The Second Brain: A Groundbreaking New Understanding of Nervous Disorders of the Stomach and Intestine PDF

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Dr. Michael Gershon has devoted his career to understanding the human bowel (the stomach, esophagus, small intestine, and colon). His thirty years of research have led to an extraordinary rediscovery: nerve cells in the gut that act as a brain. This "second brain" can control our gut all by itself. Our two brains -- the one in our head and the one in our bowel -- must cooperate. If they do not, then there is chaos in the gut and misery in the head -- everything from "butterflies" to cramps, from diarrhea to constipation. Dr. Gershon's work has led to radical new understandings about a wide range of gastrointestinal problems including gastroenteritis, nervous stomach, and irritable bowel syndrome. The Second Brain represents a quantum leap in medical knowledge and is already benefiting patients whose symptoms were previously dismissed as neurotic or "it's all in your head."

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• Product Details
• Table of Contents
• Reviews

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Harper Perennial (November 17, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060930721
• ISBN-13: 978-0060930721
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.8 x 8.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

The Second Brain: A Groundbreaking New Understanding of Nervous Disorders of the Stomach and Intestine PDF

This has been a challenging book to read, but well worth the effort. It is a peculiar mix of memoir and introductory textbook on the enteric (gut) system. I found myself woefully unprepared to consume the text. Gershon has tried to write for the lay reader, but that lay reader had better be comfortable with organic chemistry. Despite the jargon, Gershon's enthusiasm is infectious. This would be a great gift for any pre-med student in need of inspiration.

The title is somewhat misleading. 'The second brain' is a catchy phrase, but only token effort is made to prove the assertion. In simple terms, Gershon argues:
1. At the cellular level, enteric neurology uses the same building blocks as spinal neurology, so there is no evidence enteric neurology couldn't be a second brain.
2. The fundamental process managed by enteric neurology is the peristaltic reflex.
3. The peristaltic reflex requires sophisticated neurological controls for managing
a) motion of food through the gut
b) control of pH, viscosity, appropriate digestive enzyme, etc.
4. Since the gut can function adequately despite cutting the neural connection between spine (brain) and gut, the neural mass in the gut must constitute an independent cognitive center (brain).

The first 100 pages address Gershon's efforts to prove enteric neurology uses the same neurotransmitters as the spinal chord. The second 100 pages offers a tour of the gut, starting at the mouth and walking down the lining to the colon. The final section provides a blow-by-blow description of his lab's trial-and-error experimental approach to enteric developmental neurology, with emphasis on microbiological techniques for examining the neural crest's role.

Michael Gershon is a gifted writer and equally gifted scientist. He takes the world of the gut and explains its workings in great detail eliminating historical misunderstandings and common misperceptions along the way.

I thought his development of the history of the branches of the nervous system was fascinating and demonstrated some of the politics and the effects of unexamined assumptions on how scientific discoveries are interpreted.

There is an extensive section on the use of various toxins to discover how the nervous system was organized and this section is developed very logically and includes a lot of interesting scientific history. Sometimes, it included more than I wanted to know, but I must say he was very comprehensive.

This book is also well organized in thorough in every respect. The tour of the GI is well done and includes all the important things one would want to know.

I have a very good background in biology and for me this book was a pleasant read. However, it is not always an easy read and it certainly doesn't read like a dime store novel. It is a book that is intellectually challenging, but fascinating and relatively easy to read considering the scope and depth of the topic.

This is not a quick fix manual for people with gastrointestinal ailments. It is more about how the gut is built and how it works. It would be useful book for someone with gastrointestinal ailments for understanding this part of the body, but the emphasis is not on disease mechanisms and treatments. If that is the only thing you are looking for, then this book may not be for you.