The Second Brain : The Scientific Basis of Gut Instinct and a Groundbreaking New Understanding of Nervous Disorders of the Stomach and Intestines
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List Price: $24.00
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Manufacturer: HarperCollins
Written By: Michael Gershon
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Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 612.32
EAN: 9780060182526
ISBN: 0060182520
Label: HarperCollins
Manufacturer: HarperCollins
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 336
Publication Date: 1998-11-01
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release Date: 1998-10-07
Studio: HarperCollins
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Editorial Reviews for The Second Brain : The Scientific Basis of Gut Instinct and a Groundbreaking New Understanding of Nervous Disorders of the Stomach and Intestines
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After 30 years of research, Dr. Michael Gershon's work has made clear that the human gut actually has a brain of its own (a bundle of nerve cells located in the esophagus, stomach, and small intestine). This second nervous system comes complete with a network of more than 100 million neurons and neurotransmitters with a complex circuitry that enables it to control the bowel and, as the saying goes, produce "gut feelings" separate from the brain's impulses. Dr. Gershon's research has implications for treating heartburn and irritable bowel syndrome as well as relieving the debilitating side effects (nausea, diarrhea, and constipation) of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases and drugs such as Prozac or similar antidepressants.
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Consumer reviews:
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Customer Rating:  
Summary: very fascinating, but no index and no glossary
Comment: The enteric nervous system or the nervous system of the gut is what this book is about. It's not an easy read for people who have no background in science. Before reading this book, one should have a good understanding of ligands, receptors and neurotransmitters because the author doesn't do a very good job of explaining the basics. What makes this book especially difficult to read is the fact that it's highly technical and he uses medical jargon throughout yet he doesn't have a glossary nor an index. With that said, I think there's a tremendous amount of fascinating information in this book worth pondering on. People who are interested in science and medicine and like to read about how scientists go through the process of learning and discovery should read this book.
The main part started out how the author struggled to prove that serotonin was a neurotransmitter in the bowel. Then he went on to explain some of the complexities of the enteric nervous system in detail while asking questions, making more discoveries and explaining what others in the field are doing. I was mostly focused on the beautiful details describing the enteric nervous system. I don't think people realize (or care) that the entire lining of the digestive system from the esophagus all the way to the anus is lined with well over 100,000,000 cells that not only receive information but secrete chemicals that communicate with other parts of the body as well. The mere fact that there are more nerve cells in the bowel than in the spine tells us that digesting food is no simple matter. The enteric nervous system is highly complex because it has to coordinate and process all kinds of information not to mention chemically analyse its contents and secreting the right kinds of chemicals in the exact amounts to digest food and to propel it though the intestines. The propulsion of fecal matter in the rectum mainly just involves the enteric system and muscles of the colon, but it communicates with the spine and brain to coordinate its activities. Sever a connection between the three and you can lose your defecatory and urinary reflex or lose control over them completely. There is a storehouse of other interesting information in this book. One other interesting fact brought up in the book is that the surface membrane on one square centimeter of human intestine is enough ot cover a doubles tennis court. I imagine that the entire surface membrane lining of all of the intestines would at least cover a football field.
Reading books like this helps me to keep things in their proper contexts by making me ponder on the perfection of God's creation. When we go on exile from the world for a while, it makes us better equipped to tackle the problems of everyday life.
Customer Rating:
Summary: The prognosis for the person taking Prozac is troubling.
Comment: I was interested in Gershon's hypothesis about the connection between taking the antidepressant Prozac and the potential for chronic neurological bowel disfunction. At first I was swayed, thinking that, yes, the receptors for serotonin would be desensitized by the longer exposure to the serotonin molecules, due to the blocking of the re-uptake receptor by Prozac. He then freightens the Prozac dependant person with the hypothesis that their natural production of serotonin will decline and further that ultimately, the person has to look forward to an irritable bowel followed by bowel immobility...all due to Prozac's action. What I am wondering is this, are these unfortunate effects of Prozac due to the blocking of the re-uptake receptors or is it due to a presumed increase of concentration of serotonin in the enteric nervous system? If the depressed person is on Prozac because of low seratonin levels, then it seems like their levels of seratonin would just be brought up to normal, thus relieving some of their symptoms of depression but not necessarily causing a surplus in the neurotransmitter, serotonin. I wish the author would more clearly explain this and also I would like it if he would explain how the blood/circulatory system relates to the transport of neurotransmitters in both nervous systems.
Customer Rating:
Summary: In the author's own words: this is not a "how to" document.
Comment: It's nice to get your colleagues to write glowing reviews, but this book only provides hope and no help to the sufferer of chronic bowel problems. It contains excessive extraneous information (the author is allergic to chickens and uses a Macintosh computer), as if you wanted to know. Dr. Gershon admits "I have cured no one in my lifetime," and that he can still hear his beloved father asking him the question: "What disease is that going to cure?" Gershon says he always had trouble answering that question, and he will leave readers with more questions than answers as well. It's hard to believe this is a serious book since it provides no index, even though published by a major book house. One wonders why someone would write a book only to disappoint readers?
Customer Rating:
Summary: This book needs an index.
Comment: This book is timely. Example: amusing comments on the "antacid wars" on TV. The book is crammed with astounding information and remains readable. However, if one forgets what the LES is, the only way to find out is by flipping pages. The lack of an index is inexcusable. The editors should hang their heads in shame. I'm going to wait until they turn on their computers and compile an index before I buy this book. Too bad!
Customer Rating:
Summary: A modern primer on the digestive tract, and more
Comment: The long tradition of first rate scientists who are also talented writers, such as Lewis Thomas and James Watson, is happily continued in "The Second Brain". Gershon describes the operation of the gut for the layman, managing to strike just the right tone without insulting one's intelligence or oversimplifying. The book, frequently witty and amusing, is part memoir and part up-to-date primer on the operation of the gut. A particular triumph is a description of a shootout at a scientific meeting in Cincinnati where Gershon's theories about the importance of seratonin were debated. Later sections of the book become quite technical, such as the seven (?) different varieties of seratonin receptors described in Chapter 9. This is very detailed, but the problem here is that the very complex mechanism that nature has built does not satisfy our wish for simplicity. Gershon tries to show what the scientific struggle to gain understanding is like on the front lines as simple hypotheses often don't work out and complications multiply. In the midst of this complexity, one finds the description of some truly marvelous experiments in embryology. The experimenters replace certain cells of chicken embryos with similar cells from quail embryos. As the embryo develops, it is possible to tell what's become of the originally implanted cells and thus trace the details of embryonic development. The elegance of the experiments and of the tools (immunocytochemical analysis etc.) is very impressive. I would have liked more.
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