Coronary heart disease is the major cause of death in the UK, being responsible for 31% of male deaths and for 24% of female deaths in 1987 in England and Wales. Preventing Coronary Heart Disease examines these statistics and focuses specifically on policies for its prevention by the Government, general practitioners, and concerned groups. Michael Calnan looks at the feasibility and effectiveness of these health policies and the obstacles in the way of their adoption. Drawing mainly on the discipline of politics, sociology, and epidemiology the author begins by examining the epidemiological...

Taking as its point of departure recent developments in health and social theory Health, Medicine and Society brings together a range of eminent, international scholars to reflect upon key issues at the turn of the century.
Contributors draw upon a range of contemporary theories, both modernist and postmodernist, to look at the following themes:
*health and social structure
*the contested nature of the body
*the salience of consumption and risk
*the challenge of emotions
Health, Medicine and Society provides a 'state-of-the-art' assessment of health...

Do lay people view modern medicine as a fountain of hope or a font of despair? What are their experiences of modern medical care and technology, and how do their views and experiences differ across different social groups? Combining theoretical insights with a range of qualitative and ethnographic research, this volume examines lay experiences and evaluation of medicines and drugs, chronic illness and life-saving technology, and reproductive technologies. It also considers the growing popularity of complementary therapies as a potential challenge to orthodox medicine.