Amanda Penn, Author at Shortform Books

Heart Disease Treatment: Diet is Better than Surgery

Heart disease kills 40% of Americans. What are the best heart disease treatments? And is there an effective diet for heart disease management? Although we’ve made huge technological advances in heart disease treatment, the most effective cure might still be what’s on your plate. We’ll cover the research exploring heart disease treatments, discuss why surgery may not be the safest (or most effective) treatment option, and learn the elements of the recommended diet for heart disease treatment.

What Causes Autoimmune Disease? It Could Be Your Diet

What causes autoimmune diseases? Is there anything you can do to prevent them? Most doctors agree that autoimmune diseases are some of the hardest to treat because their cause isn’t well understood and there’s no cure. Is it possible that our food choices affect even these stubborn and grim illnesses? We’ll look at how different autoimmune diseases are related in an effort to understand why they might have a common source.

The Chinese Diet: The Healthiest Way to Eat?

What makes the traditional Chinese diet so healthy? What elements of the Chinese diet can you adopt to make your own eating habits healthier? Learn why the traditional Chinese diet is one of the healthiest in the world, and how you can use it as a template for your own healthy eating.

Heart Disease Causes: Know the #1 Culprit

What are the risk factors for heart disease? And which heart disease cause is the most influential: smoking, eating animal products, or your genes? We’ll look at the research that covers what heart disease is, what causes it, and which risk factors are the most important to be aware of. Learn why heart disease is largely preventable.

Trevor Noah’s Dog Fufi, and Why She Broke His Heart

Who was Fufi? What happened when young Trevor Noah, Fufi, and a neighbor got into an ownership conflict? And how did Fufi cause Noah’s first broken heart? Fufi was Trevor Noah’s childhood dog. Here’s what Trevor Noah’s dog Fufi can teach you about love, relationships, and letting go.

Whole Food, Plant-Based Diet: The Complete Guide

What is a whole food, plant-based diet? And why should I follow it? The whole food, plant-based diet (also known as the WFPB diet) is a disease-prevention diet that involves eating whole plant foods and cutting out animal products. The WFPB diet was popularized by T. Colin Campbell in his book The China Study. Learn why a whole food, plant-based diet might be right for you and get all the tips on how to make the transition.

Diseases of Affluence: Where They Occur and How to Avoid Them

What are diseases of affluence? What causes them? And how can you lower your risk? Diseases of affluence are diseases common in developed, economically prosperous areas. These are also known as diseases of “nutritional extravagance” because they’re linked to “rich” diets high in protein and fat, include coronary heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. Learn what they are, how they develop, and how you can drastically cut your risk.

What Causes MS? 4 Risk Factors to Know

What causes multiple sclerosis? What are the MS risk factors? Are there effective strategies for multiple sclerosis prevention? The causes of multiple sclerosis are unknown, but some researchers have identified four MS risk factors, and some believe we’re getting close to identifying the source of the disease.

Trevor Noah’s Friend Hitler—A Dance Gone Wrong

Comedian Trevor Noah writes about many misunderstandings in his memoir Born a Crime, but perhaps none are as cringeworthy as the story about his friend Hitler’s dance performance at a Jewish community center. Even as they leave the center, Trevor Noah, Hitler, and their dance troupe fail to understand the gravity of the misunderstanding. Learn how their education in South Africa completely failed to impress upon them the extent of the historical Hitler’s crimes and his impact on the Jewish community, and see how this resulted in a humorous, though disastrous, misunderstanding.

Trevor Noah’s Education: The Misfit Who Got Expelled

What was Trevor Noah’s educational experience like? Did he go to private school? Public school? Was he popular? Nerdy? Trevor Noah attended a variety of schools and had a variety of educational experiences, not all of them academic. Learn how getting along with diverse groups of people, getting expelled from his Catholic grade school, and starting his own business as the “tuck-shop guy” contributed to his success as a comedian today.