Mintz' book (1985) provides a comprehensive view of the behind the scenes deceitful activities of a pharmaceutical cooporate entity. It also describes how this company blantaly marketed a damaging contraceptive (IUD) in the 1970's to over 4 million women wolrd wide. Although it was written more than 10 years ago, it provides a salient history of this device and its horrific damage. Women worldwide lost their fertility and in some cases they lost their fetus' and or their lives. Mintz' book delves deeply into the nitty gritty of the nastiness of the marketing of this device. He is to be commended for his journalistic and investigative skills. A good and intriguing read. AUTHOR NEEDS TO CONTACT MORTON MINTZ: A more recent publication entitled Unshielded: The human cost of the Dalkon Shield, University of Toronto Press 1-(416)978-2239 ex. 248, author Mary F. Hawkins. October 1997 provides a history of the story and a present day account of the human cost of the Shield to these women still in 1998. Note: Mary Hawkins (e-mail-hawkinm1@alonquinc.on.ca) would like to hear from Morton Mintz. I understand he is pushing for an investigation intot eh Dalkon Shield Trust. I need his help to help me get my book in to the USA market...Have had excellent publicity in Canada. Unshielded covers the international aspect of the story. Sybil Shainwald (lawyer in New York) is trying to link me up with the producer of the Today show. Have not heard anthing yet. Would love to hear from Morton Mintz...did not know his e-mail. Please pass mine onto him. You can use my review also. Mary Hawkins

This book (originally "The Therapeutic Nightmare") will cause you great distress. Not because Morton Mintz has not thoroughly researched and documented all his information. And not because the book is difficult to read or poorly written. This book is frightening because it concerns prescribed drugs many of us take on a daily basis.

Mr Mintz was the reporter who won the Raymond Clapper Award for breaking the story about the sedative thalidomide. This drug caused phocemelia (literally, seal flippers)in babies* whose mothers took it while pregnant with them. Because of thalidomide, a law was passed that gave the FDA the power to require specific procedures be followed in test new drugs for safety and effectiveness.

Mr Mintz discusses many classes of drugs - oral contraceptives, diuretics, antidepressants and antibiotics being just a few of the many discussed. Some are drugs that not currently used, but much more are still in routine usage. Mr Mintz gives frightening statistics of how these drugs do not work and what the side effects are for the various classes of drugs. It is especially scary to read the side effect of a drug that you took and realize all the things that could have go horribly wrong with the body's reaction to the drug.

Though this book is not an easy read nor is it the "feel good" book of the year, I recommend this book to anyone in the health care field to learn more about the drugs being administered. I also recommend this to the layperson who wonders why the FDA system is slower now to approve new drugs. It is an incredible read.

Thalidomide was _never_ prescribed in the U.S, at that time period, though 17 babies were born with phocemelia because free samples from Merrell were distributed by physicians, as was allowed at the time when Merrell filed to sell thalidomide in the United States.

This is the only book about RR that I have found that even seems to be remotely factual. The saying "actions speak for themselves" could never be truer. This is the only book on Ronald Reagan you will ever need to read. You will see very quickly what this man was all about and surely enjoy the 'colorful' stories about those that worked for him. READ THIS BOOK!