path to these medical mishaps can be absurd, entertaining, and jaw-dropping - but the truth is essential to our health." -- Provided by dustjacket.