By J. Joseph Speidel
The Building Blocks of Health
In his book, The Building Blocks of Health––How to Optimize Wellness with a Lifestyle Checklist, preventive medicine expert J. Joseph Speidel, MD, MPH, describes why most of us have a lifestyle that harms our health. He documents that by following his Lifestyle Checklist, we can put in place the Building Blocks of Health and reverse much of the lifestyle-related damage to health that leads to illness and premature death. Based on more than 2000 articles from the medical literature, the book lays out the scientific basis of why adopting healthier ways of eating, exercising, and living prevents disease, optimizes, and maintains health.
Author of more than 300 scientific publications
J. Joseph Speidel
Joseph Speidel MD, MPH is a board certified public health physician and Professor Emeritus at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine. He is a graduate of Harvard College, Harvard Medical School, and the Harvard School of Public Health, and serves on the Editorial Board of the University of California, Berkeley Wellness Newsletter. Dr. Speidel is the author of more than 300 scientific publications in the field of health and population.
His previous positions include directing the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Population, president of Population Action International, directing the population grants program at the Hewlett Foundation and Co-director of the UCSF Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health.
As director of USAID and Hewlett Foundation programs, Dr. Speidel was responsible for the management of development assistance and philanthropic awards totaling more than $1 billion. Dr. Speidel has made more than 250 radio, TV, and personal appearances including on ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, BBC, Voice of America, Good Morning America, The Charlie Rose Show, and Larry King Live.
Published Articles
Published Book
Informed Readers
Dr. Speidel has spent his career saving lives. Now, he’s empowering you to save your own. In The Building Blocks of Health, Dr. Speidel breaks down the science of disease prevention into accessible advice that will help you live a longer, healthier life.
– Neal D. Barnard, MD
President, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
Adjunct Professor, George Washington University School of Medicine
My Writing Blog
Follow Along
Endocrine disruptors
An endocrine disruptor is a substance or mixture of chemicals that alter functions of the endocrine system and causes adverse health effects in an intact organism, or its progeny. Endocrine disruptors may mimic the biological activity of a hormone, usually,...
Developmental neurotoxicity (DNT)
Some toxins, such as pesticides, affect the nervous system, and there is thought to be a link between exposure to them and increases in learning and developmental disabilities such as autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and other chronic...
More on environmental toxins
Exposure to tobacco smoke and other forms of air pollution in pregnancy is associated with a wide range of behavioral, neurological, and physical difficulties in babies including stillbirth, placental disruption, prematurity, lower mean birth weight, congenital...