We will be talking to Allison Gopnik, author of “The Philosophical Baby”. She does her research from UC Berkeley trying to understand as a recent NY Times article put it “What goes on inside that big baby head”.

Also we are going to be speaking with author and blogger Dr. Lucy Hornstein writes about being a family physician with a solo practice in “Declarations of a Dinosaur” we are calling her right after she sees her last patient of the day on Tuesday. Check out her blog at dinosaurmusings.blogspot.com

Interviews we liked and hope you do too..

We had an interesting conversation with Dr David Nieman at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC. He’s a fellow at the American College of Sports Medicine, a Dr. P.H. and an expert in immunity. We contacted him after reading about the college football teams that already dealt with a flu outbreak of the novel H1N1 virus. He told us that the body is more vulnerable to flu strains after rigorous workouts. His interview will air in a few weeks.

We are still getting interest from the Drs. Rachel Vreeman and Aaron Carroll’s myth busting book titled, “Don’t Swallow Your Gum” Apparently, you can swallow your gum without it lingering in your stomach for 7 years…and after you swallow the gum, you don’t have to wait for an hour before you go swimming. The interview is available in the Sound Medicine archive or as a podcast

We talked about the ethics of prescribing placebos earlier this month. They seem to work, dang it. An article in the August 2009 issue of Wired explores the reasons why: Placebos Are Getting More Effective. Drugmakers Are Desperate to Know Why.

Welcome to the Sound Medicine blog.

We’ll be posting about books we like, studies we find interesting, great medical articles that are circulating and anything else we think merits more attention than we can give it on our hour long weekly program.

First up, our summer reading list

Non-fiction

“The End of Overeating” by David Kessler. The triad of fat, salt and sugar keeps us addicted. Also the book has tips for breaking the addiction (my favorite part)

“The Future of Bioethics” by Howard Brody. He argues that the sensational ethical issues get all the attention, but the more mundane, everyday topics, such as protecting the privacy of medical records are the ones most likely to cause problems for the medical profession and the patient.

Memoir

“A Brain Wider Than The Sky” by Andrew Levy. It’s a beautifully written book about migraines, which sounds odd but the book is an unusual blend of history, medical research and personal accounts about understanding and surviving migraines.

Beach Book

“My Sister’s Keeper” by Jodi Pincoult. It is novel a girl born to be a genetic match for her sister with cancer and offers the drama and suspense that you’d expect from good summertime fiction.